365 days ago…

“We began the procedure by exposure of the retroperitoneum. This was accomplished by mobilizing the right colon from the level of the hepatic flexure to around the cecum with further incision along the root of the small bowel mesentery on its peritoneal layer to the ligament of Treitz. This allowed us to lift the small bowel from the ligament of Treitz all the way to the ileocecal junction en bloc. This was then placed on the patient’s chest between wet sponges and packed away and retracted using a Thompson retractor…”

First of all, somebody Google “ligament of Treitz” immediately.

Secondly… AAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!?!!?!!!

Sweet.

Jesus.

No wonder July 28th, 2010 was both the worst and the best day of my life. When Shaun was wheeled into surgery at 8:00am I almost passed out from fear. Then enormous relief when he was wheeled out over 5 hours later looking, feeling, and sounding remarkably fine. And most importantly, cancer-free after having metastatic testicular cancer for lord alone knows how long.

Also, it’s our anniversary (of sorts) today. Last year we celebrated in a hospital room over ice chips. This year? Harry Potter in 3D, Italian food, and alcohol. I consider this major progress.

In the meantime, I’ve sent Shaun’s latest CT scan to his Hamilton surgeon, Dr. Shayegan. Since he’s the only person who’s seen and probably even touched Shaun’s omentum (ahhhhhhhh!!), I figure he may be able to add some perspective.

In the words of my friend Grace, A LOT can happen in a year.

Stay tuned,

J & S