smithtrim

Good evening! I just returned from 14 hours at San Ramon Regional
Medical Center. When Dr. Taylor came to get me in the waiting room at
12:30 this afternoon, the big smile on his face was a very welcome
sight. The LRP went exactly as expected; the prostate, along with
Don's right nodes and right nerve were removed and the left nodes and
nerve were left intact. Dr. Taylor said that everything looked nice
and clean, but of course we won't be 100% certain until we get the
path report and the regular PSA tests. Don is as hungry as a bear,
but he's limited to ice chips until tomorrow morning when they start
him on a soft, clear diet. He said he'd much rather have a T-bone
steak. At lunch he'll be given pudding and ice cream and if he
tolerates them well he gets to go home tomorrow afternoon.

When I left him this evening he was watching Monday Night Football and
upset with the Raiders for their poor performance. When asked about
his pain level he said it was a "one" but he was using the morphine
button every hour and a half just to make certain that he keeps on top
of the possible pain (doctor's and nurses' recommendation). One of
the first things he told me when he was wheeled to his room from the
recovery room was that he had to "pee really bad"! He has two drains
on his right side, he's been shaved from the middle of his chest to a
bit past his groin (all of that lovely red hair!), and of course his
friend for the next week, Mr. Foley, and those lovely white pressure
hose.

This journey would have been much more difficult and frightening
without the support of all of you. I pray for the day that we no
longer have to admit members to this group.

Linda Smith

palmer_ent

hi linda - sounds like you've had a very busy day. glad everything
turned out the way it was expected and no hidden surprises.

i had the same "had to pee really bad" feeling right after surgery. the
surgeon told me that it was a bladder spasm because the bladder doesn't
like company.

the JP drains will be removed very soon. happy trails to
y-o-o-o-o-uu-u-u.

well, as you can tell i can't sing very well, so i'll just wish don a
speedy recovery instead.



~ curtis

knowledge is power - growing old is mandatory - growing wise is optional

steve kramer

It groes back.

Glad everything went well. I give good prayer.

--
Steve Kramer
PSA 16 10/17/2000 @ 46
Biopsy 11/01/2000 G7 (3+4), T2c
RRP 12/15/2000
PSA .1 .1 .1 .3 .4 .8
EBRT 05-07/2002 @ 47
PSA .3 .2 .2 .2 .3
Erection 05/12/2003 @ 48
Begin Lupron 07/21/2003 @ 48
PSA .1

mh

So glad to hear that things went well, Linda!
Thanks for keeping us posted!
Red hair, eh? So is mine..... lol ..... but.... when it grew back in it
didn't change color. So you'll have that to look forward to! )

Take care ... and remember we are always nearby!

MikeH

jimhoney

A great report. What a relief for you.

Wishing I had gone the LRP route instead of standard RRP.

jimhoney

rebecca ford

So glad it went well. Let Don know that Chris thought that, besdies the
cath, the irritation of the hair growing back in, especially around the
waistband, was one of the most annoying things about the whole procedure.

--
Rebecca Ford

jerry matson

Jim,
You mentioned LRP and RRP. What are they and why do you wish you'd gone the
LRP route rather than the standard RRP?
I'm leaning towards radiation therapy. I'm self employed and can't afford
the time off from work. It just sounds less invasive also. Meeting with
radiation doctor next Thursday, the thirtieth.

jimhoney

Standard radical retropubic prostatectomy (RRP) is the one with the incision
from navel to public bone. Three nights in the hospital, 30 days before
return to vigorous exercise. Maybe two weeks off work.

Laparascopic radical prostatectomy (LRP) is the one with instruments poked
through the abdomen. Back to normal movement in about three days. I
suppose you could go back to work then too. Maybe the LRP guys will chime
in here.

I followed the advice of Dr. Walsh's book, which suggested that the surgeon
has the best view and feel of the site with standard RRP. But someone
posted a link to a film of LRP here, and the surgeon obviously had a
magnified and very clear view of the site.

I would have had an easier time of it with LRP, that's for sure. But one
should try not to second guess his decision.

And I did get a perfect result, cured with no significant aftereffects.

jimhoney

david s.

I am glad that everything went well Linda.
Best wishes for a speedy recovery for Don, and some well deserved rest
for you.
Thank you.
David S.

john loomis

Great! Now time to relax....make Don walk.....drink lots of fluids.
Sleeping in a recliner with a catheter is best.
Help him with a routine. Shower, change bag from night to walking bag. Do
things. rest, later you can help him out with Mr. Willy.
He would love to stand up and give you applause. John Loomis. wishing for
the best in all of us.