Back to work

Wow, has it really been more than a month since we last posted?
Kev started back at work on Dec 1 with a new prescribed drug - Ritalin. No, he hasn't been recently diagnosed with ADD. It's used as a stimulant to counteract some the drowsy effects of his pain and anti-convulsant drugs and help with general fatigue. He also now has the distinction as being the first male to have a key to the "mothers room" at his worksite. So now Kev joins the group of pregnant and nursing mothers who take rest breaks throughout the day. He is thinking about adding some of his x-ray pictures to the display of ultrasound and newborn baby pics that cover the walls.

There and Back Again

A "before" and "after" shot of Kev's hip. (I'm not so sure about the fastener spacing on those screws...) In the "before" picture you can see how the lower pelvic bone fades away as it enters the socket (left hip). The socket had also been destroyed by the cancer. In the "after" picture all the "bright" objects are metal. A new socket was screwed and cemented into the pelvis. Some missing bone was replaced with bone cement - sort of a surgical bondo. The ball side of the joint was cut off and a new metal piece was cemented in.

We saw the Orthopaedic Surgeon on Tuesday and he was quite impressed with how fast Kev is healing. He double checked the length of Kev's legs and thinks he matched them up pretty good. Kev's been walking with a cane for a week and he'll start physical therapy (PT) next week to work on overall strengthening. He will also start radiation treatments soon on the hip region.

Inspired by his newfound mobility and having been cooped up for almost 3 months, Kev went to New Mexico for a week to visit with his family. (The kids and I stayed home since they had school.) He didn't quite make it through the metal detector at the airport without being "detected", but at least didn't have any problems carrying-on his stash of narcotics and anti-convulsants. Sounds like the flight went well and Kev is having a good time visiting with his parents, brothers, sister, nieces & nephews.

I've been home for 5 days now

Deneen did a great job of statusing all the gorey details of surgery and post surgery so I'll skip it. If anyone wants to see scars you'll have to let me know. I would like to thank everyone for their thoughts and prayers, it really helped my spirit knowing someone was out there thinking of me.

They let me go home Sunday. I could walk around the ward with a walker but still needed a little help getting into bed. My left quads could only move my leg an inch or so, but I was feeling pretty good and getting plenty of sleep.

It's amazing how fast the body recovers. I still have a long way to go but leg strength and mobility has come a long way and I think I might be able to make Don Pico's next Thursday if anyone is up for it.

Kevin

post op + 8

Well Kev is still in the hospital, but his foley catheter, IVs and drains have been removed - he is completely line-free! He has a large medical team who individually each have their own metrics he needs to meet before being released. Then after they are all in agreement the paper work needs to be processed. So he has met all the Drs. requirements, but his PT (physical therapist) still has some goals for him. So we are now thinking MAYBE today, but more likely a Sunday release. He really enjoys getting the your notes, so keep them coming.

post op + 4

Kev is continuing to improve. Yesterday the epidural was disconnected and today it was removed so now he is on oral pain meds. His hemoglobin was continuing to trend down so it was decided to give him a boost with 2 more pints of blood before it got too low. (Besides it seemed appropriate for Holloween.) The therapist had him up and walking around the floor with the aide of a walker. His central line in the neck was removed so he is down to only one IV in the arm. He still has 2 drains connected, but the Orthopaedic Oncologist says he may be ready to go by Friday. Thanks for all the good thoughts and prayers!