Wednesday, March 9, 2011

Crash Course in Brain Surgery

So I finally talked to my neurosurgeon on Tuesday. He told me the chance of deficits from brain surgery are not much more than just letting it grow. He anticipates that it will go close to my last surgery-I was eating liquid foods 12 hours after start of surgery and I was in the hospital 10 days I think. It will be a little more risky and intense because he's cutting through scar tissue again, but it doesn't seem to be too bad an option-he's had more thn a crash course in brain surgery. He's operated on me twice before and I'm familiar with the hospital (UVRMC) so that' makes me feel a little better/more comfortable. Dr. Coleman from Hunstman recommended this step before trying an older chemo, and I am considering leaving some BCNU (chemo) slow release wafers in the tumor site. After I get released from the hospital (aiming for April 4th), I'm moving back to West Richland and my with parents for recovery, rehab (if I need any formal rehab, may or may not), and treatment. I am looking into doing gamma-knife treatment in Seattle (focused radiation) at that time too. If I recover fully and really well, I plan on moving back to Utah County in June after my brother gets home from his mission and doing an internship with The Utah County Health Department that I was supposed to start on Monday. Otherwise I'll stay in Washington as long as I need to. The goal is to be lucid, continent, and mobile in June when Kaleb gets back. Anything else is icing on the cake.
That's the plan. I wish it was more long term and more set in stone, I hate moving and I hate trying to both plan for the future and go with the flow at the same time. Setting goals and working toward them is great for the spirit and the psyche. I've just had to change and temper then expand my goals too many times over the past three years. I've had periods of consistancy, but they never seem to last long enough.