My surgery is currently scheduled for Dec 5 AM, but that is dependant on my lingering Cough.
The last minute reschedule will depend on how much my Cough has been reduced by then. Next available time will be after Christmas.
Saturday, November 29, 2014
Monday, November 24, 2014
Surgery Delayed
Due to my developing Cough, my surgery is being delayed. The next available date is Dec 5, but that is tentatively, as the "special" room is normally reserved for only Robotic surgeries. The room status will only be known after this Friday. After that, the next available time is late December.
Sunday, November 23, 2014
An Update
Sorry, I promised details and updates of this adventure, but my heart has just NOT in it.
The CT scans confirmed the size and location of the Colon Cancer, it is located in the upper left corner of my colon, which is just under the edge of my ribs. The surgeon will remove about 1/5 of my colon and then sew the two cut end together. The surgery will be both Laparoscopic (two holes on each of my sides) and open abdomen (the removed cancer and sectioned colon must be remove through the larger center line incision).
Surgery will be Nov 25, but not sure what time, I am to report to the Hospital around 8AM. Last minute scheduling could dictate the actual surgery time.
If all goes well, the Dr said I will probably be able to eat a BIG Thanks Giving Diner on the 27th; Turkey Dark and/or White meat, Dressing, Potatoes, and Pie, . . . as long as it is all made of molded Jello, and it can be any colour/flavour I would like :-)
Monday AM my prep begins, I will be drinking about 1 gallon of "Polyethylene Glycol" which is a chemical that I have used while tin plating circuits boards. Who would have thought I would be drinking a gallon of the stuff.
I will be in the Hospital about 5 days, and then to my Son house for a few days for rest and recuperation.
If all goes well, I promise I will post more after recovery, and this is a promise I WANT to keep.
--
The CT scans confirmed the size and location of the Colon Cancer, it is located in the upper left corner of my colon, which is just under the edge of my ribs. The surgeon will remove about 1/5 of my colon and then sew the two cut end together. The surgery will be both Laparoscopic (two holes on each of my sides) and open abdomen (the removed cancer and sectioned colon must be remove through the larger center line incision).
Surgery will be Nov 25, but not sure what time, I am to report to the Hospital around 8AM. Last minute scheduling could dictate the actual surgery time.
If all goes well, the Dr said I will probably be able to eat a BIG Thanks Giving Diner on the 27th; Turkey Dark and/or White meat, Dressing, Potatoes, and Pie, . . . as long as it is all made of molded Jello, and it can be any colour/flavour I would like :-)
Monday AM my prep begins, I will be drinking about 1 gallon of "Polyethylene Glycol" which is a chemical that I have used while tin plating circuits boards. Who would have thought I would be drinking a gallon of the stuff.
I will be in the Hospital about 5 days, and then to my Son house for a few days for rest and recuperation.
If all goes well, I promise I will post more after recovery, and this is a promise I WANT to keep.
--
Wednesday, November 5, 2014
Confession of Arrogants
This is a confession of an Arrogant Engineer.
I may not be posting much more to my Electronics Blog for a while. Although, I will still be thinking of electronic projects and software solutions for interesting problems. But, . . . most of my attentions will be elsewhere.
For the last few weeks (months) I have been feeling weak, it was getting difficult to climb the 32 steps to my Loft Apartment. I am 68, and I was just thinking I am getting older. But then, when going down the stairs was getting difficult, I decided something was wrong and decided it was time to see my Doctor again.
After some blood test, they found low-red-cell-count and low-Iron. Iron is necessary to make more NEW red blood cells. The Doctor suspected I was leaking blood into my intestines and iron was being depleted trying to replace lost blood. Note: Normally it takes about 90 days to replace your own blood.
My Arrogance
Two years ago, I ignored my Doctors advice to get a Colonoscopy. For those that do not know, the Colon is the name for the entire Large Intestine.
A colonoscopy is the process of viewing the colon from the inside. It sounds terrible, but completely painless with drugs. Unfortunately, there is several days of prep which requires you to drink some awful tasting clear liquid the last two days.
To make a long story short; Last Monday my colonoscopy found a "growth" within my Colon that is leaking blood. Even without the pathology test, it is suspect to be Cancer. The good news is it appears to be only associated with one short section of my colon, maybe 6 inches. Hopefully, a resection of my colon will remove it all. I have appointments later this week for review and surgery planning.
If my problem would have been found earlier, it would have been a simple in-office procedure to remove a polyp or two. That was done from another location during my current colonoscopy.
My advice, Hobbyist-to-Hobbyist, Engineer-to-Engineer;
This is my New Blog to posts my colon adventures, I know it will not be as interesting as Ham Radio and Electronic Projects, but it is what I can do to encourage others to follow Doctors orders. And of course, as usual, I will try to provide clinical photos and details.
--
I may not be posting much more to my Electronics Blog for a while. Although, I will still be thinking of electronic projects and software solutions for interesting problems. But, . . . most of my attentions will be elsewhere.
For the last few weeks (months) I have been feeling weak, it was getting difficult to climb the 32 steps to my Loft Apartment. I am 68, and I was just thinking I am getting older. But then, when going down the stairs was getting difficult, I decided something was wrong and decided it was time to see my Doctor again.
After some blood test, they found low-red-cell-count and low-Iron. Iron is necessary to make more NEW red blood cells. The Doctor suspected I was leaking blood into my intestines and iron was being depleted trying to replace lost blood. Note: Normally it takes about 90 days to replace your own blood.
My Arrogance
Two years ago, I ignored my Doctors advice to get a Colonoscopy. For those that do not know, the Colon is the name for the entire Large Intestine.
A colonoscopy is the process of viewing the colon from the inside. It sounds terrible, but completely painless with drugs. Unfortunately, there is several days of prep which requires you to drink some awful tasting clear liquid the last two days.
To make a long story short; Last Monday my colonoscopy found a "growth" within my Colon that is leaking blood. Even without the pathology test, it is suspect to be Cancer. The good news is it appears to be only associated with one short section of my colon, maybe 6 inches. Hopefully, a resection of my colon will remove it all. I have appointments later this week for review and surgery planning.
If my problem would have been found earlier, it would have been a simple in-office procedure to remove a polyp or two. That was done from another location during my current colonoscopy.
My advice, Hobbyist-to-Hobbyist, Engineer-to-Engineer;
Get a Colonoscopy as soon as your Doctor recommends.
This is my New Blog to posts my colon adventures, I know it will not be as interesting as Ham Radio and Electronic Projects, but it is what I can do to encourage others to follow Doctors orders. And of course, as usual, I will try to provide clinical photos and details.
--
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