He's out!
Dan emerged from the O.R. four and a half hours after going in. Though he was still sedated and will be until tomorrow, his primary surgeon gave us the good news.
He considers the surgery a success, finding the kidney and cancerous tumor easy to remove from the IVC and renal gland, with no apparent travelling through hepatic veins (meaning it looks like the liver is safe). Dan needed a lot of blood, which is pretty normal in this circumstance. The IVC did not need replacement, his left kidney wasn't tied off for too long, and all in all ... I am SO relieved I could cry. Again.
The doctors also decided to NOT go through Dan's sternum, which he will be very happy to learn about upon waking. They opted for the incision along his side, from the armpit to belly button. It might hurt a bit more in the end we're told, due to the ribs being moved out of the way, but it's the way Dan would have preferred.
We got a chance to briefly visit him in the Cardiac Surgery ICU, and later he'll be admitted into regular ICU or straight up transferred to Cardiac Recovery. They'll wake him up depending on his vitals and how well he's recovering - most likely sometime tomorrow. Seeing him on a gurney with a breathing tube an several IV's and a thousand machines ... that's nuts. I could not tell you what a single machine actually did, but the nurse did break down for us again what each tube and line was for. His hands were cold from the temperature in the O.R., but he had a warming blanket on, and looked like himself - just sleeping.
We'll keep you updated as his recovery progresses. Again - we thank you so so so much, from the depths of our bottomless hearts, for your love and support throughout this long day.
Thank you.
And fuck you cancer!
Dan emerged from the O.R. four and a half hours after going in. Though he was still sedated and will be until tomorrow, his primary surgeon gave us the good news.
He considers the surgery a success, finding the kidney and cancerous tumor easy to remove from the IVC and renal gland, with no apparent travelling through hepatic veins (meaning it looks like the liver is safe). Dan needed a lot of blood, which is pretty normal in this circumstance. The IVC did not need replacement, his left kidney wasn't tied off for too long, and all in all ... I am SO relieved I could cry. Again.
The doctors also decided to NOT go through Dan's sternum, which he will be very happy to learn about upon waking. They opted for the incision along his side, from the armpit to belly button. It might hurt a bit more in the end we're told, due to the ribs being moved out of the way, but it's the way Dan would have preferred.
We got a chance to briefly visit him in the Cardiac Surgery ICU, and later he'll be admitted into regular ICU or straight up transferred to Cardiac Recovery. They'll wake him up depending on his vitals and how well he's recovering - most likely sometime tomorrow. Seeing him on a gurney with a breathing tube an several IV's and a thousand machines ... that's nuts. I could not tell you what a single machine actually did, but the nurse did break down for us again what each tube and line was for. His hands were cold from the temperature in the O.R., but he had a warming blanket on, and looked like himself - just sleeping.
We'll keep you updated as his recovery progresses. Again - we thank you so so so much, from the depths of our bottomless hearts, for your love and support throughout this long day.
Thank you.
And fuck you cancer!
Sounds like things are looking up. Will continue to pray for a great recovery
ReplyDeleteSO GREAT TO HEAR!!! #FUCKCANCER!!! <3
ReplyDelete