Updates on our cancer journey
I have more good news to report: John came home from the hospital this afternoon! He has two drainage bags still attached to his abdomen, but they look practically empty. Eventually, his home care nurse will remove them. In the meantime she’ll be checking on him daily.
Thank you again for all your prayers and support!
The surgeon who checked in on John this morning was concerned that his abscess had not been drained yet. He said that Monday was way too long to wait and he would definitely push for it today.
Just to give a bit of background, when they insert the tubes through his skin to drain the infected fluid from his abdomen, they use medical imaging for guidance. Apparently the CT scan machine that they normally use was undergoing maintenance, but by using ultrasound instead, they were able to do the procedure this morning. Thank You, Lord! What an answer to prayer. John came back to his room to find lunch waiting for him: jello, broth and orange juice.
It may take a few days for the abscess to be fully drained. By this evening, John said that his pain had already started to subside a little. We still haven’t heard when exactly he will be able to come home, but at least we are one step closer to that happening.
I know our church was lifting us up in prayer last night at the weekly prayer meeting, and many others were praying as well, so thank you! I’m so grateful to the brothers and sisters in Christ who have brought us meals and helped in practical ways (you know who you are). Thank you for being the hands and feet of Jesus.
Today was Maggie’s birthday, by the way. Daisy’s was last week, and thankfully John was still at home then. Although he didn’t get to be with us in person today, he still joined in watching her open her present and blow out her candles via FaceTime. She was a very happy three-year-old. All in all, it was a very good day.
John wasn’t able to have the drains put in today. Unfortunately, unless there is a cancellation, he won’t be able to get them until Monday. At least his pain is under control and he is able to rest. His fever that he had last night is gone too. They moved him to the inpatient surgery unit this morning and are keeping him on a diet of ice chips so he will be ready just in case there is a spot to fit him in. Thanks for all your messages of encouragement and prayers. They mean a lot. Please pray that God will make a way for him to get the procedure he needs, that Lord-willing he can come home to us sooner rather than later.
John seemed to be doing so well last week, but over the past couple days the pain in his belly increased unbearably. Tonight, an emergency CT scan revealed that he has a 12-inch abscess in his abdomen, something that the ER doctor said tends to present itself around this time, two weeks post-surgery. It basically means that a great deal of pus is accumulating in his belly as his immune system mobilizes to fight infection. The pressure from the pus is causing his pain. Tomorrow they will drain it and likely give him antibiotics. He will have to stay in the hospital for four to five days. While I can’t say we’re thrilled about this, it is a relief to know the cause of his sudden severe pain and that they can fix it soon. I’m also thankful that he didn’t have to wait very long in the ER this afternoon. He went in around 2 and had the CT scan around 7:30. In the meantime, he got to be in a private room with his own bathroom and they gave him morphine to cope with the pain. The kids and I got to FaceTime him while we ate our supper (still no visitors allowed obviously). Please keep us in your prayers as we get through the rest of this week!