How did you make the decission???
Hello all im chatty 53
i was just curious as to how you each made the
decission to do the surgery of your choice? Was it a no
brainer for you or a hard one...?
I am awaiting my approval and i have to say im having all
sorts of feelings about the gastric bypass i need badly..
I have lots of health issues that need tending to but cant
fix till i loose the weight...one of these issues is uterine cancer..
my surgeon says he wont do the hysterectomy on me t hat
i need to stop the cancer until i loose at least 100 to 150 lbs.
meanwhile the cancer grows..
I didnt choose this surgery long ago cause it just didnt feel
right for me but now that im in a different situation with my health i am forced toward it...
so i have so many worries and questions and doubts..
some may say i shouldnt do it then but then i have the choice of letting the cancer get me..so i feel like im between a rock and a wall..
so i was just wondering what brought you all to your
decissions....if you dont mind sharing i would love to listen..
thanks all...
chatty
i was just curious as to how you each made the
decission to do the surgery of your choice? Was it a no
brainer for you or a hard one...?
I am awaiting my approval and i have to say im having all
sorts of feelings about the gastric bypass i need badly..
I have lots of health issues that need tending to but cant
fix till i loose the weight...one of these issues is uterine cancer..
my surgeon says he wont do the hysterectomy on me t hat
i need to stop the cancer until i loose at least 100 to 150 lbs.
meanwhile the cancer grows..
I didnt choose this surgery long ago cause it just didnt feel
right for me but now that im in a different situation with my health i am forced toward it...
so i have so many worries and questions and doubts..
some may say i shouldnt do it then but then i have the choice of letting the cancer get me..so i feel like im between a rock and a wall..
so i was just wondering what brought you all to your
decissions....if you dont mind sharing i would love to listen..
thanks all...
chatty
Chatty 53, What is your BMI? You don't mention weight or BMI.
I had edometrial cancer, which is one of the uterine cancers, in 2006. When I got diagnosed, I was actively doing Weigh****chers and was about 435 at the time. I am 5 feet 10 inches. Being scared for the upcoming surgery I kept up with the WW figuring the more I lost before the surgery the better and I got to 406 before the surgery, which gave me a BMI going in of 58.2. My surgeon never said anything about not having surgery because of my weight. Yes, a risk of any major surgery is death. But untreating cancer is certainly a death sentence! I say GO GET A SECOND OPINION! I had TAH-BSO with lymph node dissection. My cancer was stage 2b so I was lucky not to have to have any chemo or radiation. DO NOT WAIT. this cancer is very curable at the early stages. I would never have waited.
As far as the other part of your ? about what lead to my descion the shortest answer possible would be this: My last few years: 2005 My mom has cancer for the 3rd time in her life, 2006 I have cancer, 2007 my oldest sister who i am very close to decides to get knee replacement and ends up with anoxic brain injury, 2008 my mom dies, 2909 my beloved oldest sister dies after 1-1/2 years of waking up every morning not remembering the day before. Life is a journey. Lots of soul searching for me in the last few years of what I want for my life and what am I willing to do to get it. I am sick of just existing, I want to get out and fully participate in life.
But for you my new friend, the cancer is what you need to concern yourself and get on with dealing right now. my opinion, waiting is proposterous. My sis who is 2-1/2 years older than me (I got 3 older, 1 younger) has a coworker who has been dealing with thyroid cancer. She had a doc who told her the lump she had on her neck was nothing to worry about, just a lipoma. She did not seek a second opinion. Almost a year later, seeing her eye doctor, he saw the lump and was like immediately get this checked! She went to another doc finally and her cancer had spread. She had a major op. About 6 months later, she had another lump on her other side. The cancer had spread more. Letting it go so long, they did the best they could to get it all. Know she has been seeing more specialists and may be ending up with a permanent trach! And who knows if this poor woman will make it. DO NOT WAIT. GET A SECOND OPINION. Dont let some doc convince you you have to die because you are fat! You have to be your own health advocate!
Feel free to PM me if you want any specifics. BE STRONG!
I had edometrial cancer, which is one of the uterine cancers, in 2006. When I got diagnosed, I was actively doing Weigh****chers and was about 435 at the time. I am 5 feet 10 inches. Being scared for the upcoming surgery I kept up with the WW figuring the more I lost before the surgery the better and I got to 406 before the surgery, which gave me a BMI going in of 58.2. My surgeon never said anything about not having surgery because of my weight. Yes, a risk of any major surgery is death. But untreating cancer is certainly a death sentence! I say GO GET A SECOND OPINION! I had TAH-BSO with lymph node dissection. My cancer was stage 2b so I was lucky not to have to have any chemo or radiation. DO NOT WAIT. this cancer is very curable at the early stages. I would never have waited.
As far as the other part of your ? about what lead to my descion the shortest answer possible would be this: My last few years: 2005 My mom has cancer for the 3rd time in her life, 2006 I have cancer, 2007 my oldest sister who i am very close to decides to get knee replacement and ends up with anoxic brain injury, 2008 my mom dies, 2909 my beloved oldest sister dies after 1-1/2 years of waking up every morning not remembering the day before. Life is a journey. Lots of soul searching for me in the last few years of what I want for my life and what am I willing to do to get it. I am sick of just existing, I want to get out and fully participate in life.
But for you my new friend, the cancer is what you need to concern yourself and get on with dealing right now. my opinion, waiting is proposterous. My sis who is 2-1/2 years older than me (I got 3 older, 1 younger) has a coworker who has been dealing with thyroid cancer. She had a doc who told her the lump she had on her neck was nothing to worry about, just a lipoma. She did not seek a second opinion. Almost a year later, seeing her eye doctor, he saw the lump and was like immediately get this checked! She went to another doc finally and her cancer had spread. She had a major op. About 6 months later, she had another lump on her other side. The cancer had spread more. Letting it go so long, they did the best they could to get it all. Know she has been seeing more specialists and may be ending up with a permanent trach! And who knows if this poor woman will make it. DO NOT WAIT. GET A SECOND OPINION. Dont let some doc convince you you have to die because you are fat! You have to be your own health advocate!
Feel free to PM me if you want any specifics. BE STRONG!
One more thing I thought of, what kind of doctor is the doctor who told you this? Your PCP, a general surgeon, a specialist? My surgery was done by a gynecological oncologist. You need a specialist. If you live anywhere in New England I would be glad to give you my doctors name and contact info so you can have it in Boston.
Thank you for your story and advice and info..it does help hearing others..
oh i did forget to put my BMI... its 74.....im only 5 ft. tall and carry all my weight in my stomach and butt..
i weight 378
the ob/gyn did the byopsies on me and when the results came in she refered me to the gynecolgist surgeon who then told me of my uterine cancer..i had another one of the drs too confirm it..so he said right now im i stage one..there are 4 stages and he said within 1 or 2 yrs it will get near that and he said dont let it..go get the weight off and then come back to me to do what surgerys you need to fix me..
so this is why im going for the gastric..
my surgeons and dr. both agreed waiting and dieting slowly is not optional for me..i am fighting time he said ..so he wrote a letter of medical necessitiy to my insurance on my behalf stating its life and death..
oh i did forget to put my BMI... its 74.....im only 5 ft. tall and carry all my weight in my stomach and butt..
i weight 378
the ob/gyn did the byopsies on me and when the results came in she refered me to the gynecolgist surgeon who then told me of my uterine cancer..i had another one of the drs too confirm it..so he said right now im i stage one..there are 4 stages and he said within 1 or 2 yrs it will get near that and he said dont let it..go get the weight off and then come back to me to do what surgerys you need to fix me..
so this is why im going for the gastric..
my surgeons and dr. both agreed waiting and dieting slowly is not optional for me..i am fighting time he said ..so he wrote a letter of medical necessitiy to my insurance on my behalf stating its life and death..
Did they suggest how you were going to lose weight? My WLS surgeon told me I had to lose 60 to 80 pounds before I could have my weight lose surgery. That was a starting BMI for me of 70.4 at my highest, right now I am 63.6 and I need to get to a range of 61.8 to 59.0. I have a surgery date of 9/29 as I have been picking up momentum and have to lose only 15 to 20 more now to be in the middle of that range. I have been doing a liquid fast diet which is something you may have to do but you can do it. Is just hard at the beginining. One thing I do know, estrogen is released from fat cells and estrogen feeds adenocarcinoma. Which is a reason why being overweight is a risk factor for cancer. And even after cancer surgery, the thinner one gets the better.
It can take quite a while to get approved for surgery, go through all the requirements, lose any preop weight you may be required to lose, I would suggest you may want to look into doing a medically supervised fast while going through the process. Even if you ended up having the WLS in a year, then it will still at least a year to lose 100 to 150 pounds. Is a long time!
Many years ago, I did a medically supervised fast and lost 130 pounds in about 11 months. Of course, I gained it back eventually because eventually I had to eat food again. But I think doing in preperation for WLS is a good idea.
Just some random thoughts before I head to bed.
hi again
my surgeon did not say anything more than i need the gastric by pass now..not later..he said i need to loose that good amount of weight and the only way that i can get that accomplished is with the gastric surgery...so he said he would help me get it..
I was told that 2 weeks prior to the surgery date that i will go on a liquid diet to shrink the liver..but thats all i have been told...
i am loosing wieght slowly now by counting my calories and i have lost about 20 lbs so far but like i said slowly..
i was worried about how long it would take to get approved and t hen also loose the weight i need..i am torn between this cause i wonder if i just continue loosing like i am if i should just do it this way..
i ping pong back and forth with what i should do and that scares me..
i know gastric bypass is a trastic move and i will be facing alot of new ways of eating and living...
being so afriad is freezing my brain..i have over thinked it all and im almost brain dead..hahahaha
i fear doing it and i fear not doing it..maybe im a lost
cause..
i dont want to loose my hair or have bowel problems or get an ulcer or have a tear in my incission or dump on a constant basis..i been reading all about these and man that is scary....
but i dont want to die either and i just dont know how fast the cancer will grow...if i could loose the weight on my own i would but the surgeon says time is not on my side and said the cancer will get me within 1 to 2 yrs..so see that 1 part worries me cause it is going to take that long..yikes .
i feel dammed if i do and dammed if i dont..am i making any sense??? thanks for responding and helping me cope..it helps alot..
my surgeon did not say anything more than i need the gastric by pass now..not later..he said i need to loose that good amount of weight and the only way that i can get that accomplished is with the gastric surgery...so he said he would help me get it..
I was told that 2 weeks prior to the surgery date that i will go on a liquid diet to shrink the liver..but thats all i have been told...
i am loosing wieght slowly now by counting my calories and i have lost about 20 lbs so far but like i said slowly..
i was worried about how long it would take to get approved and t hen also loose the weight i need..i am torn between this cause i wonder if i just continue loosing like i am if i should just do it this way..
i ping pong back and forth with what i should do and that scares me..
i know gastric bypass is a trastic move and i will be facing alot of new ways of eating and living...
being so afriad is freezing my brain..i have over thinked it all and im almost brain dead..hahahaha
i fear doing it and i fear not doing it..maybe im a lost
cause..
i dont want to loose my hair or have bowel problems or get an ulcer or have a tear in my incission or dump on a constant basis..i been reading all about these and man that is scary....
but i dont want to die either and i just dont know how fast the cancer will grow...if i could loose the weight on my own i would but the surgeon says time is not on my side and said the cancer will get me within 1 to 2 yrs..so see that 1 part worries me cause it is going to take that long..yikes .
i feel dammed if i do and dammed if i dont..am i making any sense??? thanks for responding and helping me cope..it helps alot..
You are making total sense. These are big decisions (no pun intended) and it makes sense to have doubts. My view of the situation is that I have an arsenal of tools to choose from.
Monitored eating plan (WW, South Beach)
Meal replacements (NutriSystems)
Medical fasts (Optifast, Medifast)
Restrictive surgery (band, sleeve)
Restrictive & malabsorb (RNY, DS)
Exercise
Psychological help
Support of friends & OH
I also had good success with Medifast - I lost 90 lbs in about 5 months, but have been stuck there for a year because I cheat. It's a tool, but worn out for me.
I'm ready for another tool. But I need a bigger tool. I still don't know what surgery I want (well, I don't want, but need). My hurdle right now is quitting smoking so I can have any of the surgeries.
I agree with the previous poster that you should get a second opinion about having the cancer surgery sooner rather than later. Do you have significant other co-morbids that might preclude having the cancer surgery first? Maybe the surgeon is thinking that lap RNY might be all you could tolerate in the near term.
Best wishes on your journey.
Monitored eating plan (WW, South Beach)
Meal replacements (NutriSystems)
Medical fasts (Optifast, Medifast)
Restrictive surgery (band, sleeve)
Restrictive & malabsorb (RNY, DS)
Exercise
Psychological help
Support of friends & OH
I also had good success with Medifast - I lost 90 lbs in about 5 months, but have been stuck there for a year because I cheat. It's a tool, but worn out for me.
I'm ready for another tool. But I need a bigger tool. I still don't know what surgery I want (well, I don't want, but need). My hurdle right now is quitting smoking so I can have any of the surgeries.
I agree with the previous poster that you should get a second opinion about having the cancer surgery sooner rather than later. Do you have significant other co-morbids that might preclude having the cancer surgery first? Maybe the surgeon is thinking that lap RNY might be all you could tolerate in the near term.
Best wishes on your journey.
all good suggestions and i hope for you as well that yur
quest be a good one as well..
as for having the cancer surgery done first i cant..
Im too high of a risk and he and another surgeon refuse to
put me under the knife until i loose enough weight to lower the risk..my fat is in the way and makes it difficult for them to
properly go in either vaginally or open...
The tried to do the hysterectomy but it was a failed attempt.
while they are in there they need to also tack up my colon and bladder..so see lots to fix...but my FAT
is my enemy....
thanks for the reply i appreciate it..
quest be a good one as well..
as for having the cancer surgery done first i cant..
Im too high of a risk and he and another surgeon refuse to
put me under the knife until i loose enough weight to lower the risk..my fat is in the way and makes it difficult for them to
properly go in either vaginally or open...
The tried to do the hysterectomy but it was a failed attempt.
while they are in there they need to also tack up my colon and bladder..so see lots to fix...but my FAT
is my enemy....
thanks for the reply i appreciate it..
Hi Chatty ,
God Bless you girl and I will keep you in my prayers !! I am currently waiting on approval for the Insurance (Going for the RNY) and I am 355 pounds 5 ' 7 and have a BMI of 54 :( I am wanting to get my life back as well . I see so many around me passing and to think that all I do is rott behind this desk and never get to play with my 3 and 4 year old because Im always tired or I cant breath or stand longer then 5-10 minutes without hurting. Keep your head up and know that your mom and sis are in a better place :)
Good Luck !!
Jenny P.
God Bless you girl and I will keep you in my prayers !! I am currently waiting on approval for the Insurance (Going for the RNY) and I am 355 pounds 5 ' 7 and have a BMI of 54 :( I am wanting to get my life back as well . I see so many around me passing and to think that all I do is rott behind this desk and never get to play with my 3 and 4 year old because Im always tired or I cant breath or stand longer then 5-10 minutes without hurting. Keep your head up and know that your mom and sis are in a better place :)
Good Luck !!
Jenny P.
jenny
i wish yu luck in your surgery as well and hope its not a
long wait..its hard waiting isnt it...
your 3 and 4 yr old will be so happy when your able to get down on the floor with them or play in the yard and run around being silly....thats what life is about...good luck and keep me posted on when you get approved and how its going please..i do care..
hugs............chatty
i wish yu luck in your surgery as well and hope its not a
long wait..its hard waiting isnt it...
your 3 and 4 yr old will be so happy when your able to get down on the floor with them or play in the yard and run around being silly....thats what life is about...good luck and keep me posted on when you get approved and how its going please..i do care..
hugs............chatty
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