Life without organs: is it possible to live without individual “parts”? Can a person live without a pancreas?

This gland plays a huge role in the body. It secretes digestive enzymes, without which food absorption is impossible, and synthesizes hormones responsible for carbohydrate metabolism. It is impossible to live without the pancreas. Unfortunately, there are many diseases that can interfere with its functioning, and the main ones are presented below.

Pancreatitis

This is the name for the most common disease of the pancreas, occurring in acute or chronic form.

If the outflow of pancreatic juice is disrupted, its enzymes are not activated duodenum, as this happens normally, but inside the gland itself, as a result of which its self-digestion begins. Damage to the ducts invariably results in an inflammatory response, resulting in the familiar symptoms.

The disease can be triggered by poor diet, a tendency to eat spicy, salty, fried and fatty foods - this type of pancreatitis is called nutritional pancreatitis. This pathology also has a second name – “alcoholics’ disease.” The fact is that ethanol dehydrates the body by “pulling” fluid from the gland ducts and increasing the concentration of aggressive enzymes in it. That is why most patients with alcoholism suffer from its inflammation. Abdominal injuries and diseases of the biliary tract also lead to pancreatitis. In children it develops with cystic fibrosis - hereditary pathology, in which the functioning of glandular cells throughout the body is disrupted.

Acute pancreatitis and exacerbation chronic illness proceed approximately the same. The patient experiences severe pain in the upper abdomen; sometimes it is so strong that a person cannot straighten up. Repeated vomiting begins, which does not bring relief, the patient complains of belching. Foul-smelling diarrhea is possible: since the production of enzymes is disrupted during illness, this leads to the activation of fermentation and putrefaction in the intestines. With frequent exacerbations, patients can lose significant weight due to decreased absorption of nutrients.

In remission, signs of inflammation may be absent, but many patients continue to complain not periodically discomfort in the abdomen, alternation and diarrhea, weight loss.

Treatment of pancreatitis should always be carried out under the supervision of a doctor, because different phases the disease has its own characteristics. In case of exacerbation, antisecretory drugs are needed that suppress the secretion of enzymes (antacids, inhibitors proton pump, H2 blockers). In the first 1-2 days of an exacerbation, it is advisable to completely abstain from food, then the diet gradually expands. When the symptoms subside, the patient begins to take enzymes (Pancreatin, Creon, etc.) to compensate for the deficiency of their own. Many patients actively drink enzyme agents and during the period of severe symptoms; This is absolutely not possible.

Any traditional methods of treatment for acute forms pancreatitis are not desirable. Firstly, all of them are not strong enough for a noticeable effect, and secondly, even useful remedies duplicate the effect of medications, and it is prohibited to refuse the latter. In addition, even the best ones have a rather bad effect on the process: after all, with this disease, not only inflammation occurs in the gland tissue, but also cell destruction - destruction.

Outside of exacerbations, you can take any herbs that improve digestion, the best thing is a regular gastrointestinal mixture.

Pancreatic necrosis

If for a long time ignore correct treatment pancreatitis or provoke a severe exacerbation, this can end very sadly. Severe inflammation and destruction of the gland can cause thrombosis of its vessels, blood supply disturbances and, as a consequence, severe irreversible changes– organ necrosis.

Part of it dies, and this entails development purulent inflammation, as well as the release of toxins and enzymes into the blood. Therefore, with pancreatic necrosis, along with severe pain in the abdomen, patients develop heat, general symptoms (nausea, vomiting, sometimes disturbances of consciousness), fluctuations blood pressure, redness or paleness of the skin - toxic substances have direct action on the vessels.

In this case, you cannot do without the help of doctors, and this help must be urgent. If the disease is “caught” in the early phase, medications can help the patient. They inject him intravenous antibiotics, helping to prevent microbial infection, and block the functioning of the gland, stopping the production of enzymes and its further destruction. To cleanse the blood of toxic substances, large volumes of liquid are dripped along with

Sometimes such measures do not help; in this case, the patient undergoes surgery to remove dead pancreatic tissue. The operation is very difficult for patients to tolerate, therefore, at the first signs of pancreatic necrosis, it is necessary to urgently call an ambulance in order to be able to cope with the disease using conservative measures.

Naturally, any folk remedies for this disease are strictly contraindicated. Both “correct” and false prescriptions will not give any effect and will further worsen the patient’s condition.

Pancreatic cysts

This is the name given to larger or smaller cavities that can form in the tissue of this organ. True cysts form like this: for some reason (tumor, polyp, stone), the outflow of secretions from the gland site stops. Gradually, the secretion accumulates, stretches this area, forms a capsule around itself and turns normal tissue into a vesicle filled with liquid.

Symptoms of cysts can vary. Sometimes a person is examined for some other problem, and an ultrasound reveals a cyst that had not previously manifested itself. This is typical for formations of small diameter. In some cases, when the cyst reaches a size of several centimeters, it often gives the same symptoms that occur with pancreatitis, primarily pain in the upper abdomen.

Large cysts are dangerous because they provoke secondary pancreatitis and can burst, causing peritonitis, or fester. Therefore, to prevent this, they are removed surgically. Small “bubbles” that exist asymptomatically do not need treatment - patients are only monitored.

Some medicinal methods there is no treatment for cysts; Traditional methods are also not able to help such patients. Neither classical medicines are able to “drain” a cyst without affecting other organs and tissues. However, small cysts usually do not cause any problems, so they can be considered almost normal.

Pancreas cancer

This organ can also grow benign tumors; The tactics for their management are almost the same as for cysts, and they do not pose a threat to life. However, malignant neoplasms are very dangerous, prone to rapid spread and the formation of metastases.

Fortunately, pancreatic cancer is not very common, but in most patients this pathology is detected at a stage when it is no longer possible to radically eliminate the tumor.

There are no universal symptoms for cancer. In the early stages, it can copy the picture of pancreatitis or not appear at all, but when large sizes and germination causes severe pain, a tendency to thrombosis in blood vessels, jaundice and other severe disorders.

The cancer treatment plan is developed individually, depending on the type and extent of the process. Traditional methods treatments have no effect.

Besides listed diseases, there are many others: cholecystopancreatitis, pancreatic ducts, its damage due to rheumatic diseases, cystic fibrosis, etc. Moreover, most of them can “disguise” as each other. This is the main danger of such diseases: even the most serious pathologies may not arouse any suspicion for a long time. Therefore, if you feel signs of possible pancreatitis, do not be overconfident by prescribing your own treatment program. Check out others possible violations and get quality medical advice. Only in this case will you protect yourself from complications and soon you will be able to consider yourself healthy.

The conjunctiva (and not the conjunctiva, as many people like to say) is the mucous membrane...

The pancreas is an organ that is extremely difficult for our body to do without. Its functions are the production of insulin and digestive enzymes. Develops without insulin serious disease - diabetes, and without digestive enzymes - intestinal dyspepsia syndrome, in which it is impossible to fully digest food and absorb essential nutrients. Therefore even partial removal glands entails many problems for the patient, not to mention its total resection.

When a gland or part of it is removed

The main indication for removal of the pancreas is its malignancy. Here we are talking about preserving or extending the patient’s life, and the issue of the quality of this life is in second place. Currently, complete resection of the gland is resorted to quite rarely; excision of some part of it is more often performed.

In addition to pancreatic cancer, extensive pancreatic necrosis and chronic recurrent pancreatitis, the formation of intraductal pancreatic stones can also serve as a reason for its removal.

How is the pancreas operated?

This operation is a complex surgical procedure, since the gland is located deep inside the abdominal cavity and access to it is difficult. Nature, given the colossal importance of this organ, placed it in such a way as to protect it from external influence, however, a person harms the pancreas in other ways - drinking alcohol and smoking, overeating, poor nutrition, etc.

Most often, the head of the pancreas is removed. This is called a Whipple operation or pancreaticoduodenectomy (PDR). Average running time surgical intervention is about five hours. Applicable general anesthesia. However, survival rate with total pancreatectomy, according to statistical data, is higher than with PDR. Several tens of thousands of pancreatectomy operations have been successfully performed around the world.

Main question

The operation was successful, what next? Is it possible to live without a pancreas? Theoretically, yes, it is possible. In this case, it is necessary to carry out lifelong replacement therapy enzymes and insulin, diet. But in practice, a person is not a mechanism in which any broken part can be replaced with a new one. After removal of the gland, the issue of quality of life and its cost arises, given the constant need for medicines and expensive analyses. Such patients are under the supervision of an endocrinologist and gastroenterologist for the rest of their lives.

If the cause of pancreatectomy is cancer, the operation is most often performed to prolong the patient's life. Five-year survival after full course therapy for this disease is observed in only 9% of patients. A tumor in the pancreas is diagnosed by early stages extremely difficult for a number of reasons:

• signs of pancreatic cancer are similar to the symptoms of many other diseases of the digestive system;
• access to the pancreas is hidden behind other organs - the stomach, small intestine, liver, gall bladder, spleen and bile ducts;
• Symptoms in the early stages of the tumor may be absent or may manifest themselves as signs of other pancreatic diseases.

Therefore, most cases of pancreas removal during tumor process occurs when the disease has actively manifested itself. In such conditions, the body has to turn on all reserves for survival.

The initial links of the energy exchange chain are the breakdown and utilization of carbohydrates (amylase and insulin). Assimilation of others nutrients(proteins and fats) is also a big question - there are no enzymes designed to break them down. Even in the absence of others serious illnesses it will not be easy to compensate for the functions of the pancreas, but there is also tumor intoxication, decreased immunity, pain syndrome, which also need to be fought. It is not surprising that few such patients survive.

How to live without a pancreas?

Immediately after the operation, the patient is on intravenous nutrition; he is only allowed to drink still water, up to a liter per day, in small portions. Three days should pass in this mode. This is followed by weak tea without sugar and 1-2 white bread crackers. On the fifth day, pureed water soup, crackers and steamed protein omelet are added. On the sixth, pureed porridge (rice, buckwheat) is gradually introduced. From the seventh day - dried white bread and steamed souffle of meat or fish. From the tenth day, the patient is transferred to table No. 5p with individual selection of doses of pancreatin and insulin. He will have to live in this mode for the rest of his life. Alcohol and smoking are excluded.

The pancreas is a large, elongated digestive gland that is located behind the stomach. It consists of three parts: head, body and tail. Its tissues are connected by small ducts that carry pancreatic juice into the intestines. This is the largest gland in digestive system human, which is also an endocrine gland.

It produces insulin, glucagon, somatostatin and pancreatic polypeptide. Insulin lowers blood sugar levels. When the gland malfunctions, a person develops diabetes mellitus.

People live with chronic pancreatitis long life, following simple diets and doctors' recommendations. But can a person live without a pancreas? Let's look at this question point by point.

Functions

Pancreatic cells produce enzymes, without which digestion in the lumen is impossible small intestine. These enzymes help break down fats, proteins and carbohydrates into chyme (a lump that facilitates the further passage of food through the esophagus). The process of completely digesting and absorbing food useful components impossible without the participation of this gland.

The functions of the pancreas can be impaired for many reasons. The main ones are alcohol, fatty food, smoking. The most common disease of the gland is. In some cases, treatment requires surgical intervention. Most often, operations are performed during exacerbation chronic pancreatitis, in case of pancreatic necrosis, tumors, for the treatment of chronic cysts.

Experts themselves consider the pancreas to be a delicate and unpredictable organ, because it is unknown how it will behave during surgical intervention. Even if the operation is not performed on this organ, but nearby or even at a distant distance from it, it can lead to complications in the form of development acute pancreatitis. It can often appear due to the entry of a small stone from the gallbladder into the pancreatic duct. Most people with this diagnosis recover quickly, but for some, the inflammation worsens and requires surgery. Long-term inflammation of the pancreas increases the risk of developing.

Pancreatectomy

One of the methods of treating cancer of this gland is pancreatectomy. This is an operation to remove the pancreas. During the procedure, the entire gland or just part of it may be removed. In some cases, organs that are nearby, such as gallbladder, spleen, part of the stomach or small intestine, The lymph nodes.

Removal of part of the pancreas and spleen

During removal of the pancreas, there may be serious complications. Excessive bleeding may occur. During the operation there is a possibility of infection. In addition, each person reacts differently to anesthesia. There are cases when, due to anesthesia, dizziness occurred and blood pressure decreased.

There are certain factors that increase the risk of complications. These factors include obesity, heart problems, poor nutrition, smoking, old age.

The operation is carried out in this way: the doctor cuts abdominal cavity and removes the affected part of the pancreas and other affected organs. The incision is closed with sutures or staples. This procedure is very risky, and it is difficult to predict how long a person can live without this organ. Previously, it was believed that it was impossible to live without the pancreas. It was first removed in the 20th century. At first, patients died either during the operation or some time after it, but modern medicine was able to solve this problem.

It is difficult to overestimate the role of the pancreas in the human body. No other organ can replace it. The absence of this organ leads to significant digestive disorders. But it's quite possible to live without her, you just need to use therapy that will replace the functions performed by the pancreas. Patients will have to take enzymes and insulin injections throughout their lives.

Pancreatectomy is a very difficult and serious operation. Rehabilitation after the procedure can take a long time. The body will be able to recover only after a few months. This process is complex not only from a physical point of view, but also from a psychological one. Painful sensations after surgery can be eliminated with the help of painkillers, and relieve psychological condition maybe joining a support group.

Diet after pancreas removal

Besides, important role food plays. You can live a long time without pancreas if you follow strict diet. The first days after the operation the patient is forced to fast. Doctors only allow drinking non-carbonated mineral water. You need to drink a liter of liquid per day, but not all at once, but in small portions.
After a few days, they are allowed to drink a little tea, unsalted soup and an omelet made from only proteins, steamed. You can use buckwheat or rice porridge, but they must be cooked in water or milk.
After a week, you can add a little bread to your diet, butter and cottage cheese. Also allowed vegetable soups no cabbage. They must be thoroughly ground before use.

After a few days you can prepare a soufflé from lean fish or meat. From the tenth day you can eat meatballs, but only steamed ones. In order for the body to recover faster, you need to consume more vitamins.
These are the foods that need to be included in the diet immediately after surgery. You should also stick to your diet throughout your life. Daily menu should include a lot of proteins. Fats and carbohydrates can be taken in minimal quantities. In such cases, salt can only be consumed in a dosage of no more than eight grams per day. Everything is fatty, smoked, salted, flour products and other goodies must be excluded from the diet forever, otherwise they may cause serious problems. People with a removed pancreas need to eat five times a day in small portions.

In case of pancreatic disease, the attending physician may offer the patient surgery, in which part of the organ or the entire gland will be removed. Therefore, many people ask the question: is it possible to continue to live normally without a pancreas? To answer it, you need to understand what functions this organ performs and what consequences may occur after its removal.

The pancreas from a biological point of view

The main purpose of the pancreas is to produce the insulin hormone and enzymes necessary for digestion. Without this important organ to the human body hard to get by. If insulin is produced in insufficient quantities, a very serious illness called diabetes mellitus may begin to develop.

The lack of digestive enzymes can lead to intestinal dyspepsia, in which a person will not be able to properly digest food, and essential nutrients will not be absorbed. Given this information, you can answer the above asked question: It is possible to live without a pancreas, but your lifestyle needs to be radically changed.

What are the changes in the body without the pancreas?

As mentioned earlier, in theory it is possible to live without a pancreas, but some changes that will have to be applied for life will have to be used permanently:

• take artificial enzymes daily;
• administer insulin by injection;
• strictly follow the diet.

Of course, this will require spending a lot Money, but if a person’s life depends on an operation, the purpose of which is to remove the pancreas, then there is no point in thinking about this issue. It should be understood that after surgery, a person must be constantly monitored by an endocrinologist and gastroenterologist, who will take tests and prescribe the necessary dosage medical supplies to live without constant pain.

What diagnosis indicates removal of the pancreas or part of it?

If, when examining a patient, the doctor discovers a new formation in the form of a tumor that develops in the pancreas, in this case it will be necessary to remove this organ in order to prolong the patient’s life. Completely removed important organ for such diseases:

• cancer;
• pancreatic necrosis;
• when intraductal stones are detected inside the pancreas.

For other diseases, you can use the method of excision of the diseased part of the organ, for example, the tail or head of the pancreas.

What to do after surgery

To continue to live a full life after surgery, a person will first have to strictly follow a diet. The diet is prepared by the attending physician, taking into account the condition of the postoperative patient. You will have to completely exclude from your daily diet:

1. Fatty foods.
2. Sweet pastries.
3. Spicy and salty dishes.
4. Stop smoking and drinking alcoholic beverages.

All food should be cooked exclusively by steaming and thoroughly chopped. IN daily diet must be:

• fresh vegetables, can be in the form of salads;
• various fruits;
• mineral drinks without preservatives and dyes, at least 2.5 liters per day.

In addition to the diet, a person should constantly take enzyme supplements to improve the process of digesting food and carry out insulin therapy. The endocrinologist will prescribe how much insulin the patient needs; dose adjustments should occur in the hospital under the supervision of a doctor. In the future, the person will be able to administer the medicine subcutaneously or with the help of close relatives.

Each of us in our parental family develops an idea of ​​how people should behave in various situations. And it often seems to us that this is the only right point a vision that everyone else should share. When entering into relationships with other people, we sometimes discover that they have a completely different view on many issues and do not want to meet our expectations. At this moment, negative feelings arise and resentment arises. We blame others, but it’s all our own fault - after all, it is we who expect from another person what he does not want, cannot, or is not ready to give.

Of course, it is important to realize what you expect from a new job, relationship and your partner. This helps a person hear and understand himself. Expectations begin to interfere with life when they become expectations beyond measure. If we want something very badly, we begin to depend on the result, so the fear of not getting this result arises, and the fear often materializes. In addition, excessive expectations create excessive importance, which prevents you from getting what you want.

Expectations beyond measure indicate the following

• Life is built on the principle " I want everything to be the way I want it". All other life scenarios are rejected. This manifests a claim to the world and the desire to be God. There is a non-acceptance of the new, and, therefore, a refusal to develop.
• There is a desire to control the course of events, i.e. taking responsibility where a person should not take it. Control is a very energy-intensive thing that takes a lot of strength necessary to build your own life.
• There is a dependence on plans and a desire to set strict boundaries for events and deadlines. Impatience arises and it becomes difficult to wait and accept changes in the planned scenario.

By expecting something from another person, we, often without realizing it, put pressure on him. For example, a woman expects a marriage proposal from a man. Thoughts are material, and a man hears them. But he has not yet decided on his decision, and the pressure he feels does not give him the opportunity to make an independent decision coming from the heart. If a woman manages to remove the expectation, i.e. let go of the situation, then after that she will most likely get what she wants.

How to get rid of expectations?

• Replace expectations with faith, with trust in the Universe. It is important to remember that everything in life always happens on time and works out in the best way for us.
• Accept that there are many scenarios for the development of events, ways to solve problems and options for human behavior, and they all have the right to exist. Accepting means allowing them to be.
• Focus not on the goal, but on the path to the goal. If you want to find new job, then you need to think, first of all, about possible ways her search.
• Lose and accept negative option developments of events. If you want to get a position that you have long dreamed of, then imagine that this did not happen and decide for yourself what you will do in this case.

Live with absolutely no expectations, with full acceptance the world and other people, only very highly spiritually developed people can do it, but everyone can make sure that expectations do not interfere with feeling the joy of life and building healthy relationships with other people. You just need to take responsibility for your feelings and be ready to work on yourself.