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I was trying to wait to share these details until we have more definitive answers and a path, but the outpouring, care, and concern....thank you💗.
Don hasn’t felt well for a couple months. About a week ago I thought his head was looking yellow and he made a PCP appointment. By Monday night 1/27, he was very jaundice, all over his body too. At the Doctor on Tuesday, 1/28 the doctor said “well you’re in liver failure, probably hepatitis”. He ordered bloodwork, a sonogram, prescribed a diuretic for ascites and said “see you back in a month.” Sonogram was Thursday. Friday morning the doctors office called to say the sonogram showed a mass on the pancreas and a CT was ordered. The first available appointment was February 7th, so we asked to switch to a different facility that could get him in Monday. After sitting together and agonizing about having to wait and wait for another several days to just wait some more and knowing the jaundice, and now edema was getting worse, and Don more uncomfortable, we decided to head to the ER, knowing in the ER they get things done.
So glad we did! MRI and transport to Peoria (mainly because there weren’t GI docs on call in Bloomington this weekend) and we are in good hands waiting for the next step. New initial diagnosis isn’t any better, pancreatic cancer. We don’t know much yet but feel at ease for the moment that Don is at least getting care and monitoring. Today, 2/1 they will try to get him in for a scope to look around, place a shunt so the bile can get moving again, and biopsy the mass. If all goes according to plan on this we will go home tomorrow and wait for results and our options moving forward. Update: he is going for his scope now.
Exhausted and heartbroken, now we get through the business at hand, then we we will grieve.
Arrangement information is linked below. Please consider there will be Covid measures. In the next week Or so I will ad information on a memorial gathering. Don wanted a party not a wake....we’ll have a little of both. ❤️
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