Cancer stories

Leslye’s story

My symptoms started with itchy skin. After a few days I was jaundiced and had dark coloured urine and back pain. I thought I had a problem with my gall bladder so I went to Emergency.

The doctors did several tests and scans and couldn’t figure out what was wrong, so they put a stent into my gall bladder to prevent it from becoming blocked.

The stent was changed four times over the course of a year. I had regular scans but no cancer was detected.

I wasn’t feeling well and I had a bout of pancreatitis, so my surgeon removed my gall bladder and did a biliary bypass. They were then able to see that I had a pancreatic neuroendocrine tumour on the head of my pancreas.

One good thing for me was that I didn’t have to have chemotherapy or radiotherapy.

I had a Whipple procedure. It was a serious operation and I was in hospital for five weeks.

During recovery in hospital, I didn’t have a feeding tube – I drank water and built up to other fluids. Over the next six months, I lost a lot of weight because I didn’t eat a great deal.

I now eat a mostly vegetarian diet with meat 1–2 times per week. I take a digestive enzyme supplement called Creon with food and increase the dose with a larger meal. I try to eat well most of the time.

I rarely eat sugary, fatty or dairy foods. I’m able to maintain a healthy weight.

Since I’ve learned to manage my diet, I was able to go overseas this year on a European river cruise. I was careful with what I ate and I rested a few days when I needed to, but I didn’t have any serious problems.