Latest Update

Steve is improving a little bit each day. On Friday evening, he took out his feeding tube. This made him feel better because the tube is not rubbing the back of his throat or his nose anymore. Now he is trying to find things he can swallow and keep down. He is able to do a small amount of talking. His pain level is still an issue and this is worse when he tries to talk. We are just taking it one day at a time, and with all healing, there are good days and bad. Feel free to email Steve and even come by to see him if you like. Please keep him in your prayers as he works on recovering. He is not a "patient" patient : ) Since his mantra is "if you lay down, you stay down", he does not like to lay down for long!

May God bless you!

Doctor Visit

We went to see Steve's doctor yesterday. He took the stitches out and removed the skin graft he had put in during surgery because it was not "taking" or adhering to the skin on the bottom of Steve's mouth. He said everything looks fine. The path report shows clear margins. It mentions a slight chance that it spread to lymph nodes, but the CAT scan did not show anything, so we will need to keep an eye on that (Steve had his lymph nodes on the right side removed 10 years ago, so we will watch the left nodes). 

We kept the feeding tube for now - until Steve can swallow his medicines and his "formula" (similar to ensure). Steve is anxious to get rid of that since it is hurting his throat to have the tube back there. He is able to talk a little bit. His tongue is still swollen, so his speech is thick. Now we just need time and patience to let the healing process continue. (This is not easy for an active person like Steve. He is bored and frustrated!) He doesn't complain about pain or suffering - just boredom.

As always, his spirits are pretty high. He is not yet answering his phone - he is not ready to try to speak that much. However, he is up for visitors, so feel free to come by and say hi, or to just send him an email.

Thanks again for everything! 

Weekend Update

Well, it is already Monday morning. Where does the time go? Steve did okay this weekend, considering. He is in a good bit of pain. He is trying to swallow water each day. He misses his caffeine, so he tried some coffee. I guess that did not go too well, so he asked me to give him some cold coke (through his feeding tube) to help settle his stomach and get the caffeine : ) ! It's amazing what we take for granted each day of our lives. 

I am back at work, so Steve will be by himself during the day. He is up for visitors if you'd like to stop by. Just be patient for him to get to the door. While Steve cannot talk, he does have a white board and markers to communicate with. You can also email him anytime. 

We will go to the doctor on Wednesday to get the stitches out and have a follow-up visit. For now, please pray for the pain to subside, the swelling to go down, Steve's ability to get some sleep, and for continued healing. Thanks for all of your help and prayers!!! We couldn't get through all of this without you.

Friday...

Just wanted to let you all know that Steve had a fairly good day yesterday. We had a home healthcare nurse come out and she was very helpful. She was able to tell me where to get the  new pain medicine Steve's doctor had prescribed (I had called so many places, getting no for an answer...). So, I believe we have a better handle on his pain. He was doing a bit of work on the computer last night : ), and was even able to swallow a little bit of water!  We all seem to have gotten a pretty good night's sleep too.

Have a great day. May God bless you all.

Steve is Home

I brought Steve home today. He is glad to be in his own bed, with the dogs by his side : ) . Steve will not be able to attempt to talk at least until after his doctor's visit on Wednesday afternoon. The doctor used a skin graft in the bottom of his mouth (where the cancer was removed) and he had to tie it down so it can adhere to the mouth. Therefore,  Steve cannot move his tongue very much for now. 

Anyone that knows Steve knows how hard it is to keep him from talking. He has already tried to say a word here or there. This will be no easy feat. If you'd like to contact Steve, feel free to email him and he can respond to you that way for now. We are making him use a whiteboard and markers at home. And, of course, he has a bell to ring when he needs anything - he keeps us hopping! Even so, we are thankful to have him home again!

Update

Steve now has his feeding tube. We will be learning how to take care of it tonight. The plan is for us to leave sometime tomorrow - hopefully in the morning : ) 

Wednesday afternoon

Hi everybody! Wanted to update you on how we are doing today. Steve has done pretty well considering the pain and suffering he is enduring. (I think how hard it was for me to have my wisdom teeth out and cannot image how he handles all of this!) He has tried swallowing, but his tongue is just too swoolen. He cannot get the liquid past the tongue in order to get it down his throat. 

This is very typical. If you remember the last time, in May, he had a feeding tube put in through his abdomen. We decided not to do that this time because it caused more trouble than it was worth. We have asked if he can have a tube put in through his nose (a common procedure I'm told) in order for him to get the liquids and medicines down so he doesn't have to push himself to try to swallow. We are waiting to see the doctor this evening to find if this is a possiblity. With the feeding tube he would be able to be at home, resting in his own bed, which he prefers, of course.

Thanks for all the calls, well wishes, cards, and prayers! I'll update again when I know more. 

 

Good Morning

Steve did pretty good last night. We were both able to get some sleep, and the medicine kept the pain at bay fairly well. The doctors came by this morning and said now he needs to work on swallowing some liquids. When he can show them that he can drink okay then he can go home : )

He looks good and is in good spirits so far this morning.

God is good...All the time!!!

Yeah!

Steve is in his room now (8:30pm - I realized that the time is wrong on my posts - sorry about that). He is in pretty good spirits. Evidently, he got to know the nurse quite well through writing. The nurse mentioned that Steve is a character! Amazing how you can figure that out through a few scribbled notes - ha! Anyway, he is resting well for now. 

We cannot thank you all enough for all your prayers. Please keep them coming, tomorrow will be another challenging day. With God's help we will get through. One day at a time. God bless you!!

No Steve Yet

Steve is still in the recovery room right now. They have assigned him a room (E824) so I am waiting for him here. The doctor came by and mentioned that at 5pm he was called back to recovery because Steve was having a problem with bleeding. This extended his time in recovery. The doctor did say that Steve's pain is under control for now, so that is good news. His pain is "real pain" because of the area of his surgery, so getting a handle on it is so hard to do. Now we just have to pray that we can keep the pain at bay.  Hopefully he will get a good night's sleep : )

In recovery : )

Steve is in recovery now. The doctor said surgery went as planned. The doctor was able to remove all of the cancer. They will, of course, double check for clear margins in the labwork.  Steve will be in recovery for a few hours and then will be admitted to a room. He will be staying for several days at least. Thank you for your support through this! Please continue to keep us your thoughts and prayers. 

We are waiting...

Steve was taken back to pre-op a little later than expected, at about 11:00am. I will let you know when we know more.

Surgery Info

Hi everybody! This is a blog to keep you updated on Steve's progress. We love and appreciate each and everyone of you. It is just so hard for me to keep in touch by phone to keep you each up to date. So, I have decided to use this blog to help with this. Right now, Steve's  surgery is scheduled for Tuesday, September 9th at 9:00am at Emory Hospital.  Dr. Grist will be removing the cancer from the bottom of Steve's tongue. Steve will be staying at the hospital for a few days following the surgery.  Please keep Steve, our family, the doctor and nurses in your prayers. 

You are welcome to post comments by clicking on the time of my post, then clicking on "post a comment".