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Have you ever seen your own brain? I have.

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2nd Surgery

We moved quickly to the second surgery.  It seemed like an almost duplicate of the first just two weeks earlier.  Except for this time, for some reason, I stayed awake all the way into the operating table.  I was able to glimpse some of the “tools” Dr. Marple will be using to conduct this surgery.  They looked like spoons, hooks, forks all with really long handles.

OK, put me out. Now.

By all measures, the surgery went well.  What I was unaware of was exactly how “deep” they were going.  They essentially removed an entire piece of my skull at the top of my sinus.   Now that made for an interesting headache.

On a follow-up visit, a second doctor scoped the area and actually showed Mary and I my brain pulsating at the top of this hole.   Cool. Now how many people you know can say that they have seen their own brain?   

My comment to my wife, “See, I really have one”.  Her response, “Well now there’s no excuse”.   Nice.

This surgery was a harder recovery, but it’s been consistent and I am feeling better every day.

Julie

My surgeries were performed at one of the smaller hospitals in the UTSW system. That said there are alot of nurses and people working.  In fact, it’s overwhelming. After the first surgery, our nurse was “Julie”, who was super nice. She helped make sure I was ready for the trip home and checked off all the tasks before I could be released.  She called the next day and that was that.

Oddly, on the second surgery, we had Julie again.  Out of dozens of nurses, what are the chances? Anyway, we got to talking and she is clearly a “Christian” and we opened a conversation with my daughter about the miracle of life and the human body.   She used the opportunity to describe it all as God’s work and we went on to pray together.    

It was really special.   I found her on facebook and I hope that we remain connected.

I did say to her, “don’t get yourself fired”, she just laughed and said, “I’m old and not afraid of that”.  She was definitely an angel that day.

Sally

Sally is Dr. Marple’s assistant.  To say she is a formidable woman is an understatement.  She manages his schedule, answers questions, prepares patients, etc.  She is incredibly competent and kind.   

Honestly, when I first met her she was a little intimidating, but as this has evolved I appreciate her more and more every interaction.   Her attention and care has made a huge difference.  Another angel in the mix.  

Surgery and the Call

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1st Surgery

We arrive at Zale Lipshy hospital (part of UTSW) and we are greeted by valet parking and smooth check-in.   I’m starting to get a little “fiscal anxiety” because no one can seem to tell me what anything costs or what my responsibility will be.   Deep breath. It will be OK.

The staff proves to be incredible.   I moved from a pre-op, into the surgery itself smoothly, greeted by Dr. Marple in the operating room.   Honestly, I am glad they put me out because I did catch a glance at the “tools” available to him, which appears to consist of a collection of hooks and spoons all designed to go up my nose.   Night night, I’m done.

I wake up to almost no pain and the Dr. explaining they successfully removed the “entity”.

I have a really nice discharge nurse, Julie, who walked through the process including pain management, etc.   

So far so good.  I can breathe. Literally.  The doc schedules a follow up visit in one week.  All good.

The Call

8AM on day 6 after the surgery I get a call from Sally.   She asks what I am doing today and how long it will take me to get there.

Umm, about 40 minutes.   She says just come on down now.

Ummm, OK.  This isn’t good.  We head that way, a little pit in our stomach.

The New Diagnosis

Dr Marple enters the room.  He says there’s been a “change”.   Apparently the non-cancerous thing is actually a rare form of nasal sarcoma like I know what that is.    It’s now about 9:30 AM and he informs us that my case was reviewed by the ‘tumor board’ at UTSW this morning meaning they had to meet at like 7AM, which is a multi-disciplinary panel of experts. Neurologists, Otolaryngologists, Oncologists, etc.    This entire group of really smart doctors reviewed my case as a team and came up with a consensus on my treatment plan.

Whoa. I almost lose it in gratitude. Again.   

The professionalism and skill of these doctors is beyond me.  The care and connection to detail is such a contrast to my experience in the past.  Wow.

I also have a new Dr.  A radiation oncologist.   The treatment plan consists of removing a fragment of my skull where the tumor was attached and covering it with a “vasculated flap” which will eventually turn into scar tissue.

Again, while I am not worried – I am grateful.  I have no idea why.

Initial Consultation

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I met initially with Dr. Bradley Marple, a seasoned surgeon who knows his stuff.   We reviewed the scans and he informs me we will become very good friends over a period of years.   That this condition has a high recurrence rate and we will be staying in a monitoring pattern for years to come.   I mean, the guy was cool and I liked him, but this wasn’t exactly a social visit.  

What matters is Dr. Marple knows his stuff.  He concurs that this is a “non cancerous” tumor.  Relief. We schedule the surgery for about 4 weeks.   

In a pathetic appeal, I ask his assistant his assistant Sally if there’s any way to do it earlier. She literally laughed…these guys are in demand.  I get it. But she got the message. I wasn’t sleeping at this point and the tumor was preventing sleep and was really uncomfortable. She upped the date by two weeks.  Sally is my new best friend.

UT Southwestern

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Having lived my whole life in Dallas-Fort Worth, I have been “aware” of UT Southwestern, but not really knowledgeable about it.  I knew it was big, one and the largest hospitals in town and the best doctors seem to come from the school there.

When my “Local” ENT told me he was referring me to UTSW, I was surprised.  He went further, he pointed me to the otolaryngology department there, which has over 30 doctors that specialize in these types of things.   He referred me to the department head. A veteran surgeon and has performed “thousands” of these surgeries over 27 years.  

OK, that’s my guy.    He went on to explain that at UTSW, since the tumor was so close to my eye and brain, UTSW can have specialists in the operating room in minutes.     Excellent.

All I can say is wow.  This place is incredible.  From the second I arrived, the care has been off the chart.    The place is enormous, with many buildings to navigate and departments, but they are all working together very well for me.   Right down to the way the staff greet you when you arrive.

I can’t help but feel grateful to have access to such tremendous care.   First off, you require a referral even to get an appointment. Second, I have the financial resources and cost risk in place to deal with it.   It’s also a huge reason to stay in a city like Dallas. I keep thinking, I could be stuck in some small town in Wyoming, hundreds of miles away from average care.  Here, I am 20 minutes from world-class.