Georgetown Hospital visit...

My visit yesterday at Georgetown Hospital was bit overwhelming. I am grateful that David came along with me and was there absorbing lots of medical terms and information. So many of you have called and e-mailed me and I am humbled to have so many friends and family members who care so much and have been praying so faithfully for me! THANK YOU for your encouragement!

The neurosurgeon confirmed a nerve tumor of the brachial plexus (which, I found out, is not really my armpit- rather, it's closer to the area between the shoulder and the armpit, near the clavicle...collar bone). The tumor is surrounded by a "highway" of nerves that runs from the neck down into the arm. Dr Ducic showed us lots of pictures which really helped me to understand where the tumor is. He also was able to locate the tumor with his hand- it was a very strange feeling to have him grab the tumor!

The doctor recommended surgery within the month to remove the tumor. The procedure will be a bit more involved than I imagined it would be. There are two types of nerve tumors in the brachial plexus: a SCHWANNOMA would be the better option. It is where the tumor is surrounded by all of the connecting nerves. It is like a meatball, laying in a bowl with a heap of linguini on top of it. Imagine the linguini as the nerve fibers connecting everything together- the meatball is the tumor. The surgeon's job is to remove the "meatball" by moving aside the "linguini" (sorry for the Italian visual- but I love Italian food)! This procedure would be the best possible scenario. However, until the surgeon cuts me open, he won't know what he's dealing with. The second type of tumor is a NEUROFIBROMA. This is a bit more complex. It was explained as if someone put a glob of super glue in my hair, and the surgeon was trying to get the super glue out. This would be impossible without cutting some of the hair. The hair represents the nerves. This type of nerve tumor has grown in such a way that it has wrapped around the nerves. It is a much more complicated procedure, and there is greater risk for long-term deficit in the function of my arm.  Both of these tumors also have other complications because of their location. The neurosurgeon will  have an orthopedic surgeon in the operating room. If the tumor has grown large enough to be blocked by the clavicle, the orthopedic surgeon will need to cut my clavicle, remove a piece of it, then proceed to remove the tumor, and finally place the clavicle back where it was. Of course, this means I would wake up with a broken collar bone, but they do heal on their own. It would be more painful, of course. The other surgeon that will be present is a thoracic surgeon, who will be present in case the tumor has attached in any way to my lung. I had no idea my lungs were so high up! If the tumor is pressing on the lung or attached to the lung, the thoracic surgeon would have to shut down my lung function during the procedure and then re-start. Honestly, by this point in the conversation, I was almost ready to pass out. I'm such a visual person, and I had this cartoon image of my collar bone and lung sitting beside me in the operating room, all while the surgeons were looking for a meatball in the middle of linguini!!

The tumor will be sent to pathology after it is removed. I will not have a biopsy before the tumor is removed because the biopsy could poke into any one of the nerves and cause further damage. The statistics for these types of tumors are typically benign, so that is comforting. I also had a huge blood draw last November before going to Hopkins, and all of my labs came back normal. So I'm fairly confident that the tumor is benign. I will, however, be grateful when the pathology report agrees with me!

Dr Ducic recommended removal immediately. There is a 2-week pre-op, and I leave for Haiti this Friday. So, I am planning to schedule the surgery for late-April. I am also obtaining a second opinion from a neurosurgeon at Johns Hopkins the week I return from Haiti. The surgery is complicated enough that I would prefer to have another expert take a look.

I am so grateful to know that in 3 days I will be headed for Haiti! This is perfect timing, as I will have 42 beautiful kids to love and keep me focused on what really matters! (www.helpinghaitianangels.org) I will continue to post updates here to keep you in the loop whenever I receive more information. Thank you again for your faithful prayers! I am so blessed and grateful for the people God has placed in my life to walk this journey with me!