Surgery Date and Details

... and so it begins. Well, over the last 2 days we have seen 3 doctors and had a CT Scan. We now have a surgery date - January 30th. Here are the details we were given. This is kind of long. Sorry about that! Not sure how much you want to know : ) 

Steve's CT Scan showed that the tumor in his jaw was a little smaller (praise God)! The doctor was happy about that. He said without the chemo it would have grown larger. Steve does not need to have another round of chemotherapy. The doctors have worked out their schedules and are ready to do the surgery.

I have to say that all the details we learned have been eye-opening, shocking, and scary. I for one am pretty dumbfounded and numb right now. I guess I had put it all out of my mind for a while. Steve says it is what he has been expecting and pondering these last few weeks. As always, he is trying to keep his chin up despite the enormity of this upcoming surgery. 

One of the nurses mentioned to us today that the group of doctors who will be performing the surgery has been dubbed the "Dream Team" by former patients. This made us feel so much better. We already have total confidence in Steve's long time doctor and friend, Dr. Grist (oncology). We have enjoyed meeting the other 2 doctors - Dr. Roser (oral surgeon) and Dr. Carlson (plastic surgeon or "bone doc" as Steve calls him). 

So, Steve will go in early on Friday, January 30th. He will be in surgery for between 8 and 12 hours. He will then go to the ICU for a couple of days. He will be in the hospital for about 10 to 14 days total. He will be recovering at home for 6 months or more. 

***If you are squeamish, you might not want to read this part (Kelly M!!!) 

As far as the surgery is concerned, the doctors will remove Steve's bottom jaw (really the middle of it or the chin part). They will be removing a piece of bone in his left lower leg (the fibula) and using this to reconstruct the jaw bone. They will have to remove all of Steve's bottom teeth (they hope to leave 2 molars on each side in the back). They have to take some more of his tongue and will take as little as possible. They will use blood vessels from his left neck to help with the reconstruction of the jaw. Good news - they do not have to remove the lymph nodes on the left side! 

Steve will have a feeding tube and a trache. The trache is temporary (to help him breathe until some of the swelling goes down). The feeding tube will stay in until he can swallow and eat again. As always, there is a chance he will not be able to talk anymore and this time he might not even be able to swallow ( and thus eat) again. However, doctors are continually amazed at how well Steve talks, swallows and eats after every surgery he has. He is such a fighter! We will keep the faith and hope that he will overcome once again.

So, that's it for now. We had an exhausting day and are very tired. Continue to pray for us, the girls, the doctors and nurses, our families, and all those that are so wonderful to help us during this time. We will tackle this next step together with God by our side. Thanks for all your love and support.