We got back to the hospital this morning around 6:00 and he was up and ready to go. As you can imagine, he was just thrilled to be going through with this plan. He absolutely wants to feel better, but the thought of a pretty intense eight week recovery on top of the hernia (which will eventually need to be surgically repaired and will also require recovery) and the lymphoma (which is also being treated via monthly infusions and oral chemo) isn’t ideal. They took him in for prep around 7:00 and had him opened up by 8:00. The surgery went well overall. They finished up around 10:30 and took him up for x-rays before they came to talk to us.
Dr. Meyer, his surgeon, who also put in his paracardial window in June, is awesome! He said that they were able to take off a 10 cm x 13 cm piece of his paricardial sac at the front of the heart to allow it to pump more freely than it was previously. This should alleviate the pressure around the heart that was causing the mass production of fluid. He is confident in how the surgery went and will allow cardiologists to monitor the progress of his recovery. He is very hopeful that this will eliminate the fluid buildup in his lungs and abdomen and we are too.
Another piece of good news is that the fluid they pulled off of his lungs and abdomen this week did not contain any cancerous cells. The chemo is working! Now, on to a quick recovery and a continued fight to get healthy! 💕
