Dehydration and Lack of Nutrition Requires Intervention

This past Wednesday I had a scheduled appointment with my Oncologist.  By this time I was extremely weak and dehydrated from not eating foods or liquids for the past 3 weeks due to the ulcer condition created in my esophagus from radiation treatments. 

I told the doctor that I needed an intervention. Dr. Marquinez agreed with me that I needed nutrition and fluids because i needed to begin chemotherapy again ASAP.  Dr. Marquinez immediately admitted me to Robinson Memorial Hospital, where I began to receive fluids via IV and scheduled surgery for a "J" tube for feeding into my small intestine. 

My stomach is not in the normal location, so the stomach was not a good option.  Dr. Smith (my surgeon) was called to perfom the surgery on Thursday morning.  The surgery involved about a 4 inch incision in the middle of my abdomen that allowed him to insert a catheter from the "J" tube into the small intestine. My abdomen received about 15 staples to hold the incision together.

I was hospitalized from Wednesday through Sunday this past week. The surgery did cause extreme pain because they do have to cut through muscles in your abdomen. I was given a pain medication regiment. We began the tube feeding on Friday evening and ran it for 24 hours straight at lower rates to see if everything was tolerated well. It went well. We then did a similiar run of tube feeding Saturday night from 7 p.m. to 7 a.m. at a higher rate like I will use at home.  It went well also. This tube feeding will ensure that I get enough nutrition until I am able to eat foods again orally. In addition, if chemotherapy renders me unable to eat, I could also use this feeding tube for up to six months. 

The staff at Robinson from the 2 East wing, surgery, recovery room, etc. were excellent! They truly cared about my outcome! I also was blessed with many visitors throughout my stay, which helped to pass the time and take my mind off of the pain. 

Recently, I had a delivery of feeding tube supplies and food delivered to my home from the insurance company. A visiting nurse came out to go over the set up of the system, which I've started using at home now. The tube feeding is quite expensive at a cost of about $143 per day. 

Now it will be my job to get stronger each and every day. I did a short walk outside today and could feel the extreme weakness. Exercise will be a key to my success!