Whipple Warriors

To all my Whipple warriors out there! Some of you have asked about my experience with the Whipple surgery, so here goes. After I CB was diagnosed in 2020 with pancreatic cancer, I was scheduled for the Whipple surgery in December of 2020.

The surgery took 9 and 1/2 hours. Dr Maxwell cut from my breastbone to my navel and removed 10 malignant tumors. She also removed part of my stomach, large intestine part of my pancreas and duodenum. I required no chemo treatment or immunotherapy. Praise God! It did change the way I eat. It is also makes it difficult to gain weight. I have always been thin but now I have to really make sure I eat small meals with a lot of protein and take Creon. You must take the Creon and pantoprazole after this surgery. Yes, I still take both still after 6 years.

Note: Some say you can stop the Creon and be okay. I stopped it a year ago and started losing weight. My dietician said that she sees I this a lot. The pancreas gets worn out and needs the Creon to digest.

For those getting ready to have this surgery the best advice I can give you is to pray, make sure you have an excellent doctor and keep active. I did barre a few years before the surgery and my doctor said it was the best thing for this surgery. It kept my core strong. As soon as I could I went straight back to barre. After the surgery every day get out of bed, take a shower and walk around the ward! It is the best thing to do. Don’t let a day go by without getting up, taking a shower and walking!

Know that your stomach is different. You have to eat intentionally. If I go crazy with sugar, it wreaks havoc on my system. When I eat right, my digestion is better!

If I can pray for you or if you need to talk I’m here!