Jan 11 - Update

As part of the expected clean-up after my major surgery in April. On Friday Jan 11 I went in to have some growths removed from the surface of my right lung. Using the weeding a garden analogy this was expected, just not so soon.  

Every doctor said they expect this is just part of the colon cancer spread, this is a good thing. Just need some clean up from the primary now that it is gone. Very small risk of this being a new type of cancer, a very small but a real risk all the same. Better to be sure then assume. The biopsy results will be ready in a few weeks.

Sorry for not communicating this ahead of time. At first the news did put me in a bit of a funk since it scuttled my return to work plans. Also I was just getting my head around the fact that I was better … not sure I want to relive that. In some ways harder than dealing with being terminal.

The delay with return to work hit me hard as well. It was my talisman for getting better. Also for someone who makes his living planning complex launches, it was hard to deal with this setback on the day I was looking for final approval from a number of doctors. Sort of like being left at the altar.

On an odd but good note. My case is still outside the normal parameters. Several of the Fellows told me they stayed up late to go over ALL of my past CT Scans to look for any other issues. Most CT files have about 100 images. My impression is they want to find something so they can be a Star Fellow for a day. One of them went over the process of flipping between slides to see what changed. Not something that I would want to do for more than 5 min. Glad that at least two talented people have done this and found nothing new.

Below are some updates sent by Tanya before the surgery and one from me today.

Hope everyone is having a great new year!

From: Stephen Dunn
Sent: Monday, January 14, 2013 4:45 PM

Update from Stephen,

Correction: I was in TG for less than 35 hrs not 60, I blame the drugs for my poor math

On Saturday Sunday at 7pm I was released from Toronto General (TG). Not that I was shooting for a record but it was under 35 60 hrs from first cut to discharge. Overall the experience at TG was great. The medical team was world class and the nurses were great.

The only thing I miss from Buffalo was the daily foot massages “to ensure blood flow”. I guess this is a perk in the world’s most expensive medical system. I asked the nurses at TG but they wouldn’t go for it.

After surgery patience go first to Critical Care for a few hrs, they have with massive support. Then off to a Step Down Unit with four patience in a room along with two nurses, normally for a day or less. Finally to a standard room.  I spent almost all my recovery time in a Step Down unit. This was great. Got personal care and meet some great families.

Asked the surgeon’s Fellow if I should be worried about 2 vs. 3 tumors. He said no, they were all on the CT scan. It was just that no one knew what they were until they went in. The growths were small and in one location. This is good; they only had to remove a small patch of lung close to the surface. He said it will all come down to the pathology. My next visit is on Feb 5^th. Will know more then. My focus this week is on recovery.

TX - Stephen

From: Tanya Dunn
Sent: Friday, January 11, 2013 11:36 AM
Subject: Re: Update on Stephen's surgery today....

Good news! I just met with the surgeon, and the surgery went well and Stephen is now in the recovery room. Unfortunately, they found a third tumour in his right lung, but they were all removed, and he ended up with only 3 incisions, 2 covered with Steri-strips and the other one with only 2 stitches, not a big scar like last time. The 3 tumours are being sent to pathology and we should have the results in 3 weeks as to whether this is lung cancer or still spread from the original colon cancer. He had no major complications and lost only 10 ccs of blood. The surgeon said that he will spend the night in MICU and could be released as soon as Sunday if the chest tube is able to come out by then.

Thanks again to everyone for their kind thoughts and wishes. It is greatly appreciated.

Tanya

From: Tanya Dunn
Sent: Friday, January 11, 2013 11:13 AM
Subject: Re: Update on Stephen's surgery today....

Hello everyone,
Stephen went into surgery right on schedule at 9 am this morning, in good spirits.
No news as of yet, but not expecting any update until at least 11 am. We were told that he will spend tonight in the MICU (a less intense Intensive Care) and should be moved into a room on the 10th floor for tomorrow. I was told I will be able to see him briefly once he is out of recovery.
That's all I have to update as of now.
Thanks,
Tanya