Updates Updates Updates!!!
So my Dad's surgery was a success. They removed a malignant tumor that turned out to be bigger than a tennis ball (holy shit), yet I don't believe they had to remove the entire top lobe of his left lung. I could be wrong about that. The tumor was much bigger than they thought it was as shown on the PET scan, so they had to remove part of two ribs and part of the chest wall, as the tumor was growing into the chest wall. The lymph nodes looked good, but we're awaiting the pathologist's report (hopefully tomorrow) to know whether there are microscopic cancer cells in them. Either way, they want him to do at least two rounds of chemo to make sure they get rid of anything microscopic.
Tomorrow he has a portocath (sp?) put in below his breast bone in order to get the chemo sometime next month. My Mom had several of these put in during her trials with chemo as they would sometimes kink and be ineffective, so she would sometimes have to have it replaced. It's an outpatient procedure that only takes about an hour. He keeps asking me if I'm OK with all of this and he also keeps telling me not to worry. Am I that much of a worrier? Am I usually on that big of an emotional roller coaster? OK, maybe I am.
It's not the cancer or the surgery or the chemo that gets me down. It's just the idea that I have to watch another parent go through the same ordeals. Right now, however, it looks like the end result will be different, and for that I am grateful. They say that the type of cancer he has (even though incredibly aggressive) does not usually spread outside of the lungs. OK. I'm keeping them at their word on this one.
Tomorrow he has a portocath (sp?) put in below his breast bone in order to get the chemo sometime next month. My Mom had several of these put in during her trials with chemo as they would sometimes kink and be ineffective, so she would sometimes have to have it replaced. It's an outpatient procedure that only takes about an hour. He keeps asking me if I'm OK with all of this and he also keeps telling me not to worry. Am I that much of a worrier? Am I usually on that big of an emotional roller coaster? OK, maybe I am.
It's not the cancer or the surgery or the chemo that gets me down. It's just the idea that I have to watch another parent go through the same ordeals. Right now, however, it looks like the end result will be different, and for that I am grateful. They say that the type of cancer he has (even though incredibly aggressive) does not usually spread outside of the lungs. OK. I'm keeping them at their word on this one.