Update: coming home Thursday!

Just met with the surgery team, and Thursday is the "new Wednesday" - as in, we are coming home on Thursday. We hope to be released "at Hyatt check-out time" (the surgeon really said this) - about midday. Dad is a full day ahead of schedule! But seems like a good idea to make sure he is 100% stable before the long trek to Albany.

D-day set for tomorrow

Jay is unrecognizable today: he has had all his tubes that pumped and dripped fluids and medication in and out of his body removed. He is functioning au natural.

He even munched contentedly on a hamburger today for lunch, as he had his first solid-food meal since last Wednesday. The plan is for him to be discharged tomorrow - a day ahead of schedule! And return home to Delmar. Then it is a few more weeks of rehab before he turns his attention to radiation, chemo and other steps needed to continue his recovery.

He is looking most forward to a good night's sleep in his own bed.

My father the hippie?

I have to admit that today, I noticed a similarity between my father and hippies of a certain age who have let the few strands of hair they have left grow long and then braid them. In my fathers’ case however, it’s actually a nest of IV lines that carry nourishment and medication to his body through blood vessels in his neck. The good news is that they took out one line out today – the line that was taking the digestive juices and other goodies out of his stomach via a tube inserted into his stomach from his nose. It will not be missed. Taking this line out is the precursor to Dad actually beginning to be able to eat. We hear that the next step is clear liquids.

Dad took two walks today. These were his first trips out of his room since the operation. The first time, he did an imitation of a B-movie starlet by swooning. But he was able to walk the next time without trouble. We’re hoping tomorrow brings more disentanglements from the medical devices that have so far sustained him.

Dad was able to beat Janice in chess and Allyson and I in one round of Boggle. We’re looking forward to attacking the Sunday Times crossword tomorrow.

The day after...

The doctor in Albany told Dad, Mom and Janice that the day after surgery is often harder than the day of surgery. Turns out, he was right. Dad had a hard time sleeping last night but spent the day sitting looking at the beautiful view from his 9th floor picture window, dozing off a few times and using the incentive spirometer - a device which measures how hard Jay can exhale (he is being very competitive about it, and asked how his exhales compared to his hallmates').

He was able to stand up a couple of times, take a few steps and let me beat him at chess. Mom has been exerting all of her healing powers from energy medicine to guided meditation to foot reflexology. It got a bit cold in the room, so he has appreciated the wonderful bright yellow and orange blanket, which has helped 5 friends before him recover from surgery. We hope that tomorrow he is strong enough to walk.

Golden seeds...of hope?!

Jay got out of surgery safely today at 3:17pm. The doctor said his body was strong, and that he was the only one whose blood pressure didn't change at all during the entire procedure. He seems to have internalized his years of thick-skinned, steel-nerved reporter-dom.

While doctors were not able to remove the tumor, as it was wrapped around a major artery, they placed "golden seeds" on the entire surface of the tumor, and performed a bypass of the affected region. There was no cancer found outside the tumor, which is good news. The golden seeds will enable Jay to receive targeted, intense radiation on the tumor. This type of radiation is only available at 3 cancer centers in the country, and provides in 3 days what traditional radiation treatment takes 6 weeks to provide. The bypass will alleviate the symptoms that pancreatic cancer usually causes, and make him much more comfortable (and, importantly, able to golf and have a beer afterwards with little problem).

The hope is that this radiation and chemo will slow the tumor's growth, and in the best case scenario, shrink the tumor so that it may someday be removed. We heard stories of people living with the bypass for several years, and of one man whose tumor shrunk and was successfully removed.

Jay will now be at Beth Israel to recover for a week or so, and then will come home for additional recovery so he can store up the energy to fight the tumor during chemo & radiation.

Thank you all for you positive thoughts today. We think they made a difference!

Surgery Update - Cautious Optimism

Dad is currently in surgery (where he has been since 7:30am), which is good news! The doctor informed us that he was able to determine that the cancer has *not* spread to the liver, and therefore he has "opened him up."

The possible outcomes now are: 1) Best Case: removal of tumor with Whipple procedure (which will be followed by chemo.radiation). 2) Do a bypass of the tumor, which would enhance Jay's quality of life, but leave the tumor intact. The surgeon would do the bypass instead of the Whipple if the cancer has spread to the surrounding arteries or further.

When Jay received his anesthesia, he was upbeat, and after assuring me and my mother of his eternal love, he asked me 1) why I didn't always do what I was told, given that he always made reasonable fatherly requests, and 2) noting that it was his day to write his column, he asked me to write his newspaper column for him. I told him - no problem. He then asked the nurse how much the surgery cost. She told him she would have to get back to him.

We are not out of the woods yet, of course: please keep those well-wishes coming!!

Miracles Part 1:

The heavens parted to give us all a 4 and 1/2 hour round of golf today, and bestowed further miracles when Jay scored a birdie on a 475-yard par 5 hole - reaching the green in 2 shots, and driving for a record 330 yards! He has 3 witnesses: college roommate (and junior high classmate) Jeff Clunie, and his two caddies, aka, wife Emily and daughter Janice, who saw the drive - admittedly aided by an elevated tee and a moderate trailing wind.

But it was a miracle! And we are hoping, praying, and pleading for one tomorrow too.

Please send your prayers, wishes, thoughts to Jay between 7:30am and 3pm tomorrow. He will be in surgery for at least part of this time, and we expect to know much more about the prognosis after surgery.

Thank you all again for your email messages and calls of support. They keep Jay smiling through this difficult time.

No Braces!

Just more tests today. We got some evidence why healthcare costs are spiraling out of control. Jay got an EKG and numerous blood tests at Beth Israel - the same tests that he underwent at St. Peter's in Albany on Friday. (The results of which were sent to Beth Israel). But, as David Brooks said in today's NY Times, the financial incentives all encourage more tests and procedures.

The results, though, were good: the anesthesiologist commented that with good scores for indicators like blood pressure, heart rate, pulse, breathing, etc., Jay seemed like he was "a really healthy guy."

Except for the pancreatic cancer, Jay commented.

Yeah, except for that, the anesthesiologist said.

He also asked Jay to stick out his lower jaw to indicate that his airway would be clear during surgery. Everyone noticed how crooked Jay's lower teeth are. But after a brief consultation, it was decided that Jay would forego braces.

Jay hopes to squeeze in a round of golf with his friend Jeff Clunie tomorrow, with Janice and Emily making their debuts as caddies. Weather forecast is for, surprise, drizzle and showers for the 100th straight day, but they will probably soldier on anyway.

Jay is due at the hospital at 6am Thursday for surgery.

News from Boston

The good news is: a renowned pancreatic specialist and surgeon, Mark Callery, is going to be operating on Jay on Thursday at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center. We have cancelled Dad's surgery which was scheduled for Tuesday in Albany. Callery and his partner do more than 185 of these surgeries per year, which makes Jay feel like he is in good hands. If Callery finds that the cancerous tumor is not removable , he plans to put "golden seeds," a la Rudy Giuliani's prostate, on the tumor so that dad can get a super does of radiation to help combat it.

We must admit this wasn't the best of days. Jay, Emily and Janice stopped off to see a movie, Angels and Demons, after the doctor's appointment to lighten the mood. They were forced to flee, however, halfway through when the fire alarm went off. They continued to stroll to Fenway Park, where despite Jay's condition, he refused to pay $25 for his 32nd Red Sox cap.

One of Jay's tasks for tomorrow is to remove the magic marker from his legs which almost made the chief nurse at Beth Israel snicker at the provincialism of a place as remote as Albany.

Please keep the emails coming - it is a great way for Jay to stay connected to you all!

Today's Adventures

Good evening all,

I am back in NY after working all week and Janice has gone home for the first time in almost a week. Mom and Dad spent the day balancing Dad's physical and spiritual well-being. The day started with getting some more tests, which included clearly marking where Dad's veins are on his leg in case they need to use part of one of them during the surgery. After that, they took a 9-mile(!) bike ride that eventually brought them back by Five Rivers. Dad continued his day with a massage and a delicious dinner.

He's spent the evening reading emails from many of you and is moved by all your messages. (He has a new email address: jaygallagheralbany(at)gmail(dot)com.*) Many times this evening he has been surprised at your thoughtful words and has been touched to see how this situation is bringing out the best in people. Please keep those messages coming, I'm hoping to bring him your emails even while he's recovering in the hospital.

...Speaking of the hospital, here's the timeline on the best case scenario: he goes in sometime next week for the surgery. The surgery should last 5-8 hours. After the surgery, he'll spend only 5-10 days recovering in the hospital. From there, it's supposed to be 6 weeks of recovery at home. Once that recovery period has finished, he'll start chemo and radiation. Well, that's the plan as of right now. As we know all too well, you never can really know what's going to happen when you go in for surgery but we are trying to keep our hopes up.

Take care,
Ellen

*: sorry about the typo earlier. The correct new email address for Jay is listed above and here: jaygallagheralbany(at)gmail(dot)com

Outline for the next few days

So here's the plan for the next few days: Dad will get some more tests tomorrow to make sure that he has everything he needs for the consultation on Monday. On Monday, they'll hopefully figure out who will be doing the Whipple Procedure (that's the name of the surgery he needs) and when. They have kept the appointment to have the Whipple done in Albany on Tuesday but the doctor in Albany knows they might cancel the appointment. Over the next few days Dad will hopefully continue to feel better as the stent that was inserted on Monday does its job. Dad will also continue to try to eat more to fatten himself up for the surgery!