On May 11, 2009 I under went a whipple procedure. The diagnosis before the surgery was a possible pancreatic cancer. After the surgery, it was found out to be Autoimmune Pancreatitis. The only tests that were done for the doctor to make that diagnosis was a CT scan, and blood work. I would like to know what tests were performed on other people that found out that they had Autoimmune Pancreatitis. Also I would like to know what people went threw a whipple procedure, as I did only to find out that they also had Autoimmune Pancreatitis? If you did have the whipple procedure only later to find out it was NOT pancreatic cancer, what have you done know due to your misdiagnoses?
It's terrible that you were mis-diagnosed and as a result, underwent such a drastic surgery. I've heard that since autoimmune pancreatitis often mimics pancreatic cancer, doctors often perform an endoscopic core needle biopsy, which is a procedure that allows them to obtain samples of pancreatic tissue for analysis without surgery.
zuzu
The Following User Says Thank You to zuzu8 For This Useful Post: gg68draft (02-09-2012)
P.S. If you have the time and/or inclination, you might consider a lawsuit. Your doctors' failure to differentiate AIP from cancer lead to unnecessary pancreatic surgery.
AIP is often a relatively benign disease which responds well to medical therapy.
A trial of steroid therapy may have prevented you from having to go through the Whipple.
zuzu
Last edited by zuzu8; 02-09-2012 at 01:39 PM.
The Following User Says Thank You to zuzu8 For This Useful Post: gg68draft (02-09-2012)
my husband had a bile blockage in August (turned yellow) and a whipple a month later (last Sept13th). They removed a fairly large pancreatic tumor, but found no traces of cancer in surrounding tissue. He is getting chemo 3 wks on and one wk off, and generally feeling well and has regained weight lost from the surgery recovery period. We are going to the VA for treatment, and have seen so many different doctors, PA's and nurses, and are told so many different "life expectacy" predictions, we are truly not know what to expect. They said they normally don't do cat scan again until after 6 mos. of chemo, but then we were told he may not love that long. We don't see any obvious signs of sickness, except tired ness and he is 73, so tiredness is not unussall anyway! So, we are 5 mos post whipple surgery and getting a different opinion just about every week. Have others been throu
gh this same confusion?
