Altering Habits to Keep Alive: Barry’s Esophageal Most cancers Journey

Barry Levine was “wholesome as a horse” for many of his life. He even did excessive depth CrossFit coaching. However in 2022, he began having bother swallowing his dinner.

“It felt like meals was getting caught slightly below my rib cage,” he says.

When antacids didn’t assist, he went to the physician. They despatched him to a coronary heart specialist first. After a battery of exams, his coronary heart acquired the all-clear.

Then, he visited a digestive specialist. They carried out an higher GI endoscopy, the place the physician inserts a protracted, skinny tube down the throat to take a look at the higher digestive system. When he wakened from the process, Barry obtained life-changing information.

“The physician stated he hadn’t biopsied but, however he’d seen sufficient most cancers to know,” Barry remembers. “It was a complete shock.”

One other Endoscopy to Make Certain

After the preliminary analysis in August 2022, Barry visited Robert Marsh, MD, an oncologist working towards close to Barry’s house in Gainesville, Virginia. Marsh defined that his observe works carefully with docs at UVA Well being’s NCI-designated Complete Most cancers Middle in Charlottesville.

He despatched Barry to Vanessa Shami, MD, on the UVA Well being Digestive Well being Middle. She did one other endoscopy and endoscopic ultrasound to verify and stage the most cancers.

“As I used to be on the point of get put to sleep,” Barry remembers, “Dr. Shami walked within the room, and earlier than she even launched herself, she checked out me and stated, ‘Hey, you are going to get by this, and you need to consider you are going to get by this.’ I used to be so comforted by that. She was superb.”

The endoscopy and biopsy confirmed the analysis and stage of the most cancers. Now that he was certain he had esophageal most cancers, it was time to start out therapy.

Beginning Most cancers Remedy Near Residence

After analysis, Barry was in a position to begin therapy near house. He had 6 weeks of chemotherapy as soon as every week. He additionally had radiation remedy 5 days every week for six weeks.

Barry was in a position to proceed his work for a software program producer by most of therapy. He labored from his house workplace along with his 2 golden retrievers by his facet.

“I’m very lucky that I labored for such a terrific firm that principally stated for me to work as a lot or as little as attainable,” he stated. “Actually, I wanted the distraction.”

Conserving a guidelines of duties helped Barry preserve going throughout therapy.

“One process was chemotherapy. The opposite process was radiation remedy. I acquired by that, and it wasn’t horrible,” he says. “It wasn’t nice, nevertheless it wasn’t horrible, particularly once you see different folks that look a lot worse than me.”

An Esophagectomy Earlier than the Holidays

After chemotherapy and radiation, the following process on Barry’s listing was surgical procedure. He went to UVA Well being in November for a scan and to satisfy with thoracic surgeon Linda Martin, MD, MPH, on the Emily Couric Scientific Most cancers Middle. She scheduled his surgical procedure for Dec. 23.

At first, Barry wasn’t certain about surgical procedure over the vacations.

“I stated, ‘Are you kidding me?’”

Martin advised him she’d scheduled the surgical procedure for a quieter time as a result of she would wish many of the day for the process. She was going to carry out an esophagectomy, a surgical procedure to take away a part of Barry’s esophagus and a part of his abdomen. Then she would connect the remaining part of his abdomen to the remaining esophagus.

“The Happiest Man in Charlottesville”

Barry stated the 3-week wait earlier than surgical procedure was nerve-wracking.  

“It’s the one time I ever actually acquired scared by this complete course of,” Barry says. “She stated, ‘I do know it will be exhausting, however we’ll get by it.’ And we did.”

The esophagectomy went effectively. Barry was solely within the intensive care unit for 12 hours after surgical procedure earlier than he moved to an everyday room.

“I used to be the happiest man in Charlottesville,” he says. “They took actually excellent care of me. I used to be by no means in ache,” he says.

Studying to Eat Once more After Esophagectomy

Barry went house on Dec. 29 with a feeding tube connected at his waistline, which he saved for six weeks. His new process was studying find out how to eat once more with the help of UVA Well being nutritionist Monica Hershey, RD.

“I say I haven’t got a abdomen anymore. I’ve a tube that’s my abdomen. And so, it is my new regular,” he says. He began out consuming pureed soups, cottage cheese, and different mushy meals. Scrambled eggs got here subsequent.

“When my spouse made me that first scrambled egg, it was simply pure ecstasy,” he remembers.

Barry sleeps upright so he doesn’t regurgitate and get meals in his lungs. He’s realized to maintain wholesome snacks and meals with him and regulate his consuming habits to keep away from digestive issues.

“My largest problem is that I can eat just a little bit all day lengthy. I am unable to sit down and have a meal,” he says. “I am 64 now, and it is exhausting to alter your life at this age, however I’ve to alter my life if I need to keep alive.”

He is made quite a lot of modifications to his weight loss plan, together with consuming:

• White fish, nuts, and different high-protein meals
• Floor turkey as an alternative of floor beef
• Plant-based burgers as an alternative of beef
• Fruit if he craves sweets

He avoids tomato sauce and sure dairy merchandise. He additionally stays hydrated with electrolyte mixes.

“I type of miss consuming a giant burger on the grill or steak, however I am happy with the truth that I am consuming a lot cleaner and more healthy than I ever have,” he says.

Immunotherapy & the Future

Barry just lately completed 15 months of month-to-month immunotherapy. It’s a 30-minute therapy 1 day every month to strengthen his immune system and goal and kill any remaining most cancers cells.

His final a number of scans have proven no proof of most cancers. Whereas he nonetheless worries at the back of his thoughts, he retains a optimistic angle and doesn’t let his worries cease him. He’s trying ahead to a cruise this fall with household and mates.

“We booked a penthouse on this cruise ship with a full-time butler, and we will get pleasure from a 2 week journey,” he says. “I’ve by no means taken 2 weeks off in my life.”

He’s additionally considering of the way to make a distinction for others with most cancers and their suppliers. He desires to arrange a charity golf occasion for the Emily Couric Scientific Most cancers Middle, leveraging the community he’s constructed in the neighborhood and within the federal authorities from his job.

Barry stated he’s impressed to offer again due to the superb care he obtained throughout therapy. His nurse navigator at his native oncologist observe helped him handle points with sleep, unwanted effects, and different issues. And the UVA Well being nurse navigator who supported him throughout surgical procedure, Samantha Rowe, RN, turned a Fb pal.

“These nurses have develop into household to me throughout my chemo and immunotherapy,” he says. “I could not say thanks or God bless you adequate to those folks, the place I felt prefer it was significant sufficient.”