Tue, 10 Aug 1999 22:06

Surgery successful

Logan came through the surgery today without any complications. It started at about 10:00 am and was over at 1:30 pm. The surgeon said that Logan was stable throughout the operation, and there were no unexpected problems.

The surgeon did find some tissue that he didn't expect to see. Apparently, the tumor was simply growing back from its origin on the brain stem. For some reason, the only thing that was showing up on the MRI and PET scans was the small section on the cerebellum. We had thought that the brain stem was clean. He showed us the scans, and what looks like empty space was actually filled with tumor. He pointed to a few "splotches" on the MRI which he said in hindsight could have been indicators that there was something there.

Logan has opened his eyes for a few seconds, but he is still pretty sedated and expressionless. We know that he can hear us talking to him, though, because he can wiggle his toes and squeeze his hand around your finger when asked. We sang the ABC song, and paused at 'P' to see if he would fill it in, and he pursed his lips like a 'P', but he couldn't make any sound. He looks a lot like he did last time, so we're taking that as a good sign. Laura is spending the night with him tonight in the ICU. I am praying for her strength, since she has only a bare-bones chair to sit in all night. We are also praying that Logan will recover quickly and with a minimum of pain.

We will probably be finding out details about chemo and radiation in the next few days.

We really appreciate everyone's prayers. The Lord is answering your prayers for Him to be a comfort to us. Our hope of eternal glory in the Lord Jesus does not depend on our son's health, but on the perfect faithfulness of our Father in heaven. God bless you.

Knocker and Laura