Papaw Update
Papaw will be discharged from the hospital when he finishes his radiation treatments for his bone cancer. They decided against the surgery to put the rod in his leg to support the cancer damaged area, as his health would not stand up to the surgery. Part of the tests they continued to run because of his white cell count not responding found a new cancerous tumor in his lung. Again, they can't do surgery because he probably wouldn't survive it... and chemo is out for the same reason. You can't get radiation on the same area in a certain time limit either.
So he will be discharged to hospice care either tomorrow or early next week. My great-aunt is travelling to Magnolia to open up her house down there so he can have some privacy but still be near enough for the majority of the family (especially the grandkids and great-grandkids he is missing) to visit. The boys haven't been able to see him in the hospital because he was first in the organ failure/transplant wing and now is in a positive pressure room.
The pain meds they have been giving him have kept him pretty out of it, but they've weaned him off of them as the pain subsided as the bone cancer responded partly to the radiation. He has been very much himself for my last few visits, and told me last night to be sure to bring the boys and "that puppy" down to visit where they'd have lots of room to run and play. (He used to watch Temper playing in the backyard when he first got sick and was staying at our house, saying he wished he could go outside and play with her and the boys.)
While I don't like the thought of the finality of the decision, I just have to remind myself what the doctor said... Quality is better than Quantity. At least now, he won't spend his last days in a hospital being annoyed by strangers, barely aware of his surroundings due to meds... he'll be at home with family, in the house he grew up in. Exactly where he wants to be.
So he will be discharged to hospice care either tomorrow or early next week. My great-aunt is travelling to Magnolia to open up her house down there so he can have some privacy but still be near enough for the majority of the family (especially the grandkids and great-grandkids he is missing) to visit. The boys haven't been able to see him in the hospital because he was first in the organ failure/transplant wing and now is in a positive pressure room.
The pain meds they have been giving him have kept him pretty out of it, but they've weaned him off of them as the pain subsided as the bone cancer responded partly to the radiation. He has been very much himself for my last few visits, and told me last night to be sure to bring the boys and "that puppy" down to visit where they'd have lots of room to run and play. (He used to watch Temper playing in the backyard when he first got sick and was staying at our house, saying he wished he could go outside and play with her and the boys.)
While I don't like the thought of the finality of the decision, I just have to remind myself what the doctor said... Quality is better than Quantity. At least now, he won't spend his last days in a hospital being annoyed by strangers, barely aware of his surroundings due to meds... he'll be at home with family, in the house he grew up in. Exactly where he wants to be.