(3:30) Well the surgery is almost over but the news is not very good.
Bert is being closed up right now by the cardiologist.
The tumor was the largest they have ever seen. They estimate that the tumor was 10 or more pounds. It invaded several areas of tissue including part of his pathway for breathing on his right side. They estimate that this tumor has been growing over a period of years.
The thing that is the most worrisome is that the tumor invaded his heart wall. They were not able to remove it completely without compromising his heart. If it wasn't cancer, they would have opted for a heart transplant, but since it is cancer, he would not be eligible to receive a transplant. Instead they left a sliver of the tumor that is attached to his heart.
The follow-up will include radiation and chemo to treat what they left behind.
The parathyroid removal was quick and without incident.
Once the surgery is complete, he will be taken straight to the icu, kept on the ventilator, and will be sedated through the night.
He should be able to rest through the night and put into a room at some point tomorrow.
His lung was not impacted at all.
I am headed home and will return to the hospital after I drop Kasey off at the train station in the morning.
If anything changes, the dr and/or nurse will call me.
I will post if I hear anything else.
