15 weeks post treatment today. Wow, it has been a journey. On Friday, my husband is scheduled to have his PEG tube out! No one wants to have a PEG tube. However, I am so grateful for this device which has allowed my husband to get adequate nutrition and hydration since his diagnosis. The nutrition and hydration he needed to stay alive, recover, return to work, take hikes and plan trips with his family and friends. I am totally confident my husband can maintain his weight at this point without the PEG tube. Will it require constant maintenance and monitoring? Yes. Is it like eating before treatment? No. However, he can find things he can eat when he goes out with his friends and manage eating at work. Food brings him a lot less pleasure than before treatment but he has returned to eating 100% of his calories by mouth. He told me this week he has ever been happier in his life. So, if you are in the struggle of treatment or recovery, do not give up. We also found out this week he does need lung treatment or surgery for treatment related issues so this is a big week at our house! There are no medals or greater chances for recovery if you elect not to use a PEG tube. The goal is a cure not avoiding medications or devices. Do whatever you have to do to get through treatment, if that is pain meds or a feeding tube, do what you need to do and do not feel less heroic or strong than other patients. Everyone responds differently and has their own path to recovery. Everything said on this site about how important nutrition and hydration are in the recovery process is true. Do the best you can to meet the intake goals but hang in there if you or your loved one has periods of time when it is really, really, really hard to do it. Hang on to our good days until you can get to your own good days. You can do it. Good bye PEG tube. You have served us well but it is time to break up!