MikeFromNY

Hi all, for the last month I've been in full speed getting all the medical clearances needed for my surgery. However, the whole time I couldn't get past the fact that I have been diagnosed with Barrett's early on, even before I met with my bariatric surgeon for the first time. Barrett's is an inflammation of the esophagus which can lead to a cancerous state in a very small percentage of those affected, usually caused by GERD or chronic acid reflux but not always. The first time I met with my bariatric surgeon I told him straight off that I had Barrett's disease because i knew it could be an issue with getting banded and reaction was very cavalier. His only reaction was that he had seen it before. He didnt say he would review my records or speak to my doctor and get a better idea of the extent of the condition. This sent up a big red flag. When I went to the required support group meeting the following night I posed the question to the surgeon's PA if people with Barrett's should be banded. He gave me a definitive NO. Another even bigger red flag. I started doing my own research on Barrett's and the band and found out that the manufacturer Allergan lists Barrett's and any inflammatory condition as a contraindications for the band, same thing with the FDA! A google search supported that finding with posts found on forums and even in the book associated with this website. So, I can't take the chance. I've lost all confidence in my surgeon for not addressing the issue properly and feel that he doesn't have my best interests at heart. He has a good reputation but seems to be more surgery-volume minded. I'm getting a bad vibe. I can't take the chance of worsening my condition and winding up with dysplasia ( cancerous state) from the added stress on my esophagus. Thirty- four percent of banded patients experience reflux and for people with Barrett's that number may be too high. I am very disappointed that it has come for this especially after the tremendous effort and copays I have put forward so far. On the bright side, every part of me has been poked and prodded and examined and I'm in pretty good shape otherwise. I have lost 10 pounds on the pre-op diet and will continue to do my best to drop some pounds. I've found a really good program online that my son told me about called MyFitnessPal to help count calories and activity. I just wish this surgeon would have been more forth coming with me from the first consultation. Your comments please.

Thank you all for your thoughts. Id like to add one thing, incredibly enough when the patient liaison called me back about canceling my surgery her main concern was whether I spoke to the Allergan company or not. I learned that any surgeon implanting their device must be approved by the company and I don't think this would have gone over too well with them. I told them its posted conspicuously all over their website and that was the end of the conversation. I feel like I almost drove off a cliff.

Hi All, Surgery date is August 15, 2013 (next week). I have Barretts on first endoscopy biopsy and not on second endoscopy biopsy so it's not so prevalent throughout. Surgeon seems unconcerned. Says he has banded numerous patients with Barretts. Anyone else here banded with Barretts? Seems it is contra-indicated depending on what and where you read. Thanks, Mike

I will be banded in 10 days. I've done a ton of research and have spoken to people that gave up on their band. The vast majority of those that gave up on their bands were non-compliant, never followed through with office visits, never got past their psychological bond to over-eating, and basically had unrealistic expectations of the effectiveness of the band under those circumstances. Yes, there were a few genuine cases of bands needing to be removed due to complications but those were dwarfed by the number of success stories. For some one to go years and years and state that they didn;t lose any weight is just plain foolish. It just goes to show that your food choices were poor and your effort to exercise was minimal, and you lack the motivation to change that. Good luck with the sleeve, but be aware you can sabotage your efforts with any WLS as you already know.

Tell Aunt Flow to stay in a motel.

Ha! If the Governor of NJ can tell the world then so can I. I told my immediate family and people I work with. I've already been told by one other guy at work that he's thinking about lap band also. If people ask sincere questions I'm glad to answer them. If anyone doesn't like it for whatever reason they can lump it. People can be really strange.

Do you have a permit for those guns? LOL, nice going doode!

Good luck to all!