Liver pain

[sitim]

I have pain under my gut & I am guessing it is my liver hurting.Just lost my insurance thanks to ..........
anyone out there had a specialist ck out this problem.Need to know what I am pulling out of my pocket for a decent diagnoises.Thank you in advance for any help/// Tim

[ceanothus]

Life can be pretty scary at times, but most of the time it all works out okay, even if not as originally planned. I think that sums up my motto for life in general nowadays. Almost nothing in my life ever went as planned, and yet many of the disturbing side-paths have ended up taking me somewhere that turned out to at least be interesting and occasionally kind of wonderful.

Thanks for your kind words. I too am very glad things worked out okay for me and am really happy that I was even able to defeat the HCV eventually, although it took three long efforts at tx to do it. Hope you have very good holidays!

[sitim]

My...Reading your respone to Mike, I am going to feel furtunate for a while any way.Could not think of anyone else that has gone through so much.
I for one am glad that it has turned out "OK" for you & all is well. Just a reminder to cherish every moment of life.
Best whishes.
Tim    

[mikesimon]

Gee, that sounds like a real ordeal. I am happy that you came through it so well.

I had a friend who had a pancreatic issue this past year and the Whipple was discussed in great depth. Fortunately his "pancreatic cyst" turned out to be benign but getting to that point was a lengthy and terrifying experience. One week it looked like cancer and the next we were talking with a lung cancer surgeon because of possible metastasis. That also turned out not to be the case but for a while it looked bad.

Thanks for responding.

Mike

[ceanothus]

Mike, I don't mind the question at all, especially since this is a fairly anonymous forum. I didn't have the Whipple procedure, but it was similar in some ways. I had a choledochal cyst and they removed all of the ducts associated with my liver and pancreas and removed a section of my small intestine, which they used to reconstruct new ducts for me, and then they did a Roux-en-Y choledochojejunostomy to reconnect everything. It was an awfully big surgery, especially awful in that it was only after they started that they realized my liver was fully cirrhotic. The liver transplant surgeon in charge of the surgical team later told me that he was very relieved that my liver did not decompensate on the spot, because my liver looked every bit as unhealthy as the ones they typically discard in transplant surgery. My liver numbers did sky-rocket for about a week after surgery, and I did have a resultant bowel obstruction due to scar tissue a few years later and had to have one more surgery for that but otherwise I made a very good recovery, did not decompensate, and now have achieved SVR from my HCV as well. I was very fortunate that an excellent liver transplant surgeon had recently relocated to Stanford after a decade in Japan and thus had experience with this procedure, as this cyst is a congenital abnormality that is very rare in western populations. At the time (2004) I was told that he was possibly the only surgeon in the western US who had ANY prior experience with it.

[mikesimon]

I didn't mean to intrude on your privacy.
Sorry I asked.

[mikesimon]

Did you undergo a Whipple Procedure?

Mike

[ceanothus]

Thanks for the good wishes. My hand is on the mend. I'll still be in a cast for another week, but the pain is down to a fairly minimal level now. I'm sorry to hear of your friend having pancreatic cancer. That is one of the scariest problems out there, with many unknowns involved and a very low survival rate. I can totally understand your being more worried about your own GI issues right now. I  have lived with that fear myself and know it well. I had a GI issue at one point that I was told would give me a 25% chance of pancreatic cancer if I didn't have surgery. It was a hugely difficult surgery, but I signed on almost immediately rather than live with the fear of pancreatic cancer. It worked out and my risk is back at the normal level, which for most people is a very tiny risk. Get yourself some insurance and have regular checkups, as that offers the best chance at catching serious problems early enough to intervene successfully.

[sitim]

Thank you for taking your time & responding.I had a basic ck up & a blood test & the liver was OKed by the doctor.I guess they look at some numbers that shows the liver performance.I have been reading about the Pancres as well since one of my friends that drank heavy years back & gave it up for last 25 years is in the hospital with Pancreas cancer.He is not looking good! I as well drank back then &that is why I thought the liver may have been an issue.It turns out you were right ,the pain comes from my Colon when I eat spicey foods which i do often, after making an adjustment on consumption of "HOT" foods,the pain is no longer there!!My concern is my Pancreas now since my friend had no previous signs of trouble of Pancreas failure before he was diagnoised with CANCER.I guess that may be common with Alcoholics!
I hope your surgery was successful,my best wishes for your holidays & thank you again!

[sitim]

Thanks for your reply I will keep that in mind as the last resort.My pain seem to have susided & I think spicey foods had something to do with it.A bad habit I have, to gain appetite.Thanks again & happy holidays!!

[fairday2]

that is where my enlarged spleen is hurting.  The liver never felt pain to let me know it was in trouble.  See you doctor, but if you have been sick that could make your spleen enlarge.  It is trying to store red blood cells and eliminate bad cells.  Sickness makes it work harder.  I am hoping that the specialists can let me know something next week as I just found out about my spleen yesterday.  They do not think it has to be removed, but I am to be careful with my activities to not rupture it.  I will find out what they mean.  I was careful in zumba last night.

[BonBon52]

Go to the emergency room..they will treat you with no insurance. My son did that and we got care and tests etc..do this for peace of mind and find out what the pain is about..there is help out there..good luck

[ceanothus]

Hi again! I'm afraid it isn't really possible to give you much of an answer based on such a small amount of information. You should try to see a gastroenterologist first because at this point it really could be any one of a huge number of different issues and is most likely not coming from your liver. Health insurance should be more obtainable now and I'd encourage you to look into that ASAP. In spite of all the horror stories about botched websites, I went online to see what was available for my unemployed brother (with alcohol dependency and signs of cirrhosis) and I didn't have much trouble at all navigating the government website - and that was back during the peak of the horror stories. So I hope you will try to get some insurance and see a gastroenterologist, or at least try to find a clinic that provides inexpensive care to the uninsured. Many county hospitals have such programs. Much info can be gained by relatively inexpensive tests, but to have real certainty it will probably require some of the expensive ones. I can't even say which ones you need because the usual tactic is to start with simpler and cheaper tests and use those results to guide the choices of which tests are needed for the second round. Do be aware that by far the most common causes of pain in that region are things like acid reflux, irritable bowels, gall bladder problems, etc., so try not to jump to the conclusion that its a serious liver disease unless some tests or some medical history are pointing at that. When you have more information you will probably have more questions too, and people here will be glad to help you.

[ceanothus]

Sorry but I had hand surgery yesterday and can't think clearly from the pain. I hope someone else will help you out, as it'll be a few days before I'm up to it.

[sitim]

Thanks for your response.I tried to explain further but I was forced to shorten my question!!The pain I feel goes from left side of my body to the right side under the rib cage.I have not been examined by a doctor yet & that was my question what is the best test to reveal liver problems, ultra sound, biopsy....etc.I am considering seeing a specialist & i'm concerned with the cost as well.I feel tired & have blood shot eyes, lacking appetite.I am not sure exactly what the symptoms of liver problems are, but would like to eliminate that possibility.Let me know what you think.    

[ceanothus]

Do you have a diagnosis of Hepatitis C? Are you on treatment? Do you know the condition of your liver (have you ever had a biopsy)? The liver itself doesn't actually have the kind of nerve endings required to be capable of feeling pain, so pain in the gut is much more likely to be one of many other problems, like acid reflux, gas, gall bladder, etc., although occasionally an enlarged liver can press on other organs and cause some pain that way. You didn't give us very much info to go on here in helping you.