It's been a week now since Daddy had his original surgery. The incisions are looking pretty good. He does have an infection in part of the incision coming down his neck so the Doctor removed a couple of the staples from it this morning to allow it to drain better. His chest incision is bleeding quite a bit and keeps soaking through the dressings and gown. Most likely this is due to the blood thinning medications.
As if the multiple lung and leg blood clots were not enough for him to deal with, the dye that was used to detect the pulmonary embolism has now caused Daddy to go into temporary renal failure. To fix this they have to give him fluids, but they have to be very careful because if they give him too much fluids it will affect his heart but he needs enough to get his kidneys working again. Also the kidneys help to make blood with regards to stimulating the body since his kidneys aren't working properly he's not making blood. Therefore; the Doctors will be giving him blood today. They said the kidney function will take 3 to 5 days to improve.
As for his breathing, the blood thinner seems to be working with starting to dissolve the clots, resulting in Daddy not requiring as much help from the Bi-Vent machine. They have lowered his oxygen to 55% and his blood O2 stats are staying around 97, so that is a step in the right direction. As Daddy's lungs get stronger they will gradually wean him off the Bi-Vent down to the CPAP and then eventually breathing on his own.
Daddy is in very good spirits considering everything he is going through. He did ask the Doctor this morning when he could go home and the Doctor said:
1. When your lungs get stronger so we can get you off the breathing machine.
2. When your kidneys recover and are working properly.
We received the pathology report back from the bone and tissue they removed last Wednesday. The report showed no evidence of cancer on either end of the bone that was removed and there was no evidence of cancer on the edges of the gum tissue. Out of the 2 lymph nodes that were removed, 5 of the 30 glands were cancerous. There was also evidence of perineural envision which means that the cancer is in the nerve endings in the side of his face. The Doctor is very confident that with radiation and chemotherapy this should be taken care of.
Now he just has to overcome this additional bump in the road.
6 comments:
This is quite the report. You have learned so much throughout all this. We hope that everything will heal. Did he have his jaw wired shut? When you said he asked something. Continuos prayers are coming your way from so many. God Bless each of you. BIll and Sue
Hi everyone we have been reading blogs daily to hear updates on Roy. We hope things will continue to improve and the blood clots will dissolve. He will always be in our thoughts and prayers. Jim,Dawn Scott and Jonathon
No they did not wire Dad's jaw shut. He had more than enough muscle from his chest to put in his jaw that they didn't need to wire it shut.
Dad can't actually make any sound with the trachea tube, but he can still mouth the words. We also got him a dry erase board and he goes to town with that.
Thank you for your thoughts and prayers. They are greatly appreciated.
Hollie
I'm praying for your dad, your mom and the rest of the family for the strength needed to get through this!
Marsha B.
Hollie, do you have a social worker or CNS working with you all? (I used to be a social worker there, so this is not a totally erratic question..:)) Anyway, I am hoping you are getting some extra support. Scott and I continue to check the updates. Your dad is sure going thru a lot, but he is strong. Prayers continue, as always. Lisa Hippeard
Lisa,
I think a Patient Care Rep. came and talked to Mom this morning. I haven't gotten all the details yet. I stayed home this morning to spend some time with my boys and I'm heading to the hospital in a couple hours and will stay with Mom until tomorrow afternoon. I'll let you know.
Thanks,
Hollie
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