Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1903-09-12
William Moss, of Pomeroy, En-
joying Fairly Good Health
Without That Member
HAS GAINED FIFTEEN POUNDS
Remarkable Surgical Operation Fer
formed by a Sioux City Surgeon
Man Whose Stomach Was Removed
Three Weeks Ago st;ll Lives, Eats
Regularly and Assimilates His Food.
j 10 Tin1es-Renuhlican.

Special to Times Republican.
Sioux City, Sept. IA remarkable
surgical operation was recently yer
formed at the Samaritan hospital here
upon William Moss, a farmer living
Hear Pomeroy. Today he left the hos
pital apparently wei and strong, yet
his stomach has been entirely removed.
Moss today weighs fifteen pounds more
than he did three weeks ago. The OPP
Grafton was performed upon Moss a it
tie more than three weeks ago by a
Sioux City surgeon, who desires his
name withheld from publication until
the outcome of the case is fully set
tied. This is the first time the opera
ton has been performed in the state.
and the medical records show that in
the history of surgery mems stomachs
have been removed in only about TWEEN
five instances.
William Moss is a man SIS years old
and had always been we'll until a ftw
months ago. He began 10 have trouble
With his stomach and finally the ply
sicians told him he was suffering with
4 cancer of the stomach. He grew
worse, and when he started for Sioux
|CIty he had lost forty-five pounds from
his ordinary weight. The cancer had
grown SO large that the outlet of the
stomach into the intestines was OBJ
atructed and food was vomited up as
rapidly as swallowed. In fact, the man
was rapidly dying of starvation when
be arrived at the Sioux City hospital.
The surgeon found that the man was
apparently in good physical condition
with the exception of the cancer, and
determined to resort to the rare opera
ton If necessary. He made a long in
cision from the diaphragm to the navel
SO as to be unhampered in his work.
On examination it was found that the
cancer filled the entire stomach except
"a small part at the cardiac end. and
that the only possible way to save the
patient would be the removal of the
organ.
The stomach was cut out so as 10
leave fiaring end of the gullet, or
esophagus, and at the lower end was
cut off where 1t narrows to merge into
the intestines. When the stomach had
been removed the flaring, funnel
shaped part attached to The esophagus
was gathered and stitcced so as TO
form a small sack with small ORR
fee Then came the difficult part of
the operation. This orifce and the
open end of the intestine had to be
Joined together In such way as to
make an air-tight and water-tight pas
sage. BY the most delicate stitching
this was accomplished and the intesti-
nal tract was once more intact. The
wound was closed and after few days,
in which the joint in the intestine was
allowed to heal. the man was given
food. Gradually the amount of food
was Increased until now Moss eats az
much as he desires.
Moss now eats the same kinds OF
food that he was accustomed to use
before losing his stomach, the only
difference being that he must eat more.
slowly because there Is no place tn
store the food. Instead Of eating three,
meals a day as the rest of men do hF
takes his food oftener and but little.
at one time. The intestines digest the
food just as easily now as they did be-
fore with the help of the stomach.