MD Anderson--Trip #3--Surgery/Recovery in Pictures

Up early...at the hospital waiting to be called to pre-op

Called to pre-op, got the wonderful stockings and hat, then the IV

WOOT....great fashion wear!!

IV time, he dreaded this more than the surgery. This guy was so good, Trace never knew it was started. :)

Stewart and I with Trace

Being wheeled away.... and the waiting begins

After 7hrs of waiting......   :(   and   :)

Saturday, 1 day post-op, drain has been removed and oxygen taken off. Still in a lot of pain.

Sunday, 2 days post-op, so ready to get out of the hospital.

Around the hospital....taken while trying to find the pharmacy, took me a while, no one is around on Sunday afternoons.

Discharged!!! Headed to hotel for a few days...

Resting at the hotel. Well, watching TV and playing with LEGOs.

A little droopiness and crookedness to his smile and eyebrows.

Yep, the sisters are wrapped!!

It's best you don't ask.........  :D

Trying to eat some mac-n-cheese, hurts to chew. :(

Beautiful sunset, new beginning, sign of good news ( *it was, cancer free official on 10/21)

MD Anderson--Trip #3--Surgery

Alright.....boy, has then been a rough day. Turning your child over to strangers to push away from you through doors is the worst feeling in the world.


We arrived at the hospital this morning at 9:15. He was called back to pre-op about 11. At 11:45 he was wheeled away and the wait began for the projected 2-2 1/2 hr surgery. At 2pm, I started asking the staff for any kind of news they could give us and that's when one of the nurses said they were going to go ahead with the neck dissection. Dr. Lai had told us that he would do the neck dissection based on what he saw when he was doing the surgery. Panic attack #1


By 4pm, we were all climbing the walls and I started asking the staff again for any info. All they could tell us is that they were still in surgery.


At 5:30, Dr Lai comes out to talk to us and said the superficial parotidectomy went well and as they were checking the lymph nodes, he found 1 that was enlarged and hardened, about the size of a quarter. Panic attack #2


So he told he proceeded with the neck dissection cutting down his neck from his ear almost the his shoulder checking the rest of the lymph nodes. All specimens were sent to pathology...so now we wait to see what it shows.


After 7pm we were finally able to go see him in recovery. Hard, hard, hard to see your child in that position. He would try to talk but nothing would come out. Katie and Kelsi and both sets of grandparents were able to go in and visit with him and Stewart and I were able to stay the whole time he was in recovery and come up with him to the room.


He is resting well now with his big bulldog "Hercules" next to him and his LSU pillowcase. Drifting in and out of sleepiness and when he's alert, asking for something to eat.


So, at this point we wait again to see what the pathologies of the lymph node and of the rest of the tumor show. Staff was excellent all day from the valet when we arrived to the pedi nurse once we got to his room.



Thanks for everyone's prayers.