 Carl Is Gone!
Adam Out of Surgery
Adam's surgery date was moved up and he came
through the procedure yesterday with flying colors.
They made the incision at 2:00 pm and had removed the tumor by 5:30. By 7:30 we
were able to see for ourselves that Adam was doing well.
Adam spent the night in Recovery and was moved to the 9th Floor this morning.
He will be in the hospital for a week or so.
During the surgery they entered by cutting the 6th rib and deflating his right
lung. The tumor was located behind the breastbone, adjacent to his right lung
and his heart. According to the surgeon, Dr. La Quaglia, the tumor "peeled
off" his heart and breastbone. They needed to remove a small portion of
his lung and a nerve that had been strangled by the tumor. The tumor, Carl, was
still the size of a large grapefruit.
In addition to removing Carl, Dr. La Quaglia stitched his diaphragm to itself
to make up for the lost nerve and allow for lung expansion. He doesn't believe
there will be any long-term impacts on Adam's breathing (or rock climbing
ability). The rib was stitched back together, lung reinflated and two chest
tubes were placed to help drain the fluids left or created from the surgery.
Unfortunately, Adam could not have an epidural because of the spots on his
spine. Therefore, he might have a painful recovery ahead. But typical Adam, he
woke up joking with the medical team.
Although Adam kept asking for Carl in a jar, the tumor has been shipped off the
lab to be dissected and analyzed.
Adam says he feels like a character out of the Matrix, with tubes coming out
all over. Today, he's sore, uncomfortable and still cracking jokes with the
medical staff.
_________________________________________________________________ |
Upcoming events, view past newsletters, and a page to leave messages.
_________________________________________________________________ |
