Monday, Monday

There should be some recent pics with this but they didn't work

Update:

We are about to take Leenie to the hospital for some fine tun ing before chemo. She just hasn't been able to get strong enough for treatment.

She will be admitted to Norfolk General Hospital tonight for IV fluids and good nutrition, nausea & pain control.

Dr. Cross could not find the precisde primary so he will proceed with lung and treat with chemo aimed at eradicating that type. It is strong stuff so it is necessary to be strong to take it.

Pray and be with her. I'll try the pictures again and keep posting. . .

Lorane

Thanks to Everyone for the Kind Thoughts!!!

Hi Everyone,

I just wanted to write a quick note on behalf of the Huber Brothers to thank you all for your kind thoughts and prayers. We haven't yet heard from Dr. Cross, et al., but I'm sure it's because they are double checking all the tests to ensure the most effective conclusions are reached. Please keep praying and posting, and we'll keep you updated as soon as we hear any news.

~BDH

Link to Xmas Slideshow

http://s369.photobucket.com/albums/oo137/bdhuber28/Linbay%20Christmas/?albumview=slideshow

The eve, the day the day after. . .

Hi,

Christmas eve continued to boil & bubble with last minute shopping, wrapping, mailing, repairing "Frosty" - our black, top-hatted snowman built into, around, atop and under our red mailbox. Tim is a wonderful elf - he helped w/ everything, especially food prep. There was lively chatter throughout the day & all of a sudden, it seemed , it was time for the 40 min trek to the Newport News Airport to get the "boys".

Leenie wisely opted for a nap. We finally returned at almost midnight. The young, frightened, confused, angry, excited Huber men either kept their own counsel or practiced "being strong" on the long ride home. Once there, discomfiture ruled for a bit. "I'll show you where you're sleeping>"; "Great. We'll put our stuff in our rms."; Finally, "Where's Mom"; "iI'll get her up."; "Are they HERE??"; "They're waiting to see Mom". And, one by one, each went alone for a private greeting which Leenie tailored such that each of her lads could feel comfortable being sad, scared, happy, excited & SO glad to be with Mom.

Amazingly, appetites surfaced, bloomed and culminated in our favorite, messy, relaxed, easy, take forever to eat & chat over meal: tomato/garlic/spices bruscetta on fresly baked flat bread exquisitely carved by Brennan and bowls of jumbo shrimp in a white wine/olive oil/bay leaf & spices sauce. We ate in the living room, around the tree, dripping, dipping and finally mopping every drop of extra sauce with an olio of torn ,fresh-baked focacias & crusty Italian breads. It was lovely, chatty, at times seriously tutorial w/ Uncle Phil fielding questions but mostly warm, filling and fulfilling in expectation of the Christ Child's coming.

Christmas day began after 4-5 hrs of sleep, in the form of Jennie, Ross & Emma - all rosy cheeked, laughing, re-uniting and getting to know short cousins. Very soon after, Philip, Robyn, Declan, Molly & Patrick arrived - all bearing brightly lit faces and colorful packages. The joy was loud, palpable and on-going, with everyone filling up @ the groaning board and merrily opening presents while PG3 trid to capture the magic on camera.

Very short people and Leenie then napped while the games - football, baseball, car-racing (Declan & Molly in the red Mustang which their big cousins had chaqrged all night) the inevitable testing of the "things Santa brings" while the evening repast was being prepared.

And the big surprise - just as dinner was about to be claimed & taken to a favorite chair, there was a loud knock,equally loud barking by Bridie & Murphy as they greeted Jetty and we all squealed as Matt, Julie & 3 mo. + Mia made a very big SURPRISE arrival! It was glorious disarray again - with Leenie enormously energized, eating heartily while visiting & holding the peeps & greeting/enjoying catching up with the FAMILY.

Once again, we didn't see dessert & major packing/farewelling-till-the-morrow until after midnight.

The Christ Child - not surprizingly - had given all of us 2 glorious, joyful days which personified His coming - Joy to 828 Linbay Drive, all who dwell within this holy, happy night and all who are there in spirit & love because this Family is blessed!

Give thanks & praise - and if you're not out looking for bargains tomorrow, tune in to Leenie's 12/26/08!

Lorane

e

Happy, bustling Christmas Eve. . .

The day has dawned but I think the events of yesterday have yet to - fully and in a way that we can understand. Uncle Phil has been "saving lives" in Suffolk since 7; I've been trying to plan today & tomorrow re: feeding the entire fam (hot dogs roasting on an open fire is sounding good); and Tim & Leenie are still abed after an exhausting yesterday.

Bless each and every one of us and our families with the light of the Christ Child as it surrounds Eileen and all of her health care providers;

Enjoy and give thanks for our many blessings and the excitement of living each day of the future;

Follow the lead of the little children in our midst - the glow of anticipation in those smiling eyes, that inability to contain the breathless thoughts of the bounty to befall the world tomorrow;

Will write again later - after the last minute (hours) tasks have been stumbled through. . .

Lorane

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Post- Op Note

Well, Leenie was finally released from the OR and is awake and progressing in stages to where all tubes and oxygen devices can be removed.
She complains of pain at the mediport insertion site - which is perfectly normal. She has received pain meds and has a prescription for oral medication at home. Her Heart Rate, Blood Pressure and oxygen saturation are good. She has no recollection of the OR so she must have responded very well to the general anesthesia.
Dr. McGraph came in to speak with Tim, Leenie and me. He was very kind but straightforward. The frozen section revealed what is called "Non small cell" carcinoma of the lung. He was able to retrieve large chunks of several of the affected lymph nodes and the cells from each were included in the frozen section. Now it will be placed in Dr. Cross' capable hands. First, the biopsies will go to the lab for a variety of staining procedures geared toward narrowing the diagnosis from non small cell to a specific type of non small cell carcinoma. Once that determination is made - probably by Friday b/c there is a temporal element to each testing procedure - Dr. Cross reviews the data.
When Dr. Cross is satisfied that he knows precisely what type of lung cancer Leenie has, he will select the chemotherapeutic agent that is specific to only that cell type and implement a regimen of treatment which includes, dosage, frequency, duration of treatment; additional follow-up testing to determine the efficacy of therapy; adjunctive medication predicated on the findings of the follow-up testing and, perhaps most importantly, in what way(s) has her clinical picture changed, ie, is she becoming weaker, showing signs of improvement and if so, in what areas; the status of her nutrition based on blood work and THE CLINICAL PICTURE. You can have great, textbook lab results but clinically demonstrate an obvious need for something to increase strength, comfort, mental clarity and the presence/absence of a developing secondary infection, ie, urinary tract, sinusitis, etc from a compromised immune system.
It will be a minute by minute, hour by hour (you get the picture) progression with signs and symptoms that require investigation/treatment or, just a slow, uneventful course of very gradual improvement. Needless to say she will be closely monitored. But she must also be evaluated mentally & spiritually by those who know and love her best such that we can provide appropriate support and advise the medical team of changes that, were they to know her as we do, they would address.
For now, the next few hours are going to be rough re: physical comfort/healing from an invasive surgical insult AND digesting the words spoken by Dr. McGrath. There was no element of surprise but the reality of hearing out loud from the man who has just experienced with all of his professional senses/experience the reality of Leenie's illness and announced it with great dignity, respect and care that one could possibly have hoped for, is sobering, frightening, yes, but, with time, will echo in her mind and give her the strength and fight that we all know she has to address this announcement head-on - and with the help of God and her God-given abilities, STRIKE BACK, NOT OUT.
Knowledge, the biggest hurdle, is behind us. We know the enemy - a disease to be cured, not a state of fear, confusion and impotence.
Let's move on with confidence and love - and, yes, a few toasts to the future.
Till tomorrow,
Lorane & Tim
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We're Off. . .

OK guys,
Mom just went up to the OR. The OR next to the valve case became available and they will be getting her ready for Dr. McGrath in there. So the timetable has changed:
When valve case over, Mom's mediastinoscopy will begin.
It will probably take from 12-2 hours.
Dr. McGrath said that if, in phase I, checking all reachable branches of her airways, he finds a node, he will take it for study.
Then he puts the scope with the "pac man" biter into the mediastinal space and retrieves 1 lg, entire node & several chunks from surrounding nodes.
Finally, he places the mediport under the skin around the R clavicle. It will be filled with heparin (blood thinner) as the body reacts to anything foreign/plastic by clotting.
Once that's stitched into place, she will go to recovery where he anticipates 1-3 hrs. to have her wake up, remove breathing tube and reach a point of alertness/stability such that he can tell her what he found & discharge her. Tim will be here with me to take her home.
She's still scared but wants to get it over. By now, they've given her some "feel good" meds IV in preparation for anesthesia so she's a happy camper.
It's OUR turn to work - PRAY!
Lorane
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