Down in the dumps

This morning my mom called me as she left the hospital from visiting my dad. She said she talked to the DR. Well, actually it was the intern of my dads DR. (DR. in my book either way). He said they were sending my dad home in the next few days. His PICC was staying in so he could be fed that way (TPN). Also they will continue his antibiotics via the PICC too. He has a vacuum like thing attached to his abdominal incision (the part that was previously packed w/ gauze) to suck out all the infection and to heal it faster. This link describes it. My mom was not too happy they decided to send him home this quickly w/ all his attachments. She started to cry and just said what was on her mind. She has to work. There is no way around it. She feels terrible having my dad home alone all day. They had visiting nurses lined up but she only had a few days left due to the insurance. And my mom is not a nurse at all. She knows she couldnt handle changing all that stuff herself. Can you imagine emptying a canister filled w/ bacterial puss like infected smelly fluid that came out of someones gut?! Gag-o-rama!! She even went on to say how we dont even have a 'diagnosis' yet. No one has told her anything or what's to come or what they will be dealing w/ down the road, etc... She told me the intern just looked at her, shocked, and said, "m'am, your husband has cancer." There ya have it. Cancer! It is so different when you hear it then it is just worrying if you/someone has it. It was my dad's biggest fear. Obviously, we were sorta of expecting it to be cancer. A large mass in your colon isnt promising. Esp. w/ his family history. Literally, everyone on his side of the immediate family dealt w/ cancer. His brother. His father, who later died of Parkinsons disease. And his mother who lost her battle w/ recurring breast cancer. The intern explained that the mass was so big that my dad will need chemo/radiation before he has surgery to shrink it. It most likely started growing as a polyp maybe 10 yrs. ago. It does not seem to have spread to any other organs. His CTscan showed his liver and lungs were clear. That's a good thing (to me atleast). Intern told my parents that my dad will not make it if they do not remove it. They have to wait until the infection is cleared up to start the treatments. They are hoping in about 3-4 wks he will be ready to go. However, like I said in my previous posts, my dad is so weak right now. Hence, the TPN! And right now, he most likely could not handle anything else...no surgery or treatment. My dad has a chance to make it through this, though. But he needs to get healthier and gain weight. Mr. Intern even said that he has a hard road ahead if him and they are there to try to get him past all this and healthy again. They need his help, he NEEDS to be a fighter. He needs to stay strong and positive.

After they do the treatments they will do the surgery to remove it. Hopefully the chemo/rad. will do it's job and shrink the sucker! Hopefully my dad can handle it! At this point they do not know if he will need more treatments after surgery. They are going to remove lymph nodes too and check around for other signs of cancer while they are in there. Again, they said his CT scan showed that it didnt seem to have spread to them (or anywhere) but they are doing it as a precautionary measure. If they remove this mass, my dad has a good chance. That makes me so happy, relieved and full of joy. I am just scared to death he isnt strong enough for this, physically. If only you saw him... nothing but skin and bones.

As for now, my mom was able to get him into a home care place for about a week. More if he needs it. Not rehab or a nursing home, so to speak. It for 'short stay' patients who do not need the hospital but really arent ready to be on their own yet. Thank GOD for that. It makes less stress for my mom and suprisingly, my dad was OK with it. He will most likely be leaving the hospital on Monday and going to this new place. Sorry, I forget what it is called?! This is all I know for now. I will keep my blog updated for my small amount of readers who want to read about it.

Thank you for all your well wishes and prayers. This is a very hard time for our family. My Aunt dealing w/ her diagnosis of GBM back in April and my dad w/ his new diagnosis of 'extensive sigmoid cancer'. I hope and pray for both of them every single day. I love them both dearly. They are staples of my life. Whatever comes their way I wish them peace. I want them to both know they are so loved by many. And tons of people are praying for them. Hang in there guys! Esp. you dad...Sam already has the concept. Be strong for yourself and for you family. Love you! xoxo