Details of tomorrow's surgery.

Mom and Dad went to Seattle on Monday and Mom had all her scans done for pre-op. She then had appointments on Tuesday with her Orthopedic surgeon that will be removing the tumor and followed that up with blood work.

She has to be at the hospital at 6:00 AM tomorrow (Thursday)and is scheduled for a surgery time of 7:30. They have told her she will be there 5-7 days.

The Scans done Monday show that the tumor has separated from the bone, which is good news, but is still touching, connected, or intertwined with an artery. (I am unclear on the specific verbiage so I am trying to relate it as accurately as possible.)

This will make it a bit more complicated than we would have liked, but we have confidence that all will go well. They will also be removing skin on her leg that is dead from the radiation and will not recover, so we are not sure how that will end up, if it will add to discomfort, or not affect her in the least.

Mom had some concerns about infection post op, since she got infected after the biopsy. One of the Dr.'s explained that the tumor (pre chemo and radiation) was filled with old blood and fluid and that when the biopsy was done there was a lot of bleeding.(We had been told this right after the biopsy so it was no surprise)She went on to say that when this happens, the blood leaks into the surrounding tissue. While they do the best they can to remove it,anything left behind can cause infection. Since the tumor has shrunk and is now dark and dead looking, they do not feel that is going to be the same level of risk as before. There is the risk of the artery involvement,so we do want to ask you to pray for skill and precision in Dr. Conrad's hands. Please continue to pray for peace for Mom as she will have her port accessed again and is not scared, but apprehensive about another surgery. I would like to ask you to remember Dad as well. Hospitals still have an effect on him that is unnerving and he will be anxious during surgery. Please pray for his peace of mind and that Carmen and I will be able to be a comfort and calming to him.

This time Carmen will be taking the lion's share of staying up at UWMC, so I would ask for prayer for her that she might get rest in a chaotic environment. Only one person stays in the room and the other sleeps in the waiting room. A hospital never sleeps. :)

We appreciate your prayers so much and will update the blog after surgery to let you know how she does.

We love you.
Kimberly and family.