Due to the length of this post, Brian told me I needed to start with "start reading at your own risk." So sorry in advance about the length. Yesterday Brian had his 17th surgery. He had another tumor that had grown in the same area of his pelvis where the cluster of 50-60 had been removed in February. Considering all of the microscopic cells that could have gotten away, we consider one pretty miraculous. Of course, none would have been better, but at least it wasn't as bad as several. They found the tumor during routine scans back in October. At first the doctor was hesitant to operate so soon and in the same year of his last major surgery, but after factoring in several positives to operating before the year's end(insurance, possible sloughing off of more tumors, associated nerve pain, golf game, etc.) we decided to proceed in December.
They made the initial incision at 8:20am. The estimated time for the duration of surgery was 4 hours and for possibly the first time ever, Brian was out of surgery and we(Brian's mom and I) were speaking with the doctor at right about 4 hours. He made us nervous by starting out with "It gets harder every time." Things went pretty well though. They went in through his previous scar in the front to access the tumor. Once they pulled back the mesh lining in his abdominals, they proceeded to find the best route to take out the tumor. It was wedged in the notch of his right pelvis and was pressed up against the sciatic nerve, which explains the pain in his leg and numbing of his foot Brian had been experiencing. They were able to get out about 3/4ths of the tumor in one piece, but a few nodules had appeared bulging around the main mass which was about the size of 3 golf balls placed together in an arch(everything is in golf terms for Brian's sake) and had to break it apart to get everything out. To get the remaining pieces, they had to go around a different route and push it up through. They really tried to get it all out in one piece, but it was just too risky, in fact they had to repair one hole already, and didn't want to cause any damage. We fully trust Dr. Scott(orthepedic surgeon) and Dr. Chick(plastic surgeon) and their judgement. We can't stress enough how fortunate we consider ourselves to be to have the two of them working on Brian. We feel they are the absolute best surgeons for the job. Although we wish they could have gotten everything out in one piece, they were thorough in getting out anything they could feel or see. We just pray there were not any microscopic seeds of cancer that spread and could turn into future tumors.
They made the initial incision at 8:20am. The estimated time for the duration of surgery was 4 hours and for possibly the first time ever, Brian was out of surgery and we(Brian's mom and I) were speaking with the doctor at right about 4 hours. He made us nervous by starting out with "It gets harder every time." Things went pretty well though. They went in through his previous scar in the front to access the tumor. Once they pulled back the mesh lining in his abdominals, they proceeded to find the best route to take out the tumor. It was wedged in the notch of his right pelvis and was pressed up against the sciatic nerve, which explains the pain in his leg and numbing of his foot Brian had been experiencing. They were able to get out about 3/4ths of the tumor in one piece, but a few nodules had appeared bulging around the main mass which was about the size of 3 golf balls placed together in an arch(everything is in golf terms for Brian's sake) and had to break it apart to get everything out. To get the remaining pieces, they had to go around a different route and push it up through. They really tried to get it all out in one piece, but it was just too risky, in fact they had to repair one hole already, and didn't want to cause any damage. We fully trust Dr. Scott(orthepedic surgeon) and Dr. Chick(plastic surgeon) and their judgement. We can't stress enough how fortunate we consider ourselves to be to have the two of them working on Brian. We feel they are the absolute best surgeons for the job. Although we wish they could have gotten everything out in one piece, they were thorough in getting out anything they could feel or see. We just pray there were not any microscopic seeds of cancer that spread and could turn into future tumors.
They were going to try to remove the screw that had been placed in his hip in February for extra support, but they would have had to go through the bladder and cause significant damage, so they decided it wasn't necessary. Brian won't notice the difference, it just would have helped with his MRI scans. They put the mesh back down and closed him up around noon.
Fortunately, so far Brian seems to have all feeling still. His quad muscles are a bit week, but still functioning. He is experiencing quite a bit of nerve pain, but with the morphine pump, he is managing pretty well. The recovery is already going much quicker than February. He is tired, but his spirits are up. He got up this morning, but his heart rate reached 150 just walking to the door, so the PT wouldn't let him go any further. He tends to have that problem quite often. It always makes the nurses nervous, but we just know from experience that his heart rate is high after surgery. He just got up and sat at the edge of the bed for about a half hour and is really doing well. We are so grateful for all of the prayers in our behalf. I'm sure if we could see all that is being done for him, we would see miracles.
So far the routine is, I come during the day and Marilyn(his mom) takes over at night. The kids are with my parents during the day and my Dad is running Lucas to school. We are so fortunate to have such a supportive family. They are as good as they come.
Our sweet Henry is having some of his own trials right now. He has something called Legg, Calve, Perthes Disease. Lucas and Henry both have the same bone disease as Brian, but this is unrelated. The ball joint in his right hip didn't receive the blood supply it needed while developing, so it will break apart, be absorbed and rebuild on it's own. He is probably in the rebuilding stage right now and he is experiencing a lot of pain. He won't put any pressure on his right leg and it especially hurts at night. He has a hard time sleeping and wakes crying in pain. We are in the process of finding out if there is anything else going on because his behavior isn't typical for this disease. We are finding him a walker and he has an appointment for a second opinion an MRI and bloodwork next week. He is a trooper, but it's been really hard to see him crawling around and in so much pain. Hopefully we can have everyone back home and comfortable for Christmas.
Life is hard, but we have so many blessings to enjoy as well. Without the sorrow, there is no joy.
I've thought several times about where I would be if we didn't have the gospel in our lives through our trials. I can't comprehend how difficult it would be. Fortunately, we do have the knowledge that everything we endure is our Heavenly Father's will, and His will is greater than our own. It can be easy to forget at times, but deep down I always know that is true. I must say we are all praying His will is to make this the last surgery for Brian and he can be cancer free, but come what may and love it, right? Easier said than done, but perhaps if I say it enough it will stick.
Fortunately, so far Brian seems to have all feeling still. His quad muscles are a bit week, but still functioning. He is experiencing quite a bit of nerve pain, but with the morphine pump, he is managing pretty well. The recovery is already going much quicker than February. He is tired, but his spirits are up. He got up this morning, but his heart rate reached 150 just walking to the door, so the PT wouldn't let him go any further. He tends to have that problem quite often. It always makes the nurses nervous, but we just know from experience that his heart rate is high after surgery. He just got up and sat at the edge of the bed for about a half hour and is really doing well. We are so grateful for all of the prayers in our behalf. I'm sure if we could see all that is being done for him, we would see miracles.
So far the routine is, I come during the day and Marilyn(his mom) takes over at night. The kids are with my parents during the day and my Dad is running Lucas to school. We are so fortunate to have such a supportive family. They are as good as they come.
Our sweet Henry is having some of his own trials right now. He has something called Legg, Calve, Perthes Disease. Lucas and Henry both have the same bone disease as Brian, but this is unrelated. The ball joint in his right hip didn't receive the blood supply it needed while developing, so it will break apart, be absorbed and rebuild on it's own. He is probably in the rebuilding stage right now and he is experiencing a lot of pain. He won't put any pressure on his right leg and it especially hurts at night. He has a hard time sleeping and wakes crying in pain. We are in the process of finding out if there is anything else going on because his behavior isn't typical for this disease. We are finding him a walker and he has an appointment for a second opinion an MRI and bloodwork next week. He is a trooper, but it's been really hard to see him crawling around and in so much pain. Hopefully we can have everyone back home and comfortable for Christmas.
Life is hard, but we have so many blessings to enjoy as well. Without the sorrow, there is no joy.
I've thought several times about where I would be if we didn't have the gospel in our lives through our trials. I can't comprehend how difficult it would be. Fortunately, we do have the knowledge that everything we endure is our Heavenly Father's will, and His will is greater than our own. It can be easy to forget at times, but deep down I always know that is true. I must say we are all praying His will is to make this the last surgery for Brian and he can be cancer free, but come what may and love it, right? Easier said than done, but perhaps if I say it enough it will stick.
We started out early(thanks to Lucas) with presents.
We celebrated in the evening at Boondocks with a little mini golf and games; and finished off with a little Buzz cake and ice cream. The only birthday parties we had been to recently were 1st birthdays, so when we brought the cake out, Henry started digging in with his hands thinking that was the appropriate course of action. We got a pretty good kick out of that.
Henry displaying his new golf hat with Daddy and 
Another feat Henry has managed is potty training! Typical Henry, it had to be on his terms, but when he was ready it was a breeze! As a reward, we told him he would get to go golfing when he was potty trained. We were on a family vacation at Bear Lake when Brian woke Henry up to go golfing and he ran around the condo telling everyone "I get to go golfing now because I'm a potty train!" He's such a sweet kid and we love him to bits!
