HER2 Support Group Forums - View Single Post - My Mother Is Having (Scary) Surgery Next Week

Lani · 01-05-2011, 11:17 PM

Is she a candidate for an endoprosthesis? Dr. Christopher Zarins of Stanford invented (in the mid 90s I believe) something that acts like pop-open wire/ mesh/composite lining which is inserted through the groin in a minimally invasive procedure. After insertion under fluoroscopic (video continuous xray) control, it pops open and forms a new inner lining of the part of the aorta that has the aneurysm so that it no longer matters that the wall of the artery is weak, because it has been reinforced from the inside and no blood can leak into the weakened wall because the entrance is blocked by the new lining.

It is like having a leaky pipe under your house that they sneak a new lining into via video control rather than digging it out and replacing it.

The problem with replacing the aorta seems to be that the arteries to the intestines and kidneys and legs (and even the spinal cord) branch out from it and there is a lot of repair to do to make sure all those organs have good blood supply which can take time (during which time the intestines, kidneys, legs and spinal cord can be denied of an adequate blood supply), the repaired juctions are under tremendous pressure with tremendous pressure on the repaired junction to leak and the whole procedure is tremendously traumatic temporarily depriving so much of the body of blood coming from the heart even in very (otherwise) healthy individuals.

Is the aneurysm more than 6cm? I believe that is the size above which they recommend repair. Of course, since it seems to be enlarging, it might be good to stay ahead of it (especially in view of the family history of ruptures), but if it is not that big yet, perhaps time is available to take the time to find out if the endoprosthetic option is reasonable in her.

There are a lot of scary aspects to this, so it would seem reasonable to get a second opinion and find out who has the best track record for treating these complicated aneurysms (those in the area near where the branches going to the kidneys take off)

I heard Dr. Zarins give a lecture about his invention 14 years ago --he was wonderfully humble and thoughtful. Patients were flown in from all over the world with very complicated problems. In the meantime, he and others must have trained many others in the technique.

Hope some of this was helpful--Best of luck!

01-05-2011, 11:17 PM	#3
Lani Senior Member Join Date: Mar 2006 Posts: 4,782	Re: My Mother Is Having (Scary) Surgery Next Week Is she a candidate for an endoprosthesis? Dr. Christopher Zarins of Stanford invented (in the mid 90s I believe) something that acts like pop-open wire/ mesh/composite lining which is inserted through the groin in a minimally invasive procedure. After insertion under fluoroscopic (video continuous xray) control, it pops open and forms a new inner lining of the part of the aorta that has the aneurysm so that it no longer matters that the wall of the artery is weak, because it has been reinforced from the inside and no blood can leak into the weakened wall because the entrance is blocked by the new lining. It is like having a leaky pipe under your house that they sneak a new lining into via video control rather than digging it out and replacing it. The problem with replacing the aorta seems to be that the arteries to the intestines and kidneys and legs (and even the spinal cord) branch out from it and there is a lot of repair to do to make sure all those organs have good blood supply which can take time (during which time the intestines, kidneys, legs and spinal cord can be denied of an adequate blood supply), the repaired juctions are under tremendous pressure with tremendous pressure on the repaired junction to leak and the whole procedure is tremendously traumatic temporarily depriving so much of the body of blood coming from the heart even in very (otherwise) healthy individuals. Is the aneurysm more than 6cm? I believe that is the size above which they recommend repair. Of course, since it seems to be enlarging, it might be good to stay ahead of it (especially in view of the family history of ruptures), but if it is not that big yet, perhaps time is available to take the time to find out if the endoprosthetic option is reasonable in her. There are a lot of scary aspects to this, so it would seem reasonable to get a second opinion and find out who has the best track record for treating these complicated aneurysms (those in the area near where the branches going to the kidneys take off) I heard Dr. Zarins give a lecture about his invention 14 years ago --he was wonderfully humble and thoughtful. Patients were flown in from all over the world with very complicated problems. In the meantime, he and others must have trained many others in the technique. Hope some of this was helpful--Best of luck!