Jim, I think your docs can give you the best advice about this ebcause I think it depends on what type of PEG arrangement you have. For exmple, I know that there is a "button" you can get, if it's expected that you will be dependent or partially dependent on tube nutrition and my impression is that may not need replacing so often. My docs have said the tube itself, if there are no infection problems with the site, can be in for a couple of years. But that may vary by type of tube and your history of infections.

I have had a PEG since April 2005 but I had it replaced July 2006 during a surgery to remove a complete esophageal stricture (they had to pull out the old PEG to do the surgery). So far (knock on wood), I have not had problems with my PEG since then and I am hoping I can solve all my swallowing issues well enough to have it removed before I have to get another one.

However, my medical oncologist, primary care doc, and gastroenterologist are all being pretty cautious about recommending the PEG tube come out even though, like you, I believe I could get by without it if I had to. I am still restricted to liquids and pudding-textured things, however, and also have a very sensitive mouth where sometimes it seems like almost anything causes some burning sensations (sometimes it's better than that--I take a lot of tylenol and aleve), so there are some days where, honestly, it's nice to still have the g tube and pouring cans of stuff down it often is what allows me to work a full day and still get adequate nutrition since I don't have time for two big bowls of soup during a work day filled with meetings.

The other reason my docs (and I, to a lesser degree) are recommending caution in pulling the g tube is concern over how I will get necessary meds down. My Mouth has a lot of fibrous scar tissue in it and little bits of stuff get stuck in spots, so grinding up pills and swallowing them in a glass of water isn't necessarilly optimal. My MO gave me scrips for a liquid form of iron and of Tamoxifen (which I really need to be sure gets into my stomach because it helps prevent breast cancer recurrence) but, unfortunately, both of them are in some kind of alcohol base and set my mouth on FIRE when I tried to swallow them (so now I'm pouring them through the g tube).

I don't know if you have any meds you regularly take but it's worth thinking about if you can swallow pills when you think about getting the tube removed, and, if not, discussing with your docs how you'll get your meds down (for example, I also take a thyroid med and it shouldn't be taken with any kind of food so I will have to just swallow the bitter pill powder in water, and hope I can rinse the bits of it out of the spots in my mouth where things stick, if I get the tube removed).

Believe me, I'm not advocating keeping the tube if you don't have to, but I do see my doctors' points about issues I may have without it. The "button" sounds less intrusive than the tube, easier to cover if you want to go swimming, etc. and I may see if I can just switch to that so I can still do meds that way--at least until I can either swallow pills or until I'm off the Tamoxifen (another 3 years).

Nelie