Medical Options are Dwindling for Nancy

I wish I had begun this blog sooner so I could have started it with more encouraging news and to get the word out to more people before things started getting as bad as it seems they are now for Nancy's health. Nancy is still in the hospital with the GI obstruction. Although there is still some debate as to the reason for the obstruction, her oncologist, the GI specialist and her surgeon all feel that there is little that can be done to correct the problem -- without subjecting Nancy to undue surgical trauma. They are doing a CT scan today to determine whether they can get a better handle on where the bowel is obstructed. If the obstruction is near the stomach, there is a possibility that she could have the NG tube removed and a gastric tube inserted through the abdominal wall. The plain film x-rays didn't reveal much about the location of the obstruction -- probably because of the volume of tumor surrounding the obstruction and obscuring the x-ray view of that area. I expect we will have a better handle on the limited options available to Nancy later today.

However, even if the gastric tube is possible, the GI specialist suggested it may not work nearly as well as the NG tube at preventing GI distension, nausea and vomiting (symptoms she was trying stop by having the medical professionals do their best). The gastric tube is just an option that would allow her to have the NG tube removed. With the NG tube or the gastric tube, Nancy still would not be getting sufficient nutrition because without removal of the obstruction, food can't pass through the intestine. Regardless of the CT scan, Nancy has indicated that she will probably choose to just go home with the NG tube (which which she is doing pretty well) and get some home nursing assistance to allow her to continue a little while longer. I will post another entry sometime latter today with more information.