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The view from the other side

dhs1963
dhs1963 CSN Member Posts: 513
in Kidney Cancer #1
I went in for a radical nephrectomy on the 19th. Before that, my thoughts were on the big things...Cancer, what if it returns, etc. In the mid to late afternoon on the 19th, I woke up. I did not know where I was or what had happened to me. I was quickly told by (I guess) a nurse that I had surgery and am in the Fairfax Hospital Recovery Room.

In the four days since, my time scale has been changing. For the first two or three days, I was living on ten minute horizon: the time till the next done of pain meds. How long until the Tylenol kick in (fever issues), etc.

my goals in the hospital were things like, walk 5 number of times, use the breathing aperattus 10 times per hour, etc.

Now, I am waiting for the pathology report.

This was my first major surgery. And I did not know what to expect. I do know I did not like it.
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Comments

  • icemantoo
    icemantoo CSN Member Posts: 3,362 Member
    #2
    The initiation
    DHS1963,

    Not fun. There is no way to sugar coat the sutgery. Things will get a little better each day. The odds are you are now cancer free. Was it worth it? Of course it was. Relax a little. You are enttled to. A few years from now you will even forget there was any pain. Not really.


    Icemantoo
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  • dhs1963
    dhs1963 CSN Member Posts: 513
    #3
    icemantoo said:

    The initiation
    DHS1963,

    Not fun. There is no way to sugar coat the sutgery. Things will get a little better each day. The odds are you are now cancer free. Was it worth it? Of course it was. Relax a little. You are enttled to. A few years from now you will even forget there was any pain. Not really.


    Icemantoo

    I can definitely feel a day to day improvement
    Some subjective, measurements, and some are objective.

    The objective measurements are from the Incentive breathing torture device (each day a little better; today I am up to 3000 ml). I am also using less pain medicine.

    Subjectively, I am feeling more alert.

    The Dr. thinks/is confident that he got it all.

    I plan to treat myself to a toy when this is done. I have always wanted a ragtop, and plan to trade in the minivan for a Mustang convertable.
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