OCEANSIDE -- Often when people who have had ostomy surgery attend their first support group meeting, they believe they have been sent to the wrong place because the people in the room look no different from anyone else.

View A Video

"We've been trying to decide what an ostomate looks like," said group president Demetrio Cotrupe, with a chuckle, at a recent meeting of the Ostomy Support Group of North San Diego County at Tri-City Medical Center.

Ostomy surgery is a procedure that cuts away all or part of a diseased bowel or bladder and reroutes excretory functions through a specially constructed hole in the side of the body. Those who have had ostomy surgery -- sometimes referred to as ostomates -- are usually suffering from colon or bladder cancer, inflammatory bowel disease, wartime or other injuries, accidents or inherited diseases.

An estimated 750,000 to 1 million Americans have had ostomy surgery involving the colon (colostomy), urinary tract (urostomy) or small intesting (ileostomy), all of which require wearing an external pouch under the clothes to collect feces or urine. Currently available estimates of the number of patients vary. One report estimates that 120,000 new surgeries are performed each year.

"The diagnosis leading to ostomy surgery can be quite devastating to a patient who is uninformed about how an ostomy will affect his or her life," said Brian Bowden, 68, of Oceanside, a member of the support group who had a urostomy for bladder cancer in 1998.

The group's mission is to make people who have had the surgery or who are contemplating it understand that their lives will not change all that much, and that they can return to their regular activities, including horseback riding, rock climbing, golf and even football.

"There is life out there, and you can live it," said Cotrupe's wife, Ramona, 72, of Oceanside, who had a colostomy for colon cancer nearly seven years ago.

She said when she first faced having the surgery, she was depressed because she feared that people would know or be able to smell or see the collection pouch through her clothing. But all that changed when a fashionably dressed woman visited her in the hospital and invited her to a meeting of the support group when she was able. Ramona Cotrupe was surprised to learn she was an ostomate.

"It gave me the vision of 'Hey, if she can do it, I can do it,' " she said.

Demetrio Cotrupe said that his wife's attitude changed for the better after the visit.

"It lifted her up," he said.

Since then, he and his wife have become heavily involved in the support group to lift up others, and Demetrio Cotrupe, 75, who does not have an ostomy, recently won the national Outstanding Leadership Award from the United Ostomy Association of America. One of only four leaders from across the nation, he received his award at a convention in Chicago in August.

Bowden cannot say enough about how Cotrupe has benefited the group since joining.

"His influence in building the group has been substantial over a good many years, beyond his time as president."

Cotrupe said the group's membership has grown to 96 people, though not all attend every meeting. "Some people come to one or two meetings and then don't come back, but we get about 50 people at every meeting," Cotrupe said.

The main topics of discussion at the meetings are ways to handle ostomy maintenance and skin care.

"You're wearing something on your skin where you have the appliance and you can easily develop skin problems," he explained.

Cotrupe edits the group's newsletter, Ostomy News, which provides information so that ostomates can better understand these issues and others concerning their health.

He also worked with Tri-City Medical Center in developing the ostomy clinic component of its new wound care clinic, which will open soon. He was instrumental in obtaining a grant from the hospital's foundation to fund the ostomy clinic operations. He said Tri-City Hospital performs about 250 ostomy operations a year, and estimates that nationwide about 50,000 surgeries are done yearly.

"We have been working toward this goal for the past five years," Cotrupe said. "People with ostomies who live in the North County will now have a place to which they can come for specialized care they need."

Now the group, which ranges in age from 30s to 90s, is reaching out to the Latino population by distributing Spanish language brochures and providing bilingual assistance.

The group is especially proud to be able to sponsor young people who have had ostomies to attend an annual youth rally for ages 11 to 18, where they learn self-esteem, how to deal with social issues regarding their ostomies and to start building networks with others who attend the rally.

The local group also supports the national organization, which provides advocates to Washington to help them know what is available to them, and to help shape legislation to benefit them. By doing so, the subject of ostomies is emerging from the shadows. People who have had the operations talk freely about them, including former Miss America Mary Ann Mobley, Pearl Jam lead guitarist Mike McCready, and professional golfer Al Geiberger.

"The Ostomy Support Group of North San Diego County is successful because it offers a valuable learning experience in a friendly, family atmosphere where all feel welcome. We just need to let more people know we are here for them," Cotrupe said.

The group meets at 1 p.m. on the fourth Friday of the month at the Tri-City Medical Center. For more information, call the Cotrupes at (760) 941-7367.

Patty McCormac is a freelance writer. Contact her at mcpatty246@cs.com.