Update on Brent

Brent had surgery yesterday and everything went very well. There were no complications and no surprises. The pathologist did the frozen section while Brent was in the OR and it was negative for Papillary carcinoma. Dr. Wood says the tumor is definitely follicular but whether or not it is an adenoma or a carcinoma (benign vs malignant), remains to be seen. On a side note, this was the same pathologist that received the voicemail from me last week and Dr. Wood admitted to me that the surgical team had a little fun with him at my expense. The team said things like, "Mrs. Suisse is wondering why the frozen section is taking so long." Well, I really don't care (I actually thought it was kind of funny). I made some noise last week and got what I wanted a little faster than I would have otherwise, so....whatever.

Anyway, we will have the path reports Friday morning (although I promised I wouldn't start making phone calls and leaving voice mails until next week.)and then we'll know for certain what we're dealing with and what the next steps will be. On a positive note, Dr. Wood feels confident that this tumor was the cause of the throat pain Brent has been experiencing, the reason he started seeing doctors in the first place. The tumor was very hard and it was rubbing on Brent's trachea and hypoglossal nerve.

Brent came out of the anesthesia pretty well. He experienced only a little nausea and dizziness. By mid-afternoon, he was feeling pretty good and he had an appetite by dinner. His pain has been minimal, nothing like the tonsil thing. He spent last night in the hospital and I brought him home this morning. His incision is 2 1/2 inches (exactly, I measured it) and its not the most attractive thing, but I have seen worse. Brent plans to wear a shirt and tie to work next week so his patients don't have to stare at the gash in his neck. So, if you want to see Brent in a shirt and tie at work, make an appointment with him for next week because this will be your only chance.

I cannot adequately express my gratitude for each of you and your thoughts and prayers. Thank you for the offers of help with the kids and the offers to bring meals. Thank you to those of you that joined with us in fasting last Sunday and for all the prayers. I am in awe of the support that we've received from friends and loved ones from California to the eastern coast of Nova Scotia and so many places in between. Thank you so much.

I'll post the pathology results when we get them so check back over the weekend. Until then, we'll just hurry up and wait.