Surgery Notes from July 23

Notes with the doctor – Before surgery (about 11 am)
My mom asked me to post this for all – Michael

Mom and I waited for about an hour in the ambulatory surgery center waiting room. She was really calm all morning, and had a very positive attitude. It was almost like there was not going to be any real issue with the up coming procedure.

She was called back, and then about 5 minutes later they allowed me to come back with her. She was in a hospital gown, and they had her sit up on the bed, and covered her with warm blankets. This made her feel really comfortable.

After taking initial vital signs, a nurse dilated both eyes. They dilated both eyes, so the doctor (O’Brien) and Fellow (Tsai) could double check the eye to operate. In fact they all (both doctors, and two nurses) went over several times individually with mom which eye they were going to perform the procedure on, made mom sign a document saying which eye it was, and the doctor even initialed (in marker) her forehead above the right eye.

The interaction with Dr. Tsai and Dr. O’Brien was again superlative. Both gave mom and I ample time to ask as many questions as we could. They talked about how there were going to sew these markers on the eye; how the markers were not metallic so they wouldn’t set off any metal detectors; how the markers would be left in her eye permanently; how there would be stitches from the surgery that would dissolve; how mom would observe mild discomfort in the eye tonight and tomorrow; how they have ordered as much pain medication as mom wants for tonight; how the physicist would be in the surgery with them to know mom as a patient and see where the tumor was for the photon phased radiation; how mom’s eye would look like trauma occurred (e.g. after all they are operating on her eye), including swelling, redness, blood in the eye and perhaps even black and blue; how she would be wearing a patch tonight, but she should only need sunglasses tomorrow; how the radiation treatment would not have any other affects (no fatigue, nausea, etc) other than killing the tumor; how the MRI from the other night helped confirm (along with the eye exam, liver function tests, and chest x-ray) that this tumor is a primary site. Dr. O’Brien was sure (within probable terms) that mom is clean of any other cancer. . I mean these guys were really thorough and very reassuring.

Two things really struck me in the discussion with the doctors. First, both mom and I asked again about when we might know if the photon phased radiation was successful. Our assumption was that she would not know until the follow-up appointment in January. However, Dr. O’Brien said her experience is that this treatment has a 97% success rate. We should think of this treatment as killing her tumor. Both Pat and I remembered from our first meeting with Dr. O’Brien and Dr. Tsai that this had a 50 / 50 probability. We now cannot recall explicitly if that was right on (due to the size of the tumor), or if the 50 / 50 was her eyesight returning. I will follow-up with Dr. O’Brien when she comes out to talk to me post surgery.

Second, Dr. O’Brien commented on how positive a patient mom is; her willingness to do this treatment so quickly; her calmness and assuredness. Dr. O’Brien mentioned that it has been clinically shown that being positive has an increased rate in beating any cancer. Again, this doctor is fantastic.

At last the two anesthesiologists came in to dose mom up. One of them asked my relationship to mom. After finding out I was a son, she asked “Are you too old to kiss your mom”. I laughed, and said “No”. She replied, “Good. Now kiss her”

They showed me to the waiting room, and wheeled mom down the hall.