Post by psj12 on Mar 29, 2009 7:11:34 GMT -5
I have not posted recently due to my wife's, Sherry, health issues. She has been the love of my life, my help mate, my enabler and mother to my children for 33 years. She is a true born again Christian.
She originally went to her OB/Gyn for what she thought was a minor problem. He performed a DNC (not sure what it stands for) it consists of vacuming off the inner surface of her uteris. We thought that was the end of the problem but he called us back in three days to say he had sent the scraping to the lab and they had come back positive for uterin cancer.
We were told that this was among the most curable of all cancers and that a historectomy almost always cures it. We know many women with historectomys and thought that even though this was more complicated than originally thought it would have a positive outcome.
The doctor scheduled the operation and sent Sherry to have a pre-op physical performed. A routine abdominal CT scan revealed a mass on her pancreas.
I got on the web and read about pancreatic cancer and my blood froze. It has a 95.4% fatality rate even with the only known surgery.
We were sent to an oncologist at Baltimore Sinai hospital. He confirmed that there was a mass on the pancreas and it had to be removed. The operation to remove it is called a Whipple procedure and is very complicated. It requires removal of 2/3 of the pancreas, the lower half of the stomach, the doadeum, the gall bladder and lots of replumbing of the digestive tract and blood vessels. She would also receive a full historectomy at the same time by a GYN oncologist.
The operation was scheduled and performed on March 4. She was in surgery about 7 hours. She spent a week in the hospital with no food by mouth. She was sent home to recuperate but developed an infection due to some leaks in the digestive system. Upon her return the doctors opened the upper 5 inches of the 20 inch incision and drained the affected area. She spent another 1 1/2 week in the hospital.
During her second stay her head oncologist stopped by. He said that he had something to tell us and that he didn't want a resident or intern to tell us because in his line of work he rarely gets the joy of this kind of news. He said "the biopsy of the pancreatic tumor showed that it had not metastisized and that we got it all, and a test of the lymph nodes around the uteris showed no signs of cancer". I don't think I have cried in about 35-40 years. I did that moment.
Recovery is still going to be a long process. She is at home. She still can have nothing by mouth. I have to rig a huge IV bag full of all her nutritional needs to a semi permanent IV hook up in her upper arm every day. She still has an open incision to allow drainage. She wishes for a hamburger and a Reese's peanutbutter cup. A nurse visits the house every few days.
We are told this will end eventually and that she will once again be healthy. We just have to be patient.
Prayer from many pulled her through this. Even the Rabi at the hospital sang her a prayer. When she awoke in the ICU there was a nurse from Nigeria holding her hand and praying for her. The nurse heard her calling out to the lord during her delerium and knew she was a child of God and had to pray for her. Prior to this illness she had dreamed of Moses being led to Mt. Sinai and of the story of David and Goliath. At the time she had no idea why she had these dreams. That is where she found herself in her personal battle with Goliath.
She has won with the lords help.
She originally went to her OB/Gyn for what she thought was a minor problem. He performed a DNC (not sure what it stands for) it consists of vacuming off the inner surface of her uteris. We thought that was the end of the problem but he called us back in three days to say he had sent the scraping to the lab and they had come back positive for uterin cancer.
We were told that this was among the most curable of all cancers and that a historectomy almost always cures it. We know many women with historectomys and thought that even though this was more complicated than originally thought it would have a positive outcome.
The doctor scheduled the operation and sent Sherry to have a pre-op physical performed. A routine abdominal CT scan revealed a mass on her pancreas.
I got on the web and read about pancreatic cancer and my blood froze. It has a 95.4% fatality rate even with the only known surgery.
We were sent to an oncologist at Baltimore Sinai hospital. He confirmed that there was a mass on the pancreas and it had to be removed. The operation to remove it is called a Whipple procedure and is very complicated. It requires removal of 2/3 of the pancreas, the lower half of the stomach, the doadeum, the gall bladder and lots of replumbing of the digestive tract and blood vessels. She would also receive a full historectomy at the same time by a GYN oncologist.
The operation was scheduled and performed on March 4. She was in surgery about 7 hours. She spent a week in the hospital with no food by mouth. She was sent home to recuperate but developed an infection due to some leaks in the digestive system. Upon her return the doctors opened the upper 5 inches of the 20 inch incision and drained the affected area. She spent another 1 1/2 week in the hospital.
During her second stay her head oncologist stopped by. He said that he had something to tell us and that he didn't want a resident or intern to tell us because in his line of work he rarely gets the joy of this kind of news. He said "the biopsy of the pancreatic tumor showed that it had not metastisized and that we got it all, and a test of the lymph nodes around the uteris showed no signs of cancer". I don't think I have cried in about 35-40 years. I did that moment.
Recovery is still going to be a long process. She is at home. She still can have nothing by mouth. I have to rig a huge IV bag full of all her nutritional needs to a semi permanent IV hook up in her upper arm every day. She still has an open incision to allow drainage. She wishes for a hamburger and a Reese's peanutbutter cup. A nurse visits the house every few days.
We are told this will end eventually and that she will once again be healthy. We just have to be patient.
Prayer from many pulled her through this. Even the Rabi at the hospital sang her a prayer. When she awoke in the ICU there was a nurse from Nigeria holding her hand and praying for her. The nurse heard her calling out to the lord during her delerium and knew she was a child of God and had to pray for her. Prior to this illness she had dreamed of Moses being led to Mt. Sinai and of the story of David and Goliath. At the time she had no idea why she had these dreams. That is where she found herself in her personal battle with Goliath.
She has won with the lords help.
