My second leak test was on Monday last, 30 November. Unfortunately, the repairs of the first leak test proved insufficient as the second leak test showed the original leak path has not closed fully.
However, the leak opening is now smaller in size and the track of the leak is much thinner, described as almost wisp-like on the screen. So progress is being made, even if at a slower than expected rate.
The surgeon said the leak could close by itself over the next year or so, but he can help it along by conducting another non-surgical procedure where a small drain will be placed at the leak opening and the area will be dealt with abrasively to promote scarring and healing. Conducted under general anesthetic and in and out of the hospital inside half a day. This means I’ll undergo another repair procedure on 9 December and the clock restarts with regards to healing and the leak path closing fully.
He says the radiation knocked the area out of commission, more or less, and is very slow to recover. The rate is also slow due to the width of the opening among other things – imagine a large cut on your knee…the edges of skin in the middle might be a fair distance apart and will take time to grow back together. Hence the use of stitches on occasion, but the gap in my case was not wide enough to need stitching initially, although I’ll bet the surgeon might say in hindsight that stitching would have set me right in October with a successful test 2 this week rather than needing a second repair.
I’m also very slow in recovering as the early August surgery took so much out of me, with the body fighting small battles on several fronts. Since the area from the large intestine to daylight at the rear end is not in use right now, the body doesn’t need to focus on fixing anything there with any degree of urgency, which is another contributing factor to the failure of both leak tests.
We will probably give the area a third month to repair this time around, rather than the two months from the early October first leak repair, so it looks like March 2021 for the next test. If successful, the ileostomy reversal surgery will take place within two weeks of the leak test. It could be a Happy Easter after all.
Meanwhile, I need to continue to provide the body with the fuel sources necessary for it to do the repairs. Plenty protein in the diet, plus add some Vitamin D which came back low in a recent test. In addition to bone health, Vitamin D has other roles in the body, including reduction of inflammation as well as modulation of such processes as cell growth, neuromuscular and immune function, and glucose metabolism – all of which will aid in accelerating my healing process.
The ileostomy bag is part and parcel of my daily life at this stage. I’m up two or three times a night to take care of it, so multiple alarm times are set each night as I’m sleeping so well now. The bag only needs to be changed out about every four or five days and that is not the chore it used to be – I haven’t had a leak in ages, a sign of proper placement and care.
Peripheral neuropathy is still with me, although improving every month. Fingers are almost back to normal, but still have a tingling in them. My left foot is still sending wrong signals to the brain – it feels like I have about 4 insoles under it and every solid surface I stand on barefoot feels like it is subzero temperature, and that includes the bathroom floor and even the shower once the hot water is turned off. The right foot is much better, maybe a single insole added. Rubbing my bare feet on surfaces of different texture is supposed to help…things like rubbing my feet with a sock, dragging them along a carpet and also along a coarser rug…the coarser the texture the more painful it feels, but the nerves are being stimulated and will hopefully revert to normal soon. When I’ll be able to drag them along a coarse and bristly surface, like a doormat, without pain will be signal of being cured – that could take another six months or so. I’m still taking a prescription drug for this odd and annoying, but not overly painful, condition.
Weight is staying at the same good level as last report and glucose numbers continue to fall and are now within the normal range, if only barely. I’m walking two miles a day at about 16 minutes a mile pace and I’m feeling stronger every week…I made sure to get my walk done on the day I got the leak test result…no point in wallowing in any sort of pity as a result of a minor setback, since I know I’m going to win the war eventually. Remember, my pathology report from August says I'm Cancer Free.
The initial disappointment of failing the second leak test has passed and I’m back on track to working hard to be ready for the next one. In the big picture, the length of my treatment has extended from 12 months to 16 or so…almost negligible in the great scheme of things.
Once again, I thank everyone for the massive sense of support I feel, whether expressed directly or not. It adds to my motivation when I see the replies and it helps me prove to you that, since you are on my team, I must do all I can to win this.
I’ll update again before Christmas, meanwhile everyone remain safe and manage your health properly – it is priceless.
