Bettyjo Update

Bettyjo has gone a full week eating pudding and applesauce, and drinking small amounts of water with blue food coloring in it, and has not leaked. We are very encouraged by this and hopeful that this trend will continue.


One real blessing is that we had a family outing yesterday that included eating out at Cracker Barrel. Bettyjo was able to order water an applesauce. This has not happened in nearly two years.


I have some additional good news to report. My Grandfather, who was diagnosed with cancer this year went for some testing earlier this week, and it appears that the chemo has stopped the growth of the cancer, and he will not be needing additional treatments for at least six weeks. He will be retested and re-evaluated at that time.

Bettyjo Update

Well.....it looks as if Bettyjo got her wish for Christmas. She is now allowed to eat pudding, and applesauce with blue food coloring in it. So far the blue water has not leaked, and has gone down her esophagus into her stomach. Her food and water will continue to be colored blue for awhile, to make sure that it continues to go down and not out. Thank God for this positive step.

Bettyjo went to her family Doctor yesterday, and he wants her to increase her calorie intake to 2000/day. Which would be an extra can of Promote and a pudding snack pack. She is also having a painful time with her RA, which continues to flare up with the temperature spikes we have been having.

Please pray for continued healing, and that the RA would go into complete remission.

Bettyjo Update

We saw Dr. Willet this afternoon. He was ok with the way she was healing. Not upset, not over joyed. He did a swallow test in his office with some water and blue dye. None of it came out the hole in her neck where the primrose drain was, and later tonight it could be seen in her feeding tube, so we know it must have gone down. Bettyjo is to monitor the dressing on the drain hole for 24 hours, if she does not see any blue she can begin drinking small sips of water with blue food coloring in it. She is to call Dr. Willet on Tuesday, and discuss the possibly eating some pudding for Christmas.

Please forgive us, if when you see us we are not overjoyed. We have been at this spot before four other times, only to be disappointed. We may allow our excitement to come out after the first of the year when she has been drinking water, and eating for a couple of weeks with out incident.

Please continue to pray for full and complete healing.

Bettyjo Update

We saw Dr. Willet last Friday. The hole that was the primrose drain is almost completely closed. She has a little seepage at the surgery site due to some stitches that are surfacing. Dr. Willet was pleased with what he saw, but is cautiously optimistic for the healing of the esophagus itself. He did not feel that she would be swallowing any thing by the end of the year, except possibly her own saliva, and maybe, maybe water. I know that Bettyjo was disappointed about that.

We will go back to see the Dr. on December 19th. While she would really like to to be swallowing some thing for Christmas, we certainly do not want to risk another infection.

After we saw Dr. Willet, Bettyjo and the girls and I went to see the lights at the Columbus Zoo, which were very good. I would say that they actually were much better than they had been in the past. It was cold, but we were all bundled up, and had Bettyjo wrapped in a sleeping bag in her wheel chair. I think we all had a really good time. It has been some time since we have done anything like this as a family.

Please continue to pray for complete healing, and that Bettyjo will be able to swallow soon.

Bettyjo Update

Bettyjo had an appointment with Dr. Willet on Friday, that got canceled due to an emergency surgery that he was requested to preform on a boy from Costa Rica who was at Children's Hospital. Please include this boy in your prayers. We do not know the situation, but God does.

The appointment from Friday was rescheduled for Saturday (not a normal office day). Also please include Dr. Willet and his family in your prayers, as we know that extra time spent with us, takes time away from them. He removed the stitches from her neck, and was not pleased to see that the site where the primrose drain had been was not healed as it should have been. On the other hand he did not see any drainage that would indicate that the esophagus was leaking.

He gave us a treatment regime for the open drain site, told Bettyjo not to swallow for now, and wants to see us Friday. Not sure if he meant this Friday or next, as this one is the day after Thanksgiving.

Please continue to pray for full and final healing for Bettyjo. Please pray for our entire family, as we are all ready for this to end and are feeling discouraged right now.

Bettyjo Update

Bettyjo will be coming home today (thanks Molly). Everything seems to be going very well. Her mom and dad will be staying with her while Bob and the girls are in NW Ohio for Bob's grandmothers funeral. The only small drama that occurred is that Bettyjo's feeding tube came out yesterday, which is normal as they only last a few months. The good thing is that it came out in the hospital, and not at home. The first time one came out it was a Sunday night at home.

Please continue to pray for a full and final healing, and that she will be able to eat some applesauce for Christmas.

Bob's Grandmother

As you may know, by the prayer request that went out yesterday, my grandmother (dad's mom) was not doing well. Earlier this evening she passed away. My dad was there with her, and he said that when he arrived she asked how Bettyjo was doing, and that she worries about her.

She was a christian, so we know that now she stands before God in the company of all those that went before her, including her husband.

Please pray for comfort for the family.

Thanks

Bettyjo Update

Bettyjo had a really good day today. Her pain and nausea both seem to be under control. They will be hooking her up to her food today, so please pray that it will not make her sick. This has been a real problem in the past. She is scheduled to move to a regular room some time tonight. I am hoping that she is able to come home at the end of this week or the first of next week.

Thank you for all of your good thoughts and prayers. They are being felt.

Bettyjo Update

Bettyjo had quite a painful and sleepless night, which is odd because Dr. Willet said she would be sedated for the first night in ICU?? When I got here this morning she was wide awake and not able to speak due to a breathing tube. She had the tube, and in fact will remain in ICU for another day due to the possibility of swelling in the neck, that may cut off breathing, which would be a very bad thing. I say had the tube in because when Respiratory was in checking to see how she was breathing she coughed the tube up into her throat and they had to either put it back in or take it out fast as she could not breathe. They decided to go ahead and take it out. This has worked out well, as she is breathing fine, and thank God is able to talk. Any time you have surgery in the neck area, there is always the possibility of clipping the voice box nerve.

All things considered, she is doing really well today. Dr. Willet was in and he is pleased with how the outside looks, and is hopeful the inside will heal up as well.

If everything continues to progress, she will go to a regular room tomorrow.

Please continue to pray for complete healing.

Surgery Update

Bettyjo came out of surgery at about 10:15pm, after waiting in the pre-op for four hours! Every thing went very well. The doctor was able to dissect the pouch and sew good tissue to good tissue. She will be in ICU for two days and then will be in hospital for another three or four days. I was able to see her in ICU, but she was very heavily sedated. However, she really looked pretty good under the circumstances.

Please pray that this will be the beginning of her full recovery.

Another Surgery

Bettyjo got a call from Dr. Willets office Friday, and they want to do the major surgery that I spoke about in my last post November 10th. So at this moment we are just waiting. We are so grateful to Dr. Willet as he is actually doing this surgery during what was supposed to be his vacation time.

Please pray for complete success, and full healing. She wants to be eating by Christmas, even if it is just applesauce or pudding.

Surgery Update

Bettyjo went into surgery at around 10:00am. The Doctor came out to speak with us at around 11:30am. He was able to get the scope down her esophagus and could see that she has a pouch (not supposed to be there) right above her upper esophageal sphincter mussel. The pouch is in very poor condition. He tried to put a stitch in it to close it up, but the tissue is in such poor condition that the stitches pulled through.

The disappointing news was that he was not able to do any repair this time.

The encouraging news is that he has devised a plan to open her completely up and dissect the pouch, and then put stitches into the good material on either side.

We have a follow up meeting with him next week, and I will keep you informed as to what is decided.

Thank you for all your prayers and support, it was certainly felt this morning.

The Day Before Surgery

Tomorrow, Tuesday October 22 Bettyjo will have surgery at 10:00am at Riverside Methodist Hospital in Columbus. The surgeon will go in through her mouth and attempt to repair the esophagus from the inside.

We are all (Bettyjo, Brenda, Emily & me) very anxious to have this surgery over with, and very very cautiously optimistic. We have had so many disappointments in the past that it is hard to be optimistic.

Please be in prayer for us tomorrow, that this surgery will work, and that while the road to full recovery will still be long and hard, we will in fact be on that road.

Bettyjo Update

Correction: There was a miscommunication as to what the ENT Dr. will be doing. He is not going to re-install the funnel. He is going to sew the hole in the esophagus shut, but will not open up her neck. He is going in through the mouth. This will be an out patient surgery, and will take place on October 22.

Once again, please pray that this procedure will work.

Bettyjo Update

Bettyjo went to her ENT physician today. She still has a hole in her esophagus, and is now developing an infection, possibly caused by some permanent stitches put in during the last procedure in May.

He wants to re-install the diversion funnel, through her mouth in an out patient procedure, on October 27th. The last time he installed it by opening her up, and the funnel itself caused a lot of pain. Please pray that will not be the case this time! And, that this procedure will allow the esphagus to heal.

Bettyjo Update

Well....Bettyjo went back to the ENT, and he wants her to come back in a month to see if there is any change. She is currently still leaking from the neck. Her Family Doc. wants her to gain at least 12 pounds before she has any more surgeries. We have been adding a can of Ensure, which has given her a little more energy. She has been getting out a bit more.

Please pray that she will gain the weight needed, and that she will be strong enough for another surgery. This really is not what we wanted to hear, but there doesn't seem to be any other shot at healing.

Bettyjo Update

Bettyjo found that she still has a hole in her esophagus. She will see the ENT later this month, to what the next step, if any will be. She has been getting out of the house some, but is still very weak. Her rheumatoid arthritis has her knees and fingers swollen, and it keeps her in pain.

Please pray for peace, no matter the out come. Also, please remember my Dad's mom, and my mom's parents in your prayers, as they face some pretty serious health issues.

Bettyjo Update

Bettyjo went to see the ENT today. It looks like she may still have a hole in the esophagus, as he did see some air bubbles. The exterior wound is healing, all be it slowly. She no longer needs to have it covered. She will see our family Dr. in August for the blood clot. Hopefully the ultrasound will show that it is gone, and she can stop using the blood thinning medication.

Bettyjo Update

Bettyjo has made very slow improvement since my last update. The wounds in her neck are healing very slowly. The constant change in the barometric pressure has caused her rheumatoid arthritis to flare up, which is very painful and causes a fever, so we are never sure if she has another infection or not.

One blessing is that while I have been traveling for work some this summer, her sister & parents have been able to stay with her. She has enjoyed spending time with them.

Thanks for your continued thoughts and prayers.

Bettyjo Update

Bettyjo has been out of the hospital for about 2.5 weeks. The wounds in the neck are not healing as fast now as they had been a few weeks ago. Dr. Willet states it is because of the cumidin, that is treating a blood clot in her shoulder. She is still on the feeding tube, and is still not swallowing. I don't think she should try to swallow until the wounds in her neck are completely healed. We have had a bit of trouble regulating her medication, but that too is now under control. Her spirits are good, and she has been doing a few things around the house, and has been out shopping a few times.

Bettyjo Update

Bettyjo came home from the hospital today. She is very tired and very weak. She will see Dr. Willet in two weeks, and we begin the process of wound care again. Fortunately Home Health Care will be out to pack the wound in the morning. It is a little too soon for visitors or phone calls. Next week would be much better.

Please pray for healing, and that no further infections develop.

Bettyjo Update

Bettyjo had her trach removed today. She is struggling with it a bit, as she just got used to breathing through the trach and now she has to relearn to breath through her mouth. Flem keeps coming up through the hole where the trach was, and she is to put pressure on the hole when ever she talks or coughs to encourage it to seal.

The doctor has released her to begin swallowing her saliva. Pray that she does not get another infection.

She will resume tube feedings today, and hopefully she will be able to tolerate it. If everything goes well, I look for her to come home on Friday.

Bettyjo Update

Bettyjo had her diversion funnel removed from her esophagus this morning. She and I both thought that she would be put under for the procedure however, she was not so it was pretty scary for her having a six inch funnel pulled from her mouth. Everything went very well. When I left the hospital she was in good spirits, was relieved from some of the pain of the funnel being in there. While she still requests that you not call her, she was much more able to talk, and do it pain free.

Tomorrow, she will have the trach removed, and they are hoping to get her back on her feeding tube, and off the TPN. The plan is for her to come home on Friday.

Please pray that this procedure works and that she is finally on her way to total healing.

Bettyjo Update

Bettyjo will be in the hospital until the end of next week. They will be taking the funnel out Monday or Tuesday, and the hope and prayer is that the back tear in the esophagus will have healed. The problem is that the vomiting caused a tear lower in the esophagus and to the front. Apparently this is an easier spot to fix. Bettyjo will need a lot of home care as she will be coming home with a trach, a 4" open neck wound and will be on tpn (nutrition through IV).

Pray for all of us to be patient and that this round of treatment will work.

Bettyjo Update

Bettyjo is still vomiting and no one seems to know just why. She is scheduled to come home tomorrow, but who knows. When she does come home, I will have to learn trach care, and how to hook up her TPN. We will also start the wound care regime again, as the very large wound on her neck is open and needs to heal from the inside out.

Bettyjo Update

Bettyjo is taking nutrition through her Grushon port. Because of all the vomiting she has torn the stitches in her funnel and is leaking through the same old hole. She now has a blood clot in her right shoulder. However through it all was in good spirits when I left her this evening.

Dr. Willet was to come in later this evening with some new idea/ideas. So hopefully I will have something more to report tomorrow.

My grandfather has done well with his chemo, and is no longer passing blood. Hopefully the tumor in the prostate is shrinking. They will do a full body scan after is last chemo treatment.

My father is now passing blood and, is having some pain in his back. He has had kidney stones before, but says this pain is not the same. He will be going to a specialists on June 6th.

My uncle Don, had a hematoma on his brain from a fall in January and had suffered some stroke like symptoms, had brain surgery to repair the blood vessel and then was recently hospitalized again because of a seizure. He is out of the hospital and is doing much better now.

Please remember all of these, and their doctors in your prayers.

Bettyjo Update

Bettyjo is still throwing up. No one, even Bettyjo seems to know why. They are considering putting her on TPN through her IV.

Bettyjo Update

Good and bad news today. Bettyjo was able to talk a bit to me on the phone (please do not call her just yet). Hopefully she will be talking more soon. She gets a bit frustrated writing. Mostly because she has difficulty spelling. I am not the best speller either, so both of the girls are cursed. In addition they have run out of sites to put in IV's so they are going surgically install a Grushon Port. This will be surgery #10 in 14 months.

Bettyjo Update

On Sunday I went to see my Grandfather. He is doing pretty well. He has not been very sick, but has lost all most all of his hair, and has some sores in his mouth, which are known side effects of the chemo. His spirit remains high, and both he and Grandma are handling the situation pretty well.

Dr. Willet attempted to put in a new, more permanent trach in this morning, but it initiated the gag reflex and Bettyjo threw up. This has caused some of her stitches to break loose, and he was not successful in getting the new tube in. It seems that this entire battle is up hill.

Bettyjo Update

Bettyjo was dong well yesterday. She was completely off the ventilator. She has some pain, but it seems to managed well, and she is tolerating it well. She is still in ICU. The plan was to get her to a regular room, but none were available. Hopefully today. She has a valve for her trach that will help her talk but it has been a bit cumbersome. She can also put her finger on the trach and exhale over her vocal cords to talk, but it is going to take some practice.

Bettyjo Update

When I got to the hospital this morning, Bettyjo was doing very well. She was much more alert, and very aware of what is going on. The pain management team was in and they are adjusting and monitoring her pain meds very closely. One thing that concerned me was that there was some discussion among the pain team and the nurse on duty regarding documentation of the pain pump. I have the feeling that Bettyjo may have been getting much more pain meds that she should have been? The wound on Bettyjo's neck looks good, and they have been weeing her off the ventilator. Hopefully she will be able to get out of ICU Friday or Saturday. Which in one sense is too bad. Her care here in ICU has been terrific. She has had great nurses, in a clean room. However, getting out of ICU is one step toward going home, which would be the best by far.

Thanks again for all your thoughts and prayers. I do have one request. If any of you have the opportunity, please send Bettyjo a card or note. I try to read all the comments on the blog to her, but I know that cards and notes really perk her up. Thanks.

Bettyjo Update

Bettyjo has come out of surgery and is doing very well. Dr. Willet was able to repair the blood vessel a close her back up. She is still reacting very badly to the pain meds. A pain specialist has been consulted, and a new cocktail is being put together.

Bettyjo Update

Bettyjo had a very very bad day today. She is not tolerating the pain medication well, and earlier this afternoon, she had a coughing spell after a trach procedure and busted a blood vessel in her neck causing Dr. Willet to take her in to surgery to repair it. I will update again this evening with the results of the surgery, when she is back in her room.

Bettyjo Update

With all the pain medication and the trauma of having a funnel in her esophagus and a trach and being on a ventilator the pain meds Bettyjo is on keeps her pretty much sedated and had caused her to be a bit confused today. However she was a little more alert tonight when I left. Her one request was to be able to see some VHS videos of our family vacations and of the girls when they were small. Sot he Chaplin at Riverside arraigned for her to have a VCR in her room and we watched videos most of the afternoon. For those of you reading this who have small children, cherish the time you have, because the time you have REALLY does go by much too fast.

Hopefully Bettyjo will be able to come off the ventilator Wednesday, and will get into a regular room.

I can't express enough our thanks for all your thoughts and prayers. I want you to know they have been felt.

Bettyjo Update

Sorry this posting is so late. Bettyjo went into surgery at about 3:30pm and came out at 6:45pm. When Dr. Willet briefed us on the surgery, he stated that when he go her opened up, the flap that Dr. Alam did in Feb. was completely dissolved by the infection she had in March. He first put in a trach tube, and then was able to put in the funnel which will help divert her saliva and will hopefully allow the esophagus to heal. The trach will stay in until the funnel comes out.

She will be in ICU for 24 to 48 hours, and will be in the hospital for a few more days. Bettyjo is alert and is able to communicate by writing on a piece of paper. Dr. Willet is hopeful that she will be able to speak without any trouble when the trach comes out.

Bettyjo Update

Bettyjo is doing much better. She has been re-hydrated, and is taking some food. They are going to keep her in the hospital until her surgery on Monday, which is just as well. They are better equipped to keep her hydrated, and generally monitor her health.

Her surgery is set for 3:00pm. I am guessing that it will be a three or four hours long. I will post the surgery results to the blog, when she is out of recovery.

Bettyjo Update

Bettyjo went to the ER at Riverside yesterday. She was dehydrated, and possibly has a flu of some sort. They put in a liter of IV solution on a fast drip, with a continual drip since then. She was admitted, and will most likely be in the hospital until she has surgery on Monday. Some time in the night she started to feel better, and is doing well currently.

Bettyjo Update

Bettyjo will be having surgery on May 12th. Not sure what time yet. Dr. Willet will install a funnel and will attempt to fix the hole that is currently leaking. This procedure has a 50% chance of working, and is possibly the last known treatment for her condition. Anything else tried will be experimental. Hopefully the last infection did not do much damage and this will work.

My Grandfather is doing well under the circumstances. He has not been very sick, but is very tired after the chemo. He is now starting to loose his hair, which is to be expected. We will be traveling to North Creek Saturday for my Grandparents 67th anniversary party. Hopefully all will go well.

Bettyjo Update

The funnel is in, and Dr. Willet is going to work her into his schedule sometime over the next 1 to 1.5 weeks, as this will be about a three hour surgery. He will open her up and attach it at the top and bottom, and will attempt to close the current hole.

Bettyjo has had about three very bad days, and just wants to sleep all the time. She is going to our family Dr. tomorrow to find out why. I hope it is something simple.

My grandfather came through the chemo ok. He did not get as sick as I thought he might, but is very tired. Cancer was found in his lungs, stomach, lymph nodes and hip in addition to his prostrate gland. Hopefully the chemo has shrunk it.

Bettyjo Update

The funnel/tube that is supposed to divert saliva a down Bettyjo's esophagus did not come in this past week. Hopefully it will be in this week and Dr. Willet can install it early next week. We are a little disappointed that Dr. Alam has apparently not called Dr. Willet back. We were hoping the two of them could collaborate on Bettyjo's care, so that the very best action plan could be developed. As most of you know, Bettyjo has a feeding tube that goes directly into her stomach from the out side in. Last night it came out unexpectedly while I was on my way back from visiting my grandfather. Fortunately a lady from church was able to take her to Riverside ER where a new one was inserted. They did not get home until 2:30am. Thank you Karen.

On another note, my grand father starts chemo Monday, and will have it Tuesday, and Wednesday as well. With out the treatment he was given two to eight months. With the treatment, the doctor would not say. My mom and aunt are planning an anniversary party for my grandparents at the first of May, they have been married 67 years.

Thank you for all your notes, thoughts and prayers. We really do appreciate it.

Bettyjo Update

Bettyjo saw Dr. Willet yesterday. He is going to order the diversion funnel for Bettyjo, which should be in next week. Surgery will be the following week. He may have to open her up on the vertical, and if he does she will have a trach installed for at least the time she is in surgery and maybe a little longer. In addition to this possible complication, the hole is so high on her esophagus, very near the tongue that Dr. Willit is not sure that Bettyjo will be able to stand the funnel, as it may cause her to gag. The only bright spot to the Dr. appointment is that he said that he is not ready to give up.

On another note, a while back I had asked you to pray for my grandfather and some surgery he had. Well......a biopsy has shown very aggressive cancer. He will see an oncologist Monday for a more concrete diagnosis.

Bettyjo Update

Bettyjo is on some kind of antibiotic, and the infection seems to be under control. She will be seeing Dr. Willet next Friday, to discuss options.

I think the whole family is just........sort of numb right now. Everything we had been planning for the next year or so hinged on her getting better. And, now that is not so certain. I know, I know that nothing is for certain, even our next breaths, but when you are told by your Dr. that 95% of patients that had the first flap procedure (October 2007) have success, and of the remaining 5% , 90% of those having the radical reconstruction have success that means that only 1 in 200 are at the point Bettyjo is at.

Bettyjo and I are going shopping tonight for some material for her to make a curtain for the kitchen, she and Brenda are going to a movie tomorrow while Emily and I attend the Crew (MLS Soccer) home opener with tickets I won in a drawing at work.

Bettyjo Update

We received the very worst news possible last night. Bettyjo's options are 1) a tube can be inserted past the hole so that saliva will not go down it, and "hopefully" it will heal. 2) they can take her stomach out attach it to her arm and attach it to he side and slowing stretch her stomach to make a new complete esophagus. 3) she can give up. They will put in a permanent feeding tube, and she will never eat or swallow again.

I am not going to ask for prayer at this time, because it seems that God will do what God will do, and I guess we will just have to accept it. Maybe prayer is really accidental anyway.

Bettyjo Update

Thanks to all of you reading the blog. And, to those of you leaving comments. I read them to Bettyjo and they are encouraging.

At the moment Bettyjo is in a lot of pain, from this last surgery, from the infection, from the previous surgeries, from the rod and screws in her neck and from the rheumatoid arthritis. She had an MRI last night but no one has been in to brief us on the results. I say no one, because both Dr. Willet and Dr. Baird (infectious disease) will use it to see multiple things. She is still getting IV antibiotics, and well...........we are just waiting. Not much fun, and getting very old.

Bettyjo Update

Bettyjo came out of surgery well. Dr. Willet said that she had a large puss sack behind her esophagus and a small amount on her voice box. He said that he really was not able to see anything for all the puss and blood that was coming out. In fact when the Anaesthesiologist pulled the breathing tube out it also had puss on it. Dr. Willet drained all the puss, flushed it out and then put in a Primrose drain. He will consult Dr. Alam either today or Monday, and will order another CT scan for Tuesday.

Bettyjo Update

Bettyjo's neck started to swell yesterday, and this morning it was very swollen. We took her to Riverside for a CT scan, and it revealed an abscess behind the esophagus most likely caused by the stitches dissolving too quickly. This has allowed some material to drain into the neck, causing the infection.

Dr. Willet will do surgery to drain the abscess, and will install a drain. She will be in the hospital for a few days.

Please pray for success of the surgery, and that the flap and the repaired esophagus will not suffer permanent damage from the infection.

Bettyjo Update

Bettyjo went to her ENT in Columbus today. He removed the stitches, and was pleased with what Dr. Alam had done at the Cleveland Clinic. She will have a swallow test some time with in the next week or so. The troubling news was that they may have to stretch her esophagus to make it fully functional, in an out patient procedure.

Please pray that the swallow test goes well, and that the esophageal stretch will be successful, if it needs to be done at all.

Bettyjo Update

We made it home yesterday. The trip was very uneventful. The roads were in really good shape, even in Cleveland where there was about 8" to 10" of snow on the ground.

But.......the best news of all came today. Bettyjo was able to swallow a few sips of water! Yeah!!!

Bettyjo also got a call from Dr. Willet's office, to say the Dr. Alam had contacted them and they have discussed follow up care. Bettyjo will see Dr. Willet next week.

Bettyjo Update

Bettyjo is being discharged this morning from the Cleveland Clinic. We did not leave yesterday as Dr. Alam wanted to see her before she left, and he was in surgery most of the morning. He saw her at about 3:30pm yesterday and was very pleased with her progress. The next hurdle will be the ride home, which I hope will be uneventful. It looks as if we will have decent driving day weather wise. Dr. Alam is allowing Bettyjo to follow up with Dr. Willet our original ENT in Columbus, which is a blessing as we will not have the 3 hr trip to the Cleveland Clinic for stitch removal and wound monitoring. In addition we have full faith and confidence in Dr. Willet.

Thank you all for your prayers over the past week. They were felt, appreciated, and answered.

Bettyjo Update

All of the drains are now out, she is off the pain pump, and they have removed the bandage on her arm where the tissue for the new esophagus was taken. According to the Doctor everything looks good, and she should be able to go home tomorrow (Wednesday). If the Cleveland Clinic can get her discharged by 1:00pm we will be on our way home. If it is 1:00pm or later, we will spend the night in the condo together, and will come home Thursday.

Thank you all for your prayers. It seems that they have been answered!

Bettyjo Update

Bettyjo has only one drain line left in, that did not produce anything today, and she is transitioning from the pain pump to less pain meds through her feeding tube. She has taken several walks around ICU, and seems to be coming along very well. Tuesday, they will unwrap her arm to take a look at the skin graph they put on the place they took her new esophagus from. One of the interns was in tonight, and he felt that if the arm looked good, and they can remove the remaining drain line, she may get to come home on Wednesday.

Please continue to pray for healing, and safe travel home. One other thing, my grandfather will be having surgery on March 12, please pray for success in the surgery and a quick healing.

Bettyjo Update

Bettyjo got up out of bed for the first time since her surgery. She has had some tubes removed, and at least two more are scheduled to come out tomorrow. They gave her some ice chips to attempt to swallow, but they would not go down, which really is ok for her first try. There may be some swelling yet preventing it. They have regulated her pain meds, gave her a bath and washed her hair, so when I left the hospital she was feeling quite well. I am heading back to spend some time with her this evening, and will head back in the morning.

Please continue to pray for healing for Bettyjo, and for travel as my parents and the girls have just left to head back to London.

Bettyjo Update

Bettyjo is being moved from Recovery to ICU this afternoon, as they do not have a bed for her in the step down ICU. She needs to be there so that a nurse can check her esophageal flap every hour and make sure it has blood flow. This is usually done for 48 hours after surgery, as this time has passed I am not sure just why they are not moving her to a regular room. The nurse I spoke with said that she may go to a regular room tomorrow.

Please continue to pray for healing.

Bettyjo Status Report

I arrived at the hospital this morning at around 8am. She was still in recovery, however they had just taken the breathing tube out before I arrived, and she was able to talk with out any real trouble. I was able to sit and talk to her for about four hours. Between the incision in her neck, the wound to her arm created to form the esophagus, the skin graph taken from her leg to patch up her arm, she is in a tremendous amount of pain. They anticipate moving her to ICU step down this afternoon, as soon as a bed becomes available. Every thing seems to be going as planned and the new esophagus seems to be thriving. The best news of the day is that the vocal cords were not damaged in the surgery, and she is able to talk.

Please continue to pray for relief from pain, and a speedy recovery.

Surgery Day

Bettyjo went into surgery at 7:30am and came out at 2:50pm. Dr. Alam reported that the surgery went well. However, when they opened her up the spine had some dead material that needed to be cleared away by an orthopedic surgeon.

Normally the Dr. would put in a trachea tube, because of the overall swelling in the neck, but he did not want to do that to her, so she will be kept in recovery over night, and kept sedated. He has also administered an anti-swallowing drug. They will bring her around tomorrow, and she will be moved to ICU setpdown. In about three days he will have her try to swallow some water and ice chips. Dr. Alam is fairly confident that this surgery will be successful.

Please continue to pray for Bettyjo, as she is sedated in recovery, and that this surgery will work.

We Made It To Cleveland

Well......we have all made it to Cleveland, and are in the condo that has been graciously loaned to us. Bettyjo will have to be at the Clinic at 6am, surgery will be at 7:30am. The surgery will last 10 hours, and she will be in the hospital 7 to 10 days. The first 2 to 3 days will be in ICU step down, and then will move to a regular room for the remainder of the time.

We are both pretty nervous, please pray for peace of mind. I will post again Thursday after the surgery, and Bettyjo is in ICU step down.

Travel

Bettyjo and Molly Rosati will be traveling to Cleveland on Tuesday, please pray for safety as the weather does not look to be favorable. Bettyjo will have a number of tests on Wednesday, and the surgery is set for Thursday Feb. 28th at 7:30am. I will be going up after work on Wednesday.

I will post an update after the surgery to let everyone know about the outcome.

Cleveland Clinic Appointment

Bettyjo saw Dr. Alam at the Cleveland Clinic today, and he has scheduled surgery for February 28, 2008 @ 7:30am. The surgery will take up to ten (10) hours to complete. He will take a patch of skin from her left forearm, along with a vein for blood supply. He will remove the damaged section of esophagus, and form an esophagus from the patch. She will then have a skin graph on her forearm.

She had some pre-admission testing today, but will need to be at the Clinic on the 27th @ 9:40am for the remainder of her pre-admission testing.

She will be in the hospital for at least a week, and the estimated total recovery time is six (6) months.

Please pray for Dr. Alam, the surgery team, and most importantly for Bettyjo that this will be the last surgery/procedure for this condition, and that her healing will be complete. Pray for the girls and me as we juggle schedules, traveling, ect. and that we will all be patient and "wait upon the Lord"

Bettyjo Update

Sorry it has been so long since my last update. The last two weeks have gone by very slowly, waiting for some direction from the ENT. However, Bettyjo got a call this afternoon telling her that she does not have a bone infection, and that we have an appointment at the Cleveland Clinic on January 30th at 9:00am. We were told to reserve the whole day for testing. I am hopeful this means pre-admission testing, and not we'll see if we can help you testing. We will be going up the day before and spending the night so we are both fresh for the entire day.

Please pray that they will be able to help us, and that whatever they propose will work!

Thanks to all of you who have been keeping up with this blog, and if you can please leave us a comment to let us know you were here.

Bettyjo Update

Bettyjo got a call from the ENT today. It looks as if she will be going to the Cleveland Clinic for the reconstruction. Before it is set she will need to have an MRI (she had one done on 12-31) and a test to see if she still has the bone infection. If she still has the bone infection, she will need a series of IV antibiotics that will last 6 to 8 weeks. If not, hopefully she can get in right away to have the reconstruction surgery.

The reason she had the MRI was to find out why she is having so much pain between her shoulder blades. Hopefully it's just from the surgery in July, and not another disk going out.