What do they do with the stomach portion that's removed? Does anyone keep it? That probably sounds crazy, but it is/was a big part of me.

I had a friend who had hers at a military hospital and she had to sign a waiver saying it was ok for them to use it in scientific studies.

Same thing with her umbilical cord from her birth.

Military science experiments' date=' super creepy.[/quote']

Actually, all civilian hospitals can do the same thing. You may not realize it but in that "stack" of paperwork you sign when you are admitted & for your procedure, it has a clause about disposal of tissue.

Now if you are really interested, I would recommend the book "The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks". It is the true story of how they took the uterus of a woman back in the 60's (she had cervical cancer) and then grew the cell lines that are still alive today. They enabled us to have many of the vaccines & drugs we still use today. The money trail is beyond billions & she & her family never got a dime!

I was hoping to take it home' date=' fry it up and eat it. Like a placenta.[/quote']

Hmmm maybe it can help us heal faster! Lol i wouldn't eat even if it did!

That would be like wanting a picture of my ex to remind me of what my major problem in life was. No thanks! I don't miss that part of my stomach one bit!

I don't want the stomach they take out--have seen stomachs' date=' and they really aren't my thing!--BUT, I do want the lap band they're taking out of me! Hahaha.

I'm serious! I want that band and port! The way I look at it, it's not tissue, I paid a LOT of money for the stupid thing, and every single person I know that's had gall stones and kidney stones removed have their stones in jars (or wisdom teeth!) which to me are a bio-substance if not a tissue. They all seem to think everyone wants to see and admire them. (I do think they're kind of neat...in a gross sort of way! Hahaha) so why shouldn't mynband get the same? Hahaha

My band--whom I named Agnetha, btw, because she's Swedish --will hopefully reside on my bedside table in her own jar as a reminder for me to pursue what I want and not go with what someone else thinks I should settle for. Because that's how I wound up with her--I settled for the band instead of the RNY I was asking for. And here I am going in for a revision, so how well did me settling for something I wasn't looking for work out?

:-)[/quote']

I have my band. I like to look at it from time to time.

Anyone else ask how big your stomach was when they removed it? I did, was non to happy to learn it was the size of a rugby ball.

Yeah, I'm thinking that too......that it's going to be HUGE and the impression I have of my surgeon is he's the type who likes to take something like that and make a meal out of it--figuratively, not literally! Pun intended though! :-D

I'm sure my stomach I general will be larger than a "normal" persons, and I am also sure that my pouch above the band is going to be stretched out because after I got frustrated and gave up I started drinking diet Pepsi again. A mistake I will NOT be making with the sleeve; it was the point I worked out how to eat around the band.

At a law firm i worked at years ago. An attorney, who did not do medical cases, had a couple of breast implants and a ******** replacement on top of a short bookcase by his door. People would naturally pick them up, not knowing what they were. When they asked he would say something like that was a breast implant that my grandmother had to have removed. Or that was my grandfather's replacement ********. Of course they were unused medical samples, but he would get a good laugh before telling the truth.

I actually have the stones they took out of my mom's gallbladder many years ago. Strange thing to be sure but works as a interesting conversation piece !!