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Post Operative Recovery:

    My PEG tube continued to be a trusty friend, as the post operative swelling made it impossible to swallow again for a few weeks. 

For those of you into gory detail I have included a picture of my scars taken a few days after surgery, with the closing staples still in place. The staples were removed in two stages, some after ten days and the remainder a week later. On both occasions the process was quick and painless using what looked like a fancy pair of pliers. Staples are apparently quicker to insert than stitches, and are less prone to infection. 

  My cancer treatment was now complete and the focus changed to monitoring  my recovery over the coming months and keeping a watchful eye for signs of any reoccurrence. Radiotherapy slows the healing process and I knew it would be a long haul, perhaps two years or more, up to the point when it reached the best it would get to in my case. The treatments are very precise but the degree and speed of recovery depend on each individual patient.
     Over the next few months I had physiotherapy which helped enormously to improve the mobility of my neck and shoulder. My ability to swallow also returned and I resumed feeding, very slowly, orally. The first milestone was reached in April when I felt ready to have my PEG tube removed. Eating and drinking were still slow and painful, but I could maintain my weight and the dietician was happy with my intake so, it was time for the tube to go.
     The removal process was a lot quicker than the insertion and involved the measured application of traction. What this means is that you lay on an examination table, and after ensuring that the tube is unattached internally and the retention balloon is deflated, one nurse distracts your attention while the other one yanks the tube out. By the time I realised what was going on, the tube was out and a surgical dressing taped over the stoma. It didn't hurt, and the stoma healed up in a few days.