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Billy's OK!!

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Posted 3/27/2008 12:41 AM (GMT 0)

Hi Everyone,

Just a quick note to tell you that Billy did very well with his RRP today. Surgery was 2 hours, lymphnodes, prostate, and base of bladder biopsies sent to pathology. should hear back on Sunday or Monday. He has a Morphine PCA and pain scale is a 2 without using much MS. I am sure the anesthesia is still working a bit. He says it is an ache in his scrotum. Dooable!  He has a JP drain that is not putting out much, urine is clear, VS good. He is happy to have his own pillow!

Tomorrow will be a day to get moving but for now he is resting nicely. I am happy they put him in my old progressive care unit so he has had VIP treatment from all the staff from pre-op to recovery, and is now well cared for by my RN friends in PCU! I tied his MS pump button around his wrist band so he will not loose it thru the night.

Thanks for all your thoughts and prayers! We have alot of comfort knowing you are all outthere.

Hey Frank...you are in our prayers for tomorrow. I feel sure you will do well!

Fondly,

ML

(ps the staff brought a computer into Billy's room so you will be hearing from us!)

Posted 3/27/2008 2:21 AM (GMT 0)

Glad he came through the surgery ok.  Hope the pathology results are good.

Have thought about the two of you...and Mr. Frank...a lot today.

DanMan Bob

Posted 3/27/2008 2:28 AM (GMT 0)
Well, as they say here "He's on the other side" and on the way to recovery. Sounds like Billy has great a great caretaker in you and your "connections"!
Get some rest - you both will need it.

We'll be looking for your update.

All the best,
Susan
Posted 3/27/2008 2:57 AM (GMT 0)
Hey ML and Billy,

Welcome to the "other side". Its great to get that part of the journey over with. Now on to healing well...

Jim
Posted 3/27/2008 2:17 PM (GMT 0)
Welcome to the other side.  It's all about healing and dealing over here, so take it easy, follow docs orders and begin your recovery to your new life....
Posted 3/28/2008 5:16 PM (GMT 0)
ML and Billy,
Glad the operation went smoothly! Sounds like Billy is getting great care, and that will continue when you all get home. Get lots of rest and keep us posted !
Best,
Mike
Posted 4/2/2008 3:26 PM (GMT 0)

ML and Billy,

Been a week since surgery.  Hope things continue to move in a good direction.

DanMan

Posted 4/3/2008 2:25 PM (GMT 0)
It has been a week now, and I'm on my way back.

My first thoughts are of the people on this forum and their incredibly unselfish assistance. So many times I've read a post and wanted to add my 2 cents, but with people like TC, Bluerbird, DanandBob among many others, it would be like carrying coals to Newcastle.

I saw the Doc yesterday because I still have a size 20 Foley and Junior is not taking it very lightly. I'm told it's normal, but don't recall reading about this problem on the site. I'm not sure which is larger, the catheter bag or
Junior. Is that everybody else's experience? When does it go away?

I do have two suggestions for those heading for surgery which I have not seen posted:

First, Learn AND PRACTICE sitting up, standing up, laying down and getting back up WITHOUT using your stomach and abdominal muscles. Once you are operated on, those muscles will be useless until they heal. Ask your bio-feedback Nurse to show you how to use your arms and leg muscles instead, you may be assured your abdominal muscles will remind you if you try to use them instead.

Second, make sure your Doctor leaves a PRN order for medication just in case of fever.

It may sound silly, but I had a button that gave me access to all the morphine my littlle heart desired for pain, but no acess to 2 Tylenol for a 102.08 fever for 8 1/2 hours because my "On-Call" Physician was very difficult to wake up according to his message service.

Without a Dr's order, the only thing the Nursing staff could do was to wrap me in ice and cold towels until the 4th call to him finally made it through. I recommend an ice bath be avoided if at all possible.
nono nono
Posted 4/3/2008 4:11 PM (GMT 0)

Billy,

Good to hear from you.

You said "I saw the Doc yesterday because I still have a size 20 Foley and Junior is not taking it very lightly. I'm told it's normal, but don't recall reading about this problem on the site. I'm not sure which is larger, the catheter bag or Junior. Is that everybody else's experience? When does it go away?"

If I am following you correctly, your penis is swollen.  Is that correct?  If so, let me say that mine was swollen some for a couple of days after I returned home, as was my scrotum.  The urologist told me he had seen that before, it would go away soon and not to worry about it.  In my case, it did subside fairly quickly.


 

Posted 4/3/2008 7:34 PM (GMT 0)
It's terrific news to read the Billy's RRP surgery went well.  Let the healing begin!  Please update us with reports on his progress.

Take care and hang in there...Tim

Posted 4/3/2008 7:55 PM (GMT 0)

Billy - Hey Hey

I just saw this post.  Great news.  My one week today as well.  Got the cath out and I am a proud leaker.  So what... I feel great.  When I got home I talked to Danmanbob and he said he heard that your were doing O.K. Ahh thats great.  I like your recomendation about the stomach muscles.  Boy your right on that.  I am better now.  I can even blow my nose or sneeze without getting ready to dial 911 tongue

I am on an antibiotic for prevention for a couple of days but as far as pain most a 2 if that. My results are due today by phone.  Wish me luck on this call.

Well great to hear from you.  My email is listed if you want to chat

Your Surgery Buddy,

Frank

Posted 4/3/2008 9:38 PM (GMT 0)
REPLY TO DANMANBOB:

Swollen would be a very kind term, more like elephantiases.

I fully expect it to pop like a water balloon anytime soon, but the Doc and ML tell me to "Relax".

On the good news side, the biopsy came in and is now posted. The first PSA will be useless due to the Lupron, but the second will tell the tale.

This Monday the staples come out, and the following Monday the pipe is extracted, hopefully from something still there.

I was advised ahead of time that I would be getting a size 14 Foley, but somehow ended up with a 20. I'm told the Doc used it like a "Cast" for the re-attachement.

It cannot be said too often how invaluable you guys (Girls and Boys) are to those who are new to this scene, "Thank you" seems a tad inadequate a word.

Billy
Posted 4/3/2008 10:00 PM (GMT 0)

Great, Great news Billy.  I am so happy for you.  Way to go.  Get well ...Take it easy.

Frank

Posted 4/3/2008 10:04 PM (GMT 0)
Back at you Frank,

I strongly envy you being out of the catheter in one week.

I have no pain or even discomfort associated with mine, but I rather doubt that my penis feels the same way since it's swollen to probably 4 times normal size. Maybe when I was a kid this would be a good thing, but at 64, I can do without it.

What bothers me most is that there was no advance warning from the Doctor, it just took off on its own.

I will contact you by e-mail, mine is also listed, and since I now have all the time in the world, whenever anybody wants to compare notes or just chat, I'm available

Looking forward to chatting,

Billy
Posted 4/4/2008 4:33 AM (GMT 0)
Billy and ML,
Thank you so much for a well chronicalled experience. You are doing a great job recovering as well. Stay well and STAY POSITIVE. You have a pretty unique journey (Lupron before surgery) that I think is a great approach to attacking prostate cancer. If I could do it all over again I would probably have taken the Lupron ahead of the surgery in hopes of reducing or eliminating the positive margins I had. But great job, now get well. (did I say stay well?). God Bless and take care!

Tony
Posted 4/4/2008 7:59 AM (GMT 0)
TC AND LUPRON:

The decision concerning Lupron before surgery was strictly the Doctor's.

Naturally I could have refused the shot, but ML was in no mood for my desire for "More information".

At the time, I was still seeking info on DaVinci, and seeing Franks results so far, still think that in the future, RRP
will become the procedure of last resort.

Naturally, when my Dr. told me the Lupron shot would send my PSA to 0, I questioned why not just take Lupron into the future. He told me it would put me on "Hold" for the time being, but sooner or later, mutate.

It would also instantly stop the cancer's "Food" supply which is testosterone.

That gave me rise to concern about becoming a eunuch, but that was fairly inevitable any way I looked at it.
At 64 I already have 5 children, I highly doubt I'd have had anymore anyway so that part was of small concern.

He wanted to "Catch" the cancer inside the Prostate, and apparently, according to the biopsy, he did.

Everyone's case is different, and the cost is something to consider ($2,100.00 a shot), but if a shot of this stuff holds that window open for you long enough to get rid of it, I would do it again.

As for Da vinci, if we had a reliable and responsive practice here in the Fort Myers, FL area, I probably would have followed through with it instead of an RRP, and I plan to follow Frank closely in his recovery. I'll never need it again, but I do have 3 boys.

Its 4 in the morning and once I make a pot of coffee, I'll look into your journal. Who knows, information is the key to this thing, and you and the other people on this site just might end up saving my kids life some day.

Take care, Billy
Posted 4/4/2008 2:48 PM (GMT 0)

Billy,

Thanks for sharing about taking Lupron before surgery.  I actually asked my doctor about me taking it before my surgery, but he would not do it unless I planned to delay the surgical procedure for several months.

Hang in there about incontinence.  My understanding is you are not even out of the catheter yet.  Some people are dry quickly, others like myself not so quickly.  An acquaintance of mine had open surgery in mid-March, wore a catheter 12 days, was dry the next day.  Results are simply all over the place.

DanMan Bob

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