Tag Archives: surgery

Health Issues

Post op day 4 – Feb 5th

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Hi everyone,

I just thought I’d write an update. I still have my drain in, and homecare called and said they will come out tomorrow to see me. The drainage is definately slowing so I think it will be less than 24 cc in 24 hrs as of today. The dressing is still on there and quite a thick one so I can’t really see the incision or anything, though I do think there is some bruising under it that i am seeing.

I’m doing alright pain wise. I’d say on the pain scale, just sitting here doing nothing that I am at about a 3/10 . When I try to move a certain way (like getting out of bed), it zings me and I get kind of like an electric zap, and the pain shoots up. I think the tube is irritating a nerve or something. So I am still needing help just to get out of bed, otherwise I am doing alright. 🙂

I’m taking tylenol # 3 x 1 tab about every 5 hrs or so, depending on how much I am moving around.  I will be glad to get the drain out, as it is what is bothering me the most at this point. I am doing my exercises several times a day. Physio gave me several to do until the drain comes out, and once it’s out, I have to do new ones as well. All are geared to keep the area stretched and mobile so I don’t get a frozen shoulder, and that it facilitates drainage…

the exercises I do several times a day now are

1. shrug both of my shoulders up, then relax  – do 10x

2. roll both of my shoulders around in circles – do 10x

3 Neck exercises – turn my head from side to side  – do 10x

4. Bend my head to the side bringing my ear to my shoulder – repeat with the other side  – I am not doing these because of the problem I have with my C 6-7 and this might aggravate it, so I spoke with physio and she agreed this one is not a good idea for me to do.

Hand and wrist extensions

5. Make a fist and then stretch out my fingers straight  – do 10 x

6. Make circles with my wrist – ( I make a fist, and move my fist around in small circles to make wrist circles) – do 10x

Elbow and shoulder Exercises

7. Bend and straighten my elbow – so I sit in a chair and have my hand straight down at my side and then I pull up my arm and bend it until my fist is on my shoulder.. like I was lifting weights, but no weights… just moving my arm back down and up again. d0 10 x

8. Bend at the waist so I’m facing the floor, with my arm on my operated side hanging parallel to my legs and swing arms in a circle.  If you were bent at the waist, and your arms hanging down almost touching the floor, swing arms in a small circle, like you were stirring a vat of soup. 🙂  do 10x

so this is the routine I do several x a day. They have ordered it every 4 hrs while awake on the sheet of paper, but physio said 3x a day.. so I do it at least 3x  and more if I think of it. Once the drain is out, I will add some more and I’ll post what I’m doing once I start those.

Thanks everyone for the emails, blog posts, phone calls and for the cards, and gifts and visits. 🙂

…Pam…

Health Issues

Surgery update

6 Comments

The surgery has been delayed. Pam was supposed to be in the operating room at 12:10, but here we are at 1:45 and we are still waiting to see the surgeon and the anesthesiologist. They have changed procedures since we were here last time.

Previously we didn’t see either one in the waiting room, but apparently an efficiency expert has found ways to streamline operations.  As you can see, it’s been marvelously effective! Hopefully Pam will be out of here before she has to go back for her follow-up on the 11th!

There was an older lady chatting with Pam about how they told her that her surgeon was running a little late. Pam asked her what time her surgery was, and she said 1:15. Then Pam asked her surgeon’s name and of course it is Pam’s surgeon!

Oh said the lady, when is your surgery? When told it was an hour before hers she said, I suppose you’ll be before me?

I can only hope, I thought.

I’ll let you know when she gets in! Actually it was two-hours late that she got in to surgery.

So now we (Maggie and I) wait.

Pam’s surgeon came into the waiting room to see the elderly lady we spoke to before! That was surprising! It’s 3 pm, so the surgery went quickly. She had told the woman she would tell the surgeon to be quick, so I she did-or was!

It will take about an hour for her to come out of the recovery room. She was about an hour and a half in post-op last time so hopefully she will be home in time to watch her beloved Canucks play Dallas. She has been looking forward to finally seeing Cody Hodgson play his first NHL game.

It’s 4:30 and there still is no sign of Pam. I’ve had only three hours of sleep, so I’m really starting to fade. The air in the hospital is very dry and makes breathing a chore.

The waiting room is filled with people silently hoping that all will be well with wife, mother, son or relative. It’s a strange camaraderie that we silently share with each other.

Each time the double doors of the recovery room open, we all look expectantly, hopefully, wishing to see our loved one being wheeled out and returned to us. Whole, healthy and recovered.

—–

Pam and I have just arrived home. It is 7 pm. She is doing ok. She is in a bit more pain than the previous surgery. She did not speak to her doctor, although there really isn’t much for her to tell us. We’ll know more after these lymph nodes are analyzed. There seems to be more blood in the drain than the last surgery as well.

Health Issues

Surgery # 2 Feb 1/2011

3 Comments

Well today is the day I have to go for my second surgery. This time it is to remove the rest of the lymph nodes in the right axilla (armpit), as there was one lymph of the 3 sentinels that had cancer in it when they biopsied it. So now there is no choice but to remove the rest of the nodes and hope that it stopped there. I will post more when I know more. I expect to be  home this evening, with an incision in armpit, and the drain again. I’m lucky to have a great nurse with me 24/7 named Maurice, and another great nurse, my friend Maggie is coming into town to spend the day with M and me.  🙂 I am sure Maurice will write updates initially post op for me again, as I’ll be too doped up 🙂
Thanks everyone for the support and well wishes and prayers.
…Pam…

Commentary

Megan McNeil

1 Comment

Megan McNeilI don’t know if any of you have heard of Megan, but she was a young lady from North Delta, just a few blocks from where we live. She was diagnosed with cancer at 16. She went public with her battle and wrote a song called Will to Survive. When music producer Garth Richardson (Red Hot Chili Peppers, Nickelback, Motley Crue) heard the song, he immediately wanted to be involved.

Megan McNeilIt’s a touching song, about struggling with childhood cancer. Megan donated all the proceeds of the song, available on Itunes, to a couple of agencies doing research into childhood cancer. I was not aware that much of what is done for adult cancer, doesn’t really apply to childhood cancer.

Megan’s website points out that twenty years ago, only twenty percent of children diagnosed with leukemia survived. Now that’s up to eighty percent! She thinks that if Terry Fox were diagnosed today, not only would he be alive, but he probably wouldn’t even have lost his leg!

Sadly, Megan lost her battle with cancer on Friday, at the age of twenty. RIP sweet child. I hope you’re in a better place, because you made this world a better place!

Her website, The Will to Survive, contains her blog, the agencies she helped and other information. Maybe you can help, too.

Health Issues

Pre Op Assessment done today

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Hi everyone,

Well I had to go back to the hospital to have a pre op assessment done. I’m having a second surgery Feb 1 for the Right lymphadenectomy (where they take out all remaining lymph nodes in right under arm) and so I had to see the pre op assessment nurse, and have a history done, vitals and some teaching.

Then I saw the physio, and she went over some arm exercises I will have to do post op  (reps of 10 each , 3 x a day… ) there are about 5 that I do first day post op, so Wednesday.. and then there are about 5 more that I do when the drain comes out…  again reps of 10 – 3x a day…  So that was good to know those. The aim is to strengthen the arm and to keep joints and muscles moving so I don’t get a frozen shoulder or stiffness, and to help with drainage of area to help prevent lymphedema.. something that can happen when there are no lymphnodes in the arm to help drain sweat and toxins from the body. We went over some thing I need to be wary of, and to try to prevent getting bite or stung or cut on right arm, as that increases my risk of infection..   She also took about 9 different measurement around finger (middle), around hand and wrist and up the arm in about 5-6 spots.. she took them as baseline measurements of right and left arm.  I’ll have to see physio at 1 month, 3 months and 6 months post op.

Then I saw the anesthetist and had a pre op check done as well. He listened to my heart, and lungs, took my vitals, and looked in my mouth and throat and made sure I didn’t have any loose teeth or false teeth. I said to him my teeth are my own 🙂 and they are not loose.. crooked, yes, and I have a couple of crowns on back ones, but other than that…  A ok.

He said I didn’t need another ECG or Xray today so that was good news…  once I saw him I was free to go 🙂 So that took from 0745 – 12:15 ish.. I had some wait between physio and seeing the anesthetist, so I went and read in the cafeteria and had a coffee. I read on my new eReader, a gift from the gals I work with. 🙂

As an aside: I had a weird thing happen last night. I went to bed around 11:30 pm to try to get a decent sleep as I knew I had to be at the hospital early, but I had trouble falling asleep. It was early for me and I wasn’t tired. I was just laying in bed trying to sleep.. I started to have a wee spell of weeping where tears were falling , I guess it was me feeling sorry for myself, but I really had not been thinking of the cancer then, so I don’t know why I started to cry. M was there and asked me if I was crying and I said a little. He put his arm over me and gave me some kleenex and just having him there holding me was what I needed. 🙂 I got all warm and fuzzy and was able to sleep.

Next stop? Feb 1st   Surgery time  12:10

…Pam…

Health Issues

Update: Jan 20th Surgeon's visit

9 Comments

OK. I just got back from the surgeon’s office and the family Dr.  We were hoping for an all clear margins and lymph. Well, I got half of my wish.  The margins, the area around the original tumor, were clear, so that’s good news. I get to keep my breast. Also the the tumor is estrogen and progesterone positive which is also good news. That means the cancer will respond to treatment by something like tamoxifen.

Short version of the bad news though is that one of the 3 sentinel lymph nodes shows positive for metastatic cancer. There are two small tiny spots, like about the size of a pencil dot on a paper,  1.0mm and 0.5mm,  so very tiny. Which means I have to go back for more surgery and have to have all lymph nodes taken out of right axilla. (should cut down on amount of deodorant I have to use lol)

Anyways second surgery is already booked for Feb 1st. We’re not sure of the time yet, but probably another all day affair. I’ll type up the whole pathology report and send it when I finish letting people know the news.

I will see cancer clinic four weeks post op, and that is when radiation will also start apparently. Family Dr feels I will most likely have to have chemo but that’s up to the Cancer Clinic. Radiation, which I will have to have no matter what, should start around first of March or so. I am off until Feb 21st. Then, when I do go back, it will be for eight hour nights only if and until I’m feeling better. I see my Family Dr on Feb 10th and she and I will assess how I am doing and if I feel I can go back to work by Feb 21st .

It is OK to share this news if anyone asks. I am doing OK. I consider this just another hoop to jump through in this fight to get the cancer out of me. Maurice has been my rock and came with me to the Dr’s office. He had a few tears in the surgeon’s office and car. It’s hard to be brave when you don’t know what it is exactly we have to face yet, but for the most part we are doing OK. At this point, I remain positive and still hopeful.

So not the greatest news; not out of the woods yet. Thanks for thinking of me. 🙂 Thank you everyone for the posts, emails and calls.

If anyone is interested in what the pathology report says, send me an email and I’ll send you it to read.

…Pam…

Health Issues

Breast Cancer post op – update

12 Comments

Had my surgery, and am doing alright. Typing with left hand isn’t easy, so M’s been doing most of the blog posts etc. I heard from Surgeon’s office today. I am to see her on Jan 20th for the pathology/staging/follow up visit.  I am hoping that everything has been caught in time and that it hasn’t spread to the lymph, but need to wait to find out.

At this point I am still hopeful. I feel like it’s been caught pretty quick (8x7x6mm) and saw Surgeon quickly (dec 23rd) and had surgery in a timely manner  Jan 11th .. had the sentinel node biopsy done.. so I believe we’ve done all we can do at this point.

I’ve emptied the davol once this AM and will empty it again. I think once my 24 hr total is less than 24 cc’s it can come out…  that’s what Dr told me before surgery anyways. 🙂

I have spent today pretty much being catered to. M’s been wonderful bringing me everything I need. He’s a great nurse. 🙂 Better than me, I think. 🙂 I’ve been in recliner since I got up, and nodding off and on all day. I’m keeping myself pretty drugged up today, and am taking a tyl # 3 every 3 hrs. Pain scale is about 1-2 when not moving, when sitting in recliner with right arm propped up. Pain level is 4-5 when I try to move. It is manageable. I think it will feel alot better once the drain comes out.. maybe a couple more days. Have not heard from the homecare nurse. I have their # . i’ll continue to drain my own davol twice a day, and when drainage is less and drain ready to come out, I’ll give them a call.

Thank you to everyone who has emailed me, phoned, or replied on the blog. I appreciate the support and friendship. 🙂

…Pam…