The Lewis County Herald - 10/11/22
Early in my first installment of this series just two weeks ago (seems much longer), I wrote that the surgeon would be “removing a section of my colon that, hopefully, contains all of the cancer cells in my body.”
Also, since that first installment, countless prayers have been offered on my behalf for just that outcome.
Those prayers have been answered.
The surgeon called with preliminary results of the findings from the examination of my entire colon, 23 lymph nodes, and whatever else he had extracted from me and sent over to the lab.
I missed the call. The best I can figure is that I was scouting around the kitchen for something to eat.
He left a voicemail which Tammy and I sat down to listen to; hands clasped and prepared for whatever words he had left for us to hear.
“This is Dr. Belin. Everything on pathology, I’m pretty happy with,” the recording began.
“The lymph nodes were negative. All 23 lymph nodes were negative so it was a stage 2 cancer and we’ve achieved clear margins,” he continued. “I might connect you with an oncologist just to look everything over but I think it is likely that they will not recommend chemotherapy. They might do some interval imaging, or not, but I look forward to talking with you face-to-face in the office. Just wanted to give you the good news about the lymph nodes being negative, and the clear margins. Thank you.”
With tears of joy in our eyes, and with thanks to God, we listened to the 47 second message again.
The clear margins, I’ve surmised, are the portions of colon on either side of the cancerous mass that do not contain any signs of cancer spread.
Tammy didn’t waste any time in spreading the good news. Prayers had been answered. We were filled with joy.
We will never be able to adequately thank those who said a prayer (in many cases, multiple prayers) that things would turn out exactly as they did. We know, without a doubt, those prayers were heard and were answered.
We have spent the time since receiving the news thanking God and thanking those who spoke with Him on our behalf.
The surgeon told us I would be very sore for several days following the surgery. It has now been nearly two weeks since he removed a significant chunk of my insides and I’m thinking he should have instead used the phrase, “very very sore.”
The day after we received the surgeon’s call, as I was pacing my breaths in an attempt to equalize the levels of pain associated with any minimal abdominal movement, Tammy scheduled a test at the doctor’s office because she was feeling a little under the weather.
Tammy insisted we wear masks in the days leading up to the surgery to help ensure neither of us contracted something that would cause issues.
ventured out to the doctor’s office where she tested positive for flu. A few days later she commented that she would be happier when her sense of taste returned because she knew that the food brought to us by dear friends was delicious but her taste buds were napping.
Loss of taste generally isn’t a flu symptom.
She self-administered a COVID test. It was positive.
She had been wearing a mask around me since before the surgery and urged me to wear one if we went out into public to keep me from picking up any ailment which would include spells of coughing and sneezing that would, in turn, result in great pain emanating from those areas in my mid-section in which many stitches and staples had been employed. (That was a long sentence.)
We’ve been working to care for each other as much as practical while also working to maintain a barrier to keep me from acquiring the viruses and their symptoms.
In addition to being thankful for the prayers, we are thankful for the many other gestures of which we have been bestowed.
Food. I am thankful the only diet recommendation I received on my discharge from the hospital was to “eat healthy.” So far I have found everything I have consumed to be agreeable with my new digestive configuration. Smaller portions spread throughout the day (and night) seems to be working for me.
Family and friends have generously brought us prepared meals and desserts. The epicurean gifts have ranged from scratch made apple pie (that is as delicious as I remember when I first sampled it over on Trace Creek many years ago) to hearty chili made with deer meat and a few secret ingredients.
Cards and flowers. Tammy looks forward to trekking to the end of the driveway each day to collect the mail which has included a handful of get well cards since our return from the hospital. (Well, there was that day around the first of the month when the mailbox contents consisted of a handful of bills.)
The large island in our kitchen is overflowing with cards, flowers, food, and other tokens brought by friends and family members. It is a welcoming sight each time I shuffle in to assemble a snack.
Messages and comments. Our phones seem to be continuously signaling the arrival of messages or notification of social media activity. We have received so many uplifting messages and comments on her update posts that have been a great source of support for both of us.
Last week I promised some details from the hospital stay and return home. The news from the surgeon has delayed that installment which will include some notes Tammy made while I was still under some lingering effects of the surgical anesthesia.
The events she so thoroughly documented may or may not have actually happened. She claims to have witnesses. And video.
Tammy ordered another batch of bracelets. We never thought there would be so many requests for them. They are available at the newspaper office and radio station, no charge. (Or message us.)
Lewis County District Court participants must have wondered about the dress code on my day of surgery. Deputies, court security, court clerks, jailers, and others in the courtroom donned shirts and bracelets to show their support. This is one of the last ones I saw before I was taken back for surgery. I'll never be able to adequately express how much this means to me.
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