Hole in the gut...?????

[2badr]

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My dad was recently diagnosed with a "hole in his gut". His liver is "almost gone" - doctor's words, not mine and he was recently admitted to the hospital for his 5th transfusion.

Is surgery the standard procedure for a leaky gut? I would like to give him some questions to ask his FP and Oncologist (he has cancer as well) on Thursday.

Thank you for your time.

(If this is the wrong forum, my apologies.) 😳

 

[EctopicFetus]

My dad was recently diagnosed with a "hole in his gut". His liver is "almost gone" - doctor's words, not mine and he was recently admitted to the hospital for his 5th transfusion.

Is surgery the standard procedure for a leaky gut? I would like to give him some questions to ask his FP and Oncologist (he has cancer as well) on Thursday.

Thank you for your time.

(If this is the wrong forum, my apologies.) 😳

Questions I would want to know are... the "hole in the gut" is there a medical term? where is the hole? in the upper or lower GI. What caused this hole?

As far as the liver being gone... does this mean it isnt functioning? or is it fibrotic or both? What kind of cancer does your dad have? that would probably help create better questions. Truth is you havent given us a good enough history to be really helpful. I would ask for the medical terms and i would want details as to what they are gonna do to treat him and how can he prevent things from getting worse. Hope this helps.

Sorry to hear the bad news man.... Best of luck!

 

[ericdamiansean]

My dad was recently diagnosed with a "hole in his gut". His liver is "almost gone" - doctor's words, not mine and he was recently admitted to the hospital for his 5th transfusion.

Is surgery the standard procedure for a leaky gut? I would like to give him some questions to ask his FP and Oncologist (he has cancer as well) on Thursday.

Thank you for your time.

(If this is the wrong forum, my apologies.) 😳

Pretty much so, probably an ulcer? And yes, a surgical procedure will be required to close it up
Does your dad drink? You'll need to tell us more..it's pretty sketchy.

And the doc was probably using simple terms to explain it to you, hence the 'hole in the gut, liver is gone'

 

[doc05]

this is all very sad but this is not the forum to discuss the matter. please talk to your dad's doctor and ask him to use specific terms, not "hole in the gut." best wishes.

 

[carrigallen]

My dad was recently diagnosed with a "hole in his gut". His liver is "almost gone" - doctor's words, not mine and he was recently admitted to the hospital for his 5th transfusion.

Is surgery the standard procedure for a leaky gut? I would like to give him some questions to ask his FP and Oncologist (he has cancer as well) on Thursday.

I'm sorry, it must be rough news for all of you. I think it would be helpful to know more about the type and extent of your father's cancer.

Having a "hole in your gut" means that he is at risk for losing massive amounts of blood. There are a number of conditions this could describe. It is often due to a deficiency of platelets.

If you are a student, I think it may be helpful to go to the doctor's appointment with your dad so you can learn more about his disease.

Is he visiting with his FP and oncologist on the same day? That sounds stressful; if they do not work in the same area of town.

A few suggestions:
-Tell him to bring all of his medications in with him, and carefully go through them with the FP to check for whether they need refills or need to be discontinued. Especially if he takes pain-killers, you never want to run out of refills.
-If he has had any recent imaging studies done [bone scans, MRI's, brain CT's], make sure he makes a point to discuss the results of these with his oncologist (preferrably) and FP.
-Make sure the significance of any changes in his serum and urine analytes is discussed thoroughly.
-Make sure he explicitly mentions any new symptoms, painful ailments, headaches, or body weight changes which have been started.

Whether your father's condition is terminal or not, I think it is good for you to discuss the options for his end of life care. Are there people at his home (wife, relatives) who can provide hospice care if he is disabled? Does he live in a two-story home? There are also life support choices which need to be discussed with his FP.

I think these may be very difficult subjects to talk about or even think about. There are better forums than SDN for cancer support networks; in fact there are even online support networks for each type of cancer.

 

[2badr]

I'm sorry, it must be rough news for all of you. I think it would be helpful to know more about the type and extent of your father's cancer.

Having a "hole in your gut" means that he is at risk for losing massive amounts of blood. There are a number of conditions this could describe. It is often due to a deficiency of platelets.

If you are a student, I think it may be helpful to go to the doctor's appointment with your dad so you can learn more about his disease.

Is he visiting with his FP and oncologist on the same day? That sounds stressful; if they do not work in the same area of town.

A few suggestions:
-Tell him to bring all of his medications in with him, and carefully go through them with the FP to check for whether they need refills or need to be discontinued. Especially if he takes pain-killers, you never want to run out of refills.
-If he has had any recent imaging studies done [bone scans, MRI's, brain CT's], make sure he makes a point to discuss the results of these with his oncologist (preferrably) and FP.
-Make sure the significance of any changes in his serum and urine analytes is discussed thoroughly.
-Make sure he explicitly mentions any new symptoms, painful ailments, headaches, or body weight changes which have been started.

Whether your father's condition is terminal or not, I think it is good for you to discuss the options for his end of life care. Are there people at his home (wife, relatives) who can provide hospice care if he is disabled? Does he live in a two-story home? There are also life support choices which need to be discussed with his FP.

I think these may be very difficult subjects to talk about or even think about. There are better forums than SDN for cancer support networks; in fact there are even online support networks for each type of cancer.

Ahh, sorry for the confusion.

The term "hole in the gut" was my father's term. I just wondered if it was the same thing as "leaky gut" or perforated "gut". The term "liver is just about gone" was what the FP told my mother.
Since I do not live with my parents, it would be impossible for me to attend the appointment with them. Having spent this summer there with them, I am pretty familiar with a lot of the symptoms you have listed above as I witnessed his struggles first hand instead of word of mouth.

I personally am against the surgery itself, but the final decision should be his.

(I'm not really looking for support, just gathering as much info as I can.)

Thanks 🙂.

 

[2badr]

And the doc was probably using simple terms to explain it to you, hence the 'hole in the gut, liver is gone'

I would assume as much. My dad was just explaining it the way he thought he heard it. Talk about second-hand information....

 

[ericdamiansean]

I personally am against the surgery itself, but the final decision should be his.

(I'm not really looking for support, just gathering as much info as I can.)

Thanks 🙂.

But if surgery's the only thing that's going to make him better, then, perhaps you should think about it, or at least try to convince him into doing it.. all the best

 

[Seaglass]

Hole in the Gut = Surgery. There is no other option (except death).

 

[carrigallen]

Hole in the Gut = Surgery. There is no other option (except death).

1. Do not believe this. Until we know exactly what he means by "hole in the gut", no one may make such generalizations.

2. I would be VERY cautious about what kinds of advice you read on the internet.

3. For Seaglass, I think one would do well to exercise more caution in the assumptions one makes.

"Hole in the Gut" could mean a variety of things, and dispensing advice based on your assumptions is dangerous. Posts should be helpful and informative; not reckless and potentially misinformative.

I'm not trying to attack you, I accept that your intentions were not bad. I'm suggesting it is easy to make big mistakes on an internet forum.

 

[Seaglass]

For one, I am not the treating physician, the OP is not the patient, so my advice means squat. Second, hole in the gut = surgery. Period. If there isn't a hole then fine, but otherwise I stand by my assessment.

Having a "hole in your gut" means that he is at risk for losing massive amounts of blood. There are a number of conditions this could describe. It is often due to a deficiency of platelets.

If you're going to criticise my "reckless" advice, stop giving your own:

Having a "hole in your gut" means that he is at risk for losing massive amounts of blood. There are a number of conditions this could describe. It is often due to a deficiency of platelets.

 

[carrigallen]

Please, Dr Sea. Glass. I am not questioning your medical judgement. I am only trying to help clarify what was stated. I think I was being polite and helpful.

 

[nabeya]

That really doesn't make sense for you to tell Seaglass "to exercise more caution in the assumptions one makes" while at the same time you made your own?? Makes no sense at all. 👎

Having a "hole in your gut" means that he is at risk for losing massive amounts of blood. There are a number of conditions this could describe. It is often due to a deficiency of platelets.

For Seaglass, I think one would do well to exercise more caution in the assumptions one makes.