Hi Amy,

Thanks so much for the enouragement. It makes me feel like I'm trying to do the right thing and not just over reacting. I couldn't agree with you more about this being a safety feature. Having the PEG definitely relieved the stress and worry about nutrition during the first battle and that's why I want him to have it now.

I realize how valuable a PEG is in these circumstances. He would have never been able to survive the treatment the first time around with out one. His throat and mouth were burnt so badly from radiation, he could barely speek, much less eat and drink. He went for 3 solid months with absoluting nothing but small sips of water passing his lips.

Getting enough nutrition is obviously becoming an issue again because he is losing weight. He is trying very hard to eat on his own but as I said, he has no teeth, has some problems with his jaw bones, and now this tumor on his tongue is causing him much pain. Still, he is determined to eat on his own without a tube.

Part of his refusal thus far is due to problems he had with the PEG before. I have read several posts here that a feeding tube isn't too much trouble. However, we had constant complications from his the first time around. There were constant infections in and around his stomach. After weeks and weeks of problems, they finally decided his was "malfunctioning" and tried to replace it. They couldn't get it to deflate. They jerked so hard on it trying to pull it out, that it tore his stomach and he started bleeding internally. They had to go down his throat to deflate the balloon and repair the tare before they could put in a new type of PEG. I know these kinds of problems are not typical, but I can't convince him of that.

Not knowing how a glossectomy and possible neck dissection is going to affect his ability to eat this time around, I have been trying to convince him to have it put back in. I've been telling him the advantages far out weigh the problems.

Also, the doctors have not yet mentioned themselves about putting the PEG back in. From from I've read, they usually use a temporary tube down the nose after surgery. I plan to talk to the surgeon when we see him Tuesday. I'm hoping the surgeon will agree with me and help convince Jimmy otherwise. Still, I don't know if they would if Jimmy doesn't want it.

Hope and Hugs, V