A Cutthroat Business

I am home!

As Jeanette posted previously, my neck dissection was a success. Although the scar immediately after surgery was a horrific sight to behold (see above), amaziningly I experienced no pain. Instead, there is a tightness in my neck, rather like the feeling of wearing a t-shrit that's tucked in too far. The stiffness and the intensity of the scar will fade in a few weeks (so much for my surefire Halloween costume), and the only other side effects are a loss of feeling in my right ear and neck, which may or may not return. Not a big deal. My major concern was the risk to my mouth, arm, and head movement; fortunately, Dr. Irish and Dr. Bachar were able to preserve 95% of my muscle tissue and those areas haven't been affected at all. All good news!

The three-day stay at Toronto General Hospital was to allow the excess fluid resulting from the removed tissue to drain out of my body. Two tubes sutured to my chest led to a device the size of a briefcase that had a plastic window to measure the accumulation of the thick red fluid. It was kind of like the tote board at a fundraiser but without the phone pledges. Lucky for me, I had plenty of visitors who brought me reading material over those three days. I don't reccomend watching chest fluid accumulate as a fun way to pass the time.

My thanks to all for your support and words of encouragment, to my Mom and Jeanette for waiting through hours of surgery to be by my side for my groggy awakening, to my friends and family who were able to visit, and to Dr. Irish, Dr. Bachar, Cheryl, Mahadai, Ginette, and the rest of the staff at Toronto General who took care of me.

I'll remain home all this taking it easy. Radiation treatment will begin in about four weeks' time.

It's good to be home!