Pancreas removal

[jules1]

Hi. Am about to have my pancreas removed which will leave me as a diabetic type 3c. Can anyone give me any information about how best to deal with this? Recovery/ diet/ any practicalities and advice welcome

 

[rebrascora]

Hi and welcome

Sorry to hear that you are losing your pancreas. I hope the op goes smoothly for you.

We have a few members here who have gone through whole or partial removal and now use insulin and of course many of us who still have our pancreas but need to inject insulin..... something I was quite fearful of when first diagnosed but it is really so easy and after a few months it is almost normal to inject several times a day now. Injecting the correct amount of insulin is more challenging as so many variables affect Blood Glucose levels that balancing it is a very skilled art....hope you are not a perfectionist as you will find this aspect frustrating to say the least. At least, with your pancreas gone, it is unlikely that you will have to deal with the honeymoon period where it intermittently produces insulin when you least expect it and haven't calculated for it, which can be particularly trying.
Anyway, hopefully other Type 3c s will be along soon to give you more encouragement and the benefit of their experience.

 

[Ljc]

Hello @jules1 , welcome to the forum. I am sorry to hear you are having to go through this. We have several people who have been through similar I hope that @pottersusan or @eggyg will be along soon.

 

[Flower]

Hello @jules1 and welcome 🙂

I'm sorry to hear that you are having to have your pancreas removed. If you type Type 3c and/or pancreatectomy into the Search box at the top right hand side of this page it will bring up the threads that have been started on the subject.

 

[eggyg]

Hello and welcome Jules. I had a partial removal ( distal pancreatectomy) 12 years ago. As I still had a third of my pancreas left I didn’t become diabetic straight away whereas if you’re having a TP ( total pancreatectomy) you obviously will be diabetic straight after surgery and you’re correct in saying you will be Type 3 c, like me, but there’s no drop down box for it! It doesn’t matter the “ title”, we are ( or should be) treat as a Type 1. Unlike auto immune type 1s, you won’t have, what they call, a honeymoon period, that’s where the pancreas still produces some insulin. It’s a lot to take in and I suggest, if it hasn’t already been organised, that you speak with someone re your diabetes regime BEFORE your op. It’s a tough op and you’re most likely not going to feel very well for a while and to come to terms with testing and injecting whilst recovering could be tough. Another thing to know, if you already didn’t, is you won’t be producing any digestive enzymes to help you digest your food, this can lead to malnourishment if you don’t take a supplement like Creon. I know I’m making it sound terrible but I’m still here and I probably wouldn’t have been without the operation. So diabetes is the least of my worries. Good luck with the op and ask me any questions you wish either on here or PM me if you prefer. Elaine.

 

[Meg490]

Hi I haven’t really posted much on here but always look at forum for hints and saw your post. My husband had a total pancreatectomy 3and a half years ago and from day one was insulin dependant but the help he got at the hospital was amazing. He was in 3 weeks and came home able to inject himself despite his fear of needles, yes he has to take creon but is now very well and stable. It’s a difficult long operation and I don’t know your age but my husband is now 78 and coping fine. You can feel free to pm me but I’m not very computer literate so hope I can find it! All the very best with your op I’m sure others will help as well.