Tuesday, October 15, 2013
Last Wednesday found the Buckley crew driving back to Denver for a 3-month checkup. We ended up staying in a hotel across the street from the hospital because for the first time Brent's Place was full. It was a nice change really and the kids loved the time they got to spend in the pool.
We got a reality check when Dillon's PET scan came back showing increased inflammation of several lymph nodes in his neck, but the one that we have been watching since February was twice the size it was three months ago....still small, but bigger....YIKES. All of the other tests and blood work showed normal results. The Denver Oncology team consulted with radiology and the team in Albuquerque at UNM. After much discussion, we decided to biopsy this lymph node to be sure there isn't any disease trying to grow back in Dillon's body. We chose to come back to New Mexico and have the biopsy done at UNM, as opposed to staying in Denver, having the expense of the hotel and food, and an unknown length of stay based on his recovery after surgery and the followup needed for the incision check. With coming back to Albuquerque, Sean can go to work, Luca can play with friends, and Dillon and I will be close to home for a quick drive home after the admission. The UNM team asked that we arrive Monday afternoon so Dillon could be admitted to UNM for a day or two and get the surgery done as soon as possible. YIKES again...we haven't be in the hospital at UNM for over a year.
Things got a little complicated because Friday afternoon after all the scans and testing were complete in Denver we headed to Pagosa Springs in southern Colorado to visit Sean's parents for a couple of days. Instead of cutting our visit short we left from Pagosa (after a fun and relaxing weekend) at 6:30 a.m. Monday and drove home, which is three hours. Once we got home I sent Dillon and Luca outside to play, and within an hour I had unpacked and repacked our suitcases. Dillon and I bade Sean and Luca farewell at 11 a.m. and off we went to Albuquerque.
We ended up waiting in clinic for almost 4 hours before they got Dillon a room; and then we discover it is a tiny little room with no bed for the parent.....thus the VORTEX begins.....
At 3 p.m. Monday we were told surgery would be up to see us in "a while." We were too late to order dinner so we had to scrounge for food. At 9:30 p.m. the nurse informed us that the surgeon on that evening told her they had no intention of seeing Dillon that night and that the morning surgery crew would "take care of it." REALLY, we had to rush home from Colorado for this???? In the meantime, Dillon was told he had to stop eating and drinking at 10 p.m. just in case surgery wanted to take him to the OR first thing in the morning. You can guess how well I slept on the reclining rocking chair in the corner. The sliver lining....the nursing staff. It was amazing to reconnect with the staff that were with us in the beginning of this journey. They saw us at our lowest and they held us tenderly in ways that are difficult to express in words. Every single nurse came into our room, said hello, and checked in with me about Dillon's cancer status. When they learned it was a precautionary biopsy and that Dillon has been in remission for over a year, they all rejoiced with us and reminded us to stay positive and know that there was no way the cancer was back.
In the morning we waited, and waited, and waited, and waited. At 10 a.m. the surgeon came, did an exam and said he was ready for Dillon. Down we went to the pre-op area. Dillon was very nervous at this point. We spoke with the barrage of people that come in and ask the same questions over and over (the nurse, the surgeon, the anesthesiologist, the med students). Then suddenly there is a commotion in the hallway and they tell us Dillon has been "bumped." SIGH.....turns out a toddler came in from a car crash and needed immediate surgery. Dillon, being the least critical patient in the Pre-op area, got the bump. My sweet boy with a huge heart put his anxiety and discomfort of extreme hunger and fear aside and told the team he hoped the little boy would be okay and that he was fine with waiting. We sent lots of loving energy to the family of this little one. At 2:20 p.m. they finally took Big D back to the OR. So here I sit updating the blog while I wait for 2 hours. They decided to do a bone marrow biopsy in addition to removing the inflamed lymph node just to be thorough and leave no stones unturned.
Please know that even though there is an underlying fear that this lymph node is a relapse....we all very strongly believe that it is just inflamed from being exposed to a virus or some other infectious agent. This biopsy is precautionary, to put to rest the doctors' and our concerns about recurrence or relapse.
The recovery was difficult. Dillon gets extremely nauseous from anesthesia. It takes hours to wear off. The pain he felt in his back from the needles boring into his bone was quite significant. The nurse in recovery assured me that it is a minor discomfort for most kids. Well....she has not met my kid....he is hypersensitive to bone pain. I very discreetly found the doctor and demanded a stronger pain med be give via the IV.
It looks like D and I will be in the hospital for two days and after a short recovery we will back to our normal routines...this is just another bump in the proverbial road.
The nurses all bade us farewell and told us that they never wanted to see us again : )))
I will update with the results once we have a clear picture, which will probably take several days to a week.
Love to all!!!
