Papa's been in the hospital
For the past 2 months or so, Papa has been suffering from really bad bladder and bowel elimination problems and recurrent urinary tract infections. We had x-rays done at the clinic, his primary doc referred him for an extensive CT scan as an outpatient, and we also were consulted to a surgeon for another diagnostic procedure - a colonoscopy.
Papa's already had a colonoscopy in 2005, but the only significant thing found were diverticuli (little outpouchings in the intestinal wall due to weakening of the walls, which result in empty spaces where feces and stuff can collect and become infected over time.
So, initially, Papa's primary doc just thought that those little diverticuli were the culprit, and were just infected or with inflammation. After very little or no improvement after weeks of antibiotics (on/off courses due to symptoms returning), the CT scan was done and showed a strange mass in the lower part of the colon.
Then we made arrangements through the surgeon to have a colonoscopy done as an outpatient at GMH - this process took a while - I was disgusted at how slow everything went just to schedule one procedure.
Anyhoo, Papa went in for the colonoscopy on July 25th - we were thinking it was to be straight forward and simple - just do the thing, recover for an hour in the post-op recovery room, then go home and await results. But that's not what happened. The procedure could not be completed due to that mass blocking the path in which the scope was to pass - I guess it really was that big. So, the surgeon decided to admit Papa into the hospital, and we did a repeat CT scan again (extensive scan again with IV and oral and rectal contrast to light-up the colon).
After the CT scan, the surgeon decided to consult an internist from Takecare to handle the medical aspects of Papa's case. Both the surgeon and the internist agreed that Papa needed surgery to remove the mass, which now became known as the "tumor". This is what they concluded - Papa's difficulties with have bowel movements (diarrhea, abdominal pain, bloatedness and the feeling of stuff being backed up inside) was due to the large tumor blocking the colon path. The urinary problems was due to the tumor being so big, it pressed on the bladder (thus Papa's frequent urination, possibly ineffective bladder emptying leading to left-over urine staying inside and getting infected) and the bladder apparently suffered damage as a result of the tumor intrusion.
So, on the 26th, we spent the day prepping Papa for surgery. He was to have a Colectomy (to remove the part of the colon that had the tumor) and a Resection of the Bladder (to remove the damaged part of the bladder and seal it back up into a smaller pouch if possible). Papa was on clear liquids only, and had to drink a fluid called Golytely (go-lightly) which made him shit all night - the idea was to completely clear the bowel of any fecal matter - essentially, keep shitting 'til it's clear. Also, to help the lower end of the colon, soap suds enemas were given to papa - again to shit 'til it's clear.
On the 27th, Papa had the surgery. They did what they had planned to do, and nothing more, thank God. But, Papa came out with more tubings than when he first went in. He had a Nasogastric tube (NGT) in place to help remove backed up gas and liquids in his stomach. He went in with a foley catheter and came out with the same one (tube inserted into the pee-pee hole then up into the bladder to drain it). The other new tube was a Supra-Pubic Catheter - this was done by a urologist during the surgery - it's a smaller catheter placed in the bladder itself, through the abdomen and drains urine like the foley catheter - so essentially, Papa had 2 pee-pee bags. And Papa came out with staples running down his belly and across to the right side of his belly. Oh yeah, and there's also the IV tubings connected to the IV sites in his arms. So...lots of shit.
Since then, Papa has had a very good recovery. The tumor specimen was sent off-island for diagnostic labs - we will find out exactly what kind of cancer it is, and in what stage. Mind you, Papa still has his right lung cancer that we've not yet treated, so we don't know if it's 2 separate cancers, or if one lead to the other (metastasis). We'll see. But we know already that we will have to follow-up with Guam's only Oncologist (cancer doctor) to figure out our next steps in treatment.
But, Papa's slowly healing from his surgery - we removed the foley catheter last night - I just have to make sure he can still pee the usual way today. He will still have the supra-pubic catheter for a couple more weeks - so we are planning to have the Takecare home-care peeps visit us every now and then to monitor it. No more NGT - papa's been on solid food for a few days now. He's able to have a bowel movement, burp and fart, so I know the gastrointestinal pathways are working and are hopefully not backed up anymore. Papa did need a little blood transfusion this week (to help recover the blood he lost after the surgery of the bladder), but he's okay now. And his urine has been clear and light yellow for a few days as well - no more bleeding there.
We're planning to go home today. I'm off from work, so that's a good thing. I need to have a talk with the nurses before we go - and make sure they tell me how the doctor ordered them to clean around his staples and his supra-pubic catheter. I need to get medical supplies for the house. I need to catch up on some sleep too. I'll let you know how the homecoming goes...
Papa's already had a colonoscopy in 2005, but the only significant thing found were diverticuli (little outpouchings in the intestinal wall due to weakening of the walls, which result in empty spaces where feces and stuff can collect and become infected over time.
So, initially, Papa's primary doc just thought that those little diverticuli were the culprit, and were just infected or with inflammation. After very little or no improvement after weeks of antibiotics (on/off courses due to symptoms returning), the CT scan was done and showed a strange mass in the lower part of the colon.
Then we made arrangements through the surgeon to have a colonoscopy done as an outpatient at GMH - this process took a while - I was disgusted at how slow everything went just to schedule one procedure.
Anyhoo, Papa went in for the colonoscopy on July 25th - we were thinking it was to be straight forward and simple - just do the thing, recover for an hour in the post-op recovery room, then go home and await results. But that's not what happened. The procedure could not be completed due to that mass blocking the path in which the scope was to pass - I guess it really was that big. So, the surgeon decided to admit Papa into the hospital, and we did a repeat CT scan again (extensive scan again with IV and oral and rectal contrast to light-up the colon).
After the CT scan, the surgeon decided to consult an internist from Takecare to handle the medical aspects of Papa's case. Both the surgeon and the internist agreed that Papa needed surgery to remove the mass, which now became known as the "tumor". This is what they concluded - Papa's difficulties with have bowel movements (diarrhea, abdominal pain, bloatedness and the feeling of stuff being backed up inside) was due to the large tumor blocking the colon path. The urinary problems was due to the tumor being so big, it pressed on the bladder (thus Papa's frequent urination, possibly ineffective bladder emptying leading to left-over urine staying inside and getting infected) and the bladder apparently suffered damage as a result of the tumor intrusion.
So, on the 26th, we spent the day prepping Papa for surgery. He was to have a Colectomy (to remove the part of the colon that had the tumor) and a Resection of the Bladder (to remove the damaged part of the bladder and seal it back up into a smaller pouch if possible). Papa was on clear liquids only, and had to drink a fluid called Golytely (go-lightly) which made him shit all night - the idea was to completely clear the bowel of any fecal matter - essentially, keep shitting 'til it's clear. Also, to help the lower end of the colon, soap suds enemas were given to papa - again to shit 'til it's clear.
On the 27th, Papa had the surgery. They did what they had planned to do, and nothing more, thank God. But, Papa came out with more tubings than when he first went in. He had a Nasogastric tube (NGT) in place to help remove backed up gas and liquids in his stomach. He went in with a foley catheter and came out with the same one (tube inserted into the pee-pee hole then up into the bladder to drain it). The other new tube was a Supra-Pubic Catheter - this was done by a urologist during the surgery - it's a smaller catheter placed in the bladder itself, through the abdomen and drains urine like the foley catheter - so essentially, Papa had 2 pee-pee bags. And Papa came out with staples running down his belly and across to the right side of his belly. Oh yeah, and there's also the IV tubings connected to the IV sites in his arms. So...lots of shit.
Since then, Papa has had a very good recovery. The tumor specimen was sent off-island for diagnostic labs - we will find out exactly what kind of cancer it is, and in what stage. Mind you, Papa still has his right lung cancer that we've not yet treated, so we don't know if it's 2 separate cancers, or if one lead to the other (metastasis). We'll see. But we know already that we will have to follow-up with Guam's only Oncologist (cancer doctor) to figure out our next steps in treatment.
But, Papa's slowly healing from his surgery - we removed the foley catheter last night - I just have to make sure he can still pee the usual way today. He will still have the supra-pubic catheter for a couple more weeks - so we are planning to have the Takecare home-care peeps visit us every now and then to monitor it. No more NGT - papa's been on solid food for a few days now. He's able to have a bowel movement, burp and fart, so I know the gastrointestinal pathways are working and are hopefully not backed up anymore. Papa did need a little blood transfusion this week (to help recover the blood he lost after the surgery of the bladder), but he's okay now. And his urine has been clear and light yellow for a few days as well - no more bleeding there.
We're planning to go home today. I'm off from work, so that's a good thing. I need to have a talk with the nurses before we go - and make sure they tell me how the doctor ordered them to clean around his staples and his supra-pubic catheter. I need to get medical supplies for the house. I need to catch up on some sleep too. I'll let you know how the homecoming goes...
He's lucky to have you. :)
I'm glad he's healing well and up and about.
Posted by
sabete |
8/04/2007 04:27:00 PM
Thanks dude ^_^ That's why I became a nurse - so I'd know what to do if ever Papa and my family become sick. Papa was really the reason why I went into the medical field. I originally wanted to be a doctor, but I realized I couldn't handle so much schooling, so nursing was the next best thing. He's doing good - we just monitor his urine output, and tomorrow I will be cleaning his wounds when he showers. We'll follow up with the surgeon on Tuesday.
Posted by
ronnie |
8/05/2007 12:36:00 PM
I'm glad to hear your Papa is doing better. You really impress me. Sabete's right, he's lucky to have you.
Sorry I've been skulking around your blog for quite some time now and didn't comment up until now. I virtually post comments in my head though, but never make it onto digits. *sheepish grin*
Posted by
June |
8/11/2007 01:40:00 AM