Truth

The truth. Isn't it amazing, you always want to know the truth but sometimes it is a hard pill to swallow. Sometimes you enjoy the sugar coating of bad news but the truth always comes out in the end. Since my last writing, I have had some good days. Now that Bev was able to drain me at home, I have felt comfortable. I went to work on Tuesday and talked so much that on Wednesday my voice changed a little for the better. So thanks to everyone who kept me talking! On Tuesday, Amy Crain from the bookstore shared her experience with us as to her sons' same type of leakage and the doctors who fixed it. She even went so far as to email his doctor, who wrote back and recommended a doctor who might be able to help me. Through several emails, Dr. Weyant from the University of Colorado Medical Center Anschulz Cancer Pavilion wanted to see me so we went to visit him today. He is a specialist in thoracic medicine and had a procedure in mind that might help my leaking problem. After consultation and discussion, these are the facts I learned. I could continue with the current treatment of Rituxin and continue to drain and hope it heals itself. However, after also consulting with Dr. Mynt, a specialist of Lymphoma at the same location, he believes we might have misdiagnosed my type of lymphoma. With BCell follicular, he says there are three types of that, mild, medium and hot. He believes I might have more hot cells than previously thought causing me to not be responding as fast to my Rituxin treatments. Dr. Weyant wants to do four things in a surgery now scheduled for Friday in Denver. First, do another biopsy for Dr. Mynt to get a more informative diagnosis of my lymphoma. Second, he will clamp my thoracic duct closed close to my intestines. This is a procedure which then should prevent further leakage into my lung cavities. This is a permanent change. While not perfect, he said he does not know of any real long term effects occurring from this procedure. It will definitely change my diet at first, and maybe forever, but I will have to cross that bridge when I come to it. Third, he will clean out my lung cavity because there has been so much fluid in there and he wants to make sure it doesn't bother me in the future. Last, he will remove the catheter that is my current drain and replace with a chest tube similar to what I had the last time in the hospital. This will remain until they are sure the procedure worked. Which means I will be in the hospital at least over the weekend. Last time I was told that I wound up there for 10 days. I must admit I am somewhat scared again. Like starting all over. And to have a procedure that will forever change how my body was originally designed to work is daunting. But in my heart, a prayer answered lead us to these specialists who seem to know what they are doing. So I have to go with it. It seems somewhat strange that during the morning I worked on campus and I felt so normal. Now tonight I know what is ahead of me and pray that I can handle it. It is worse than originally thought, but with your continued support, I again can make it back. Like Dr. Weyant said, I'm young and need to fight this more aggressively while I can. To dance at Norah's wedding, I have a tougher fight ahead, a new do over, but I will do my best. Everyone has been so supportive, I can't thank you enough. Pray for Bev to get through this, as she is a real trooper. The truth. Good to know, sometimes hard to swallow, but for the best in the end!

This is Bev... Just to add. Ken's surgery tomorrow is at 12:30. I do not know how long it will last, but my son, Jeff is going to come and sit with me. Either he or I will get on the blog and write as soon as we know anything. We were very impressed with the doctors in Denver, but again, we are just throwing ourselves out there and trusting what they say. It makes sense to us and we are thrilled that they say they can stop this leaking. So please say an extra prayer for Dr. Weyant tonight that he gets plenty of rest and can do the right thing for Ken tomorrow. And say prayers for us too. Thanks for everything. Bev and Ken