The Countdown…

05.08.2012

Hi everyone,

We’re in the final days before surgery. Jesse and I have been pretty busy here in Boston running from appointment to test etc. We had a nice afternoon with my cousin Emma and her kids yesterday in the sunshine. It was great to have some “normal downtime”. The kids are excited that aunty sam is coming to stay with them for a few weeks – I am feeling pretty special 🙂

We met with Doc Sugarbaker today to go over a few questions and his game plan. On the downside, it does not look like he will be going the minimally invasive route as I had originally thought. Not sure why this has changed, but he felt he really wanted to get in there with his own eyes and hands to be as thorough as possible. They actually remove a section of the 6th rib under my arm and towards the scapula. The incision will be approx. 6″ (further qualifying me for the Tim Burton award for fabulous scars!) Oh yeah, it’s gonna hurt but he has assured me they will keep me well medicated and comfortable. Apparently you won’t be able to see that I am missing a rib.

His plan is still to get in there and assess the situation to see how much of the lung can be saved. He will only know when he is in there. He is the best and has seen more cases than anyone so I am in qualified hands. He is also a nice guy and according to one of his associates we met with, he is a total monster for detail. A nice trait in a surgeon I think. The surgery will be anywhere from 3 hours to 5 hours depending on what they decide to do. The heated chemo is one hour of this. As draconian as it sounds, applying chemo directly in a cavity (lung, abdomen…) is  less toxic to the entire body and much more effective than systemic chemo. Also dependant on what they do is how long I will be in the ICU. Alison and Jesse will keep you all updated on the blog.

Tonight is the dreaded “prep”. Oh yeah, for anyone who has ever had colonoscopy or major surgery… they can attest to it not being a bunch of fun. On the upside, they have come a LONG way in 10 years with the stuff they give you to drink. For my surgery in Washington I had to drink 4 litres of the most foul tasting semi-salty cherry flavoured liquid (I’ll leave the rest to your imagination, needless to say it ain’t pretty). Now it’s just a little 5 oz lemon flavoured soda drink that didn’t taste bad at all.

Awesome.

We have two more pre-op tests tomorrow morning and then I get admitted in the early evening for an overnight in the hospital. They’ll be getting me up at 6am to get me all prepped for 7:30 surgery.

So the big question… how am I feeling? Well, still just anxious to get on with it. I am so grateful to be treated by the best doctors at one of the best hospitals. I can’t imagine someone who does not have a choice. I am grateful to have Jesse and Alison here by my side. I can’t imagine not having a hand to hold before being wheeled into the OR. I am grateful to know that I have a mighty force of angels praying for me. I can’t imagine someone who is alone. Despite the craziness of the past 6 months, I am grateful for all the gifts it has brought me: lessons, insight, appreciation of every moment, and above all else, the love all of you have bathed me in.

I cannot imagine my life without it.

Thank you, thank you, thank you for all your love and your light.

Sam xoxo