Tomorrow....June 7th....marks two weeks since my tumor surgery. At the time, the surgeon, Dr. Amersi, felt the operation was a success and there was no apparent spread of the tumors to other organs of the body. I've described the mass removed from my abdomen in previous posts. But Dr. Amersi could not draw any conclusions with certainty until the pathology reports came in from the lab.
Today, Sue and I met with Dr. Amersi to go over the lab analysis. It was just this morning when it began to dawn on me that I would hear the "final score" of this contest later in the day. So it was with some anxiety that we traveled across Los Angeles to Cedars/Sinai this early afternoon. I would know what my medical future was going to be like by the end of the day.
The Pathology Report affirmed Dr. Amersi's observations. However, there were SEVEN tumors in a cluster involving the mesentery and the small intestines. They ranged in size from about 1/4" to almost one inch in diameter. This is why Dr. Amersi had to remove a tangled "ball" of small intestine and mesentery tissue. The outlying tissue of the "ball" was clean and showed no sign of cancer. The bottom-line is that there are no cancer tumors left in the body. Future "treatment" will involve periodic scans (every six months) to detect any possible return of the carcinoid tumors.
I am walking the streets with a retuned heart and newly repaired plumbing. The healing process, initially feared to be more painful than the heart surgery, has proved to be rapid and less painful than feared.
I am a very fortunate man. The final score came out in my favor. What a game!!!
Stephen
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