Why do I care about fiber? How did I get into GI?

Lets start with how I got into medicine in the first place. When I was about 8-10 years old one of my close friends was Konstantin. He was perhaps 3 years older. Before I met him, he was the victim of an attack by a serial murder that left him partially without an intestine. He had a small bowel transplant. This was an experimental surgery at the time. Konstantin ultimately succumbed to complications in 1997. I’ve found PDFs of old newspapers detailing his journey (link). 

When it came time to decide which branch of medicine I wanted to go into, Konstantin and his story were always in my mind. Gastroenterology also just made the most sense to me. What goes in must come out…

Obviously many people have a problem with just that. If you’re reading this, I don’t need to explain how constipation can affect your life.

* I think of Konstantin every time I see a patient with a small bowel transplant. I wonder if he would have been alive today.