Wednesday, June 30, 2010

It's Benign!

Just a quick update to let you know that, as of this morning, the biopsy results are in and the tumor removed last week has been confirmed to be a benign Lipoma.  Apparently Dr. Monson removed a small amount of fat and a lymph node sample as well from that area, both of which also came back clean.  Yeah!

On a recovery note, I went back to work on Monday (a little earlier than originally planned) and have been doing fairly well.  However, over the last day or so, I've definitely noticed much more pain and swelling in that area.  I'll try keeping an ice pack on it today as Holly swears that will help more than anything.

And man do I ever need a full shower!

Friday, June 25, 2010

Colonel Mustard, in the Dining Room, with a Camera*

This is a picture** of my right arm & shoulder area from yesterday, prior to quite a bit of scrubbing to remove the Betadine.  I was covered with this stuff from my chest all the way up my right arm and getting it off was quite the trick.  Simple soap and water couldn't "cut the mustard" (so to speak).  It took rubbing alcohol and a few dozen cotton balls just to tone down the stain.

The good news though is that I'm doing just fine.  I've had no problems with bleeding and the pain has been manageable.  What pain I do feel can best be described as dull, achy, and sore; it kind of feels like someone punched me in the armpit repeatedly (not that this has ever happened before or anything, but I can only imagine it must be similar).

My mobility with my right arm is somewhat limited, though mostly by choice at this time.  I'm purposely not trying to do too much with it as I don't want to risk disturbing the incision area.  But after the bandage comes off (Saturday afternoon), I'll likely start doing more.  Even so, I need to keep that area clean and dry, which means avoiding outside work (especially in our Hotlanta 90+ degree weather) and not washing that area for the next couple of weeks.  I'm sure the guys in the office are gonna just love that when I return next week!

Overall, I've got no complaints and I'm quite relieved that this all went so smoothly.  And I promise to post updates in conjunction with my pathology results and my follow-up appointment in 2 weeks (Mom!), though I don't expect either to be eventful.

Have a great weekend!

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* For those who don't have a clue about this title, it was supposed to be a reference to the Clue Game, where Colonel Mustard is one of the characters in this murder mystery.  And given my mustard colored arm and the fact that I'm in my dining room . . . well I think you see what I was shooting for.  And yes, I know: if I have to explain it, then it must not be very funny.  :)

** Some email clients block pictures, so if no picture is present, you can click on the Bold Blue Title in the email and that will take you directly to this post at my blog site, where all will be revealed.

Wednesday, June 23, 2010

A little off the top, please

All indications are that the surgery was a complete success!  So far, my pain is quite manageable, though I suspect it will likely go up a few notches by tomorrow.  My marching orders (post-op) are:
  1. Take the dressing off after 3 days.
  2. Follow-up with the doctor on Friday, July 9.
  3. Do not drive or operate heavy equipment in the next 24 hours.
  4. No alcohol for the next 24 hours.
I’m good with most all of these instructions, though I did make it clear “no promises” regarding the 24-hour moratorium on alcohol.  J  The Lipoma itself was approximately 4cm x 6cm and I'm told that the pathology results should be available within 7 - 10 days (though nobody is really expecting this to be anything other than Lipoma, which is benign).

Prior to the surgery, I got a little bit nervous when Dr. Monson mentioned, “Yeah, that thing’s in there really deep.  Removing that huge Liposarcoma on your leg was easy given where it was at; this will be a bit more complicated.”  Moments later, the Anesthesiologist followed up with the comment, “Wow – that really is an unusual location.  Surgery there can really be painful.”  All I can say is I’m just glad that I’m the kind of guy that really likes to hear people tell it to me straight!  Otherwise, a “panic attack” might have been in order.

Seriously though, this medical team is incredible!  I’ve got one of the best orthopedic surgeons in the southeast operating on me, awesome nurses, and an Anesthesiologist (named Heather) who really listened to my history of getting sick after surgery.  She described this as PONV (Postoperative Nausea and Vomiting) and told me she had it covered.  And sure enough, for the first time I didn’t get sick following surgery!  Yeah!

I’ve rented 2 movies and plan to start watching them as soon as I get something to eat.  Plus I plan on playing with my new iPhone 4, which was delivered today (perfect timing I might add).  I'm such a technogeek!

Thanks to all for your support, comments, emails, etc.  You-all are awesome!

A Cut Above

Yes, the time has finally come to get a new scar “tattooed” to my body.  At high-noon today, I will go in for that lipoma surgery that I mentioned in previous posts.  And this isn’t just any run-of-the-mill, dime-sized lipoma either (I have several of those); this one is much bigger and buried deep within my right armpit.  The main reason it’s coming out is because the location makes it difficult to monitor and we don’t want it to grow unchecked and become a problem.

I’m not really expecting this to be a big deal or anything, but I do think this is gonna hurt!  I just remember the pain that Holly was in after she had her right axillary node dissection (15 months ago) and I think this operation will be very similar.  I’m just glad I’m in the capable hands of Dr. Monson, who did such spectacular work on my leg 15 months ago.  Don’t know if I’m going to need any drains yet for this procedure (I’m hoping I won’t).  The surgery itself will be taking place at the Emory Spine Center (Executive Park) on an outpatient basis.

Once this is behind me, the exciting thing is that Holly and I will now have matching scars under our right armpits!  Now how cool is that?!?  I know that some couples like to get tattoos and all, but we (apparently) do things a little more “out of the ordinary”.  And trust me, the experience we’ve been through is just as permanently etched into our bodies, hearts, and minds as any real tattoo.  I’d say we’re a match made in Heaven!

Well, here’s to careful cutting, a speedy recovering, and a scar that’s just slightly bigger than Holly’s (for bragging rights, of course)!   J




Recent CT-Scan.  The area circled in red is the Lipoma that will be removed today.