Greetings All,
I’ve been quietly recovering
since arriving back home one week ago today. My 5 days in the ICU were trying,
but not half as bad as my first brain surgery. Lowlights included intense
nausea from anesthesia and then trying to remain motionless in a MRI tube at 3
am without music, trying not to vomit all over myself. As you will see in a FB
update from Lauren later on in this post, it was in fact a level 2 tumor they
removed from my skull and not a parasite related cyst. The level 2 means
there’s a good chance it will never come back (like the deadly level 4’s) as
surgeons removed all the negative cells they could see.
The night of my
return from Harborview, January 30th, I ended up in the Port Angeles
ER for head pain/pressure at about 4am. I was positive this would land me an
ambulance ride to Harborview, but a timely CT scan read by my surgeon Dr.
Chowdhary at Harborview showed that my ventricles were stable, I just needed to
take more pain medication- something I didn’t have to do during my previous
surgery. I was released just in time for lunch.
At my one week Harborview check up today (Feb 5th),
Dr. Chowdhary was pleased with my progress and prescribed to me (the AMAZING)
steroids used to reduce brain inflammation that I was on during my week long
recovery at Harborview. Pain has been significantly reduced and I’m grateful.
Prior to this I was just getting by on powerful opiates every 4 hours, not much
fun. Again, Lauren and I are so thankful for all the love and prayers poured
out on our behalf. I’m still shunt free and my next exam at Harborview on Feb
18th will most likely determine if a third brain surgery is
necessary to put it back in. For now, my family and medical team remain optimistic
that it won’t. Lauren and I will continue to praise God no matter what as he
brings good from no matter what.
Love,
The Pipers
Below: Updates/Pics from FB November-January.
Nov 27, 2015
Brain Update: My sutures were
removed Tuesday afternoon and my 'J' is healing nicely. Dr. Zunt thought it was
probable my cyst was parasite related, but there isn't a way to know
conclusively without a biopsy. He referred me to another UW specialist who
specializes in removing stuff from the ventricles. Another surgery could be in
the works (shortly?) if the cysts location is deemed operable. My balance and
thinking is clearer and I drove for the first time on Thanksgiving in three
weeks. Lauren
was only marginally freaked out. Thank you all, with love from the Pipers.
December 9th, 2015
Brain Update: I was just scheduled
for an MRI this Saturday at Harborview to determine if the cyst can be removed
by the surgeon. With all the happenings, Lauren and I (with heavy
hearts) have decided against our trip to New Zealand this Christmas break. For
my beloved Kiwi’s, we will miss you and I can’t wait for you to meet my wife
next Christmas if God allows it.
December 12th, 2015
Brain Update: The MRI in Seattle
was postponed to Monday after spending the morning/afternoon in the ER for
stabbing pain near the left kidney. What was initially thought to be stones was
shown by CT scans to my catheter poking around in the area.
This fun photo is the X-Ray taken
at Olympic Memorial right after I passed out in the kitchen last Saturday
morning from pain. This is a 2d view, the 4 white circles on each side are
ribs. The small white tube going across the middle of the picture is the
catheter from my brain having its way with my organs on the right. Lauren and I
await the results of last nights MRI in Seattle as to whether a specialist can
remove the cyst in my third ventricle.
Dec. 22nd, 2015
Brain Update: Specialist Dr.
Ellenbogen reviewed my MRI with my shunt surgeon and they decided against
another surgery for now. We will know more on January 8th when we follow up at
Harborview with my shunt surgeon, Dr. Chowdhary.
January 8th
Brain Update: Quite the
unexpected day at Harborview for Lauren and I with my shunt surgeon. The MRI
from Dec. 14th revealed that my shunt was successful in draining spinal fluid
causing excessive pressure. A fantastic byproduct of this drainage was that the
cyst relocated to a less dangerous patch of real estate in my brain. Because of
this development, a second brain surgery has been scheduled for Monday, January
25th with pre-op stuff on Friday and Saturday in Seattle. If successful, the
cyst and my ventricle plumbing will be removed. What a ride. Continually
praising a good and sovereign God no matter what the outcome.
Jan 23rd
The sunset last night. Heading
back to Harborview this morning for an MRI in prep for surgery Monday
Jan 25th
Update on David: Brain surgery #2
was successful! They were able to remove both the cyst and the shunt. He had a
bit of bleeding towards the end of surgery so he might have a little longer
recovery than anticipated. They sent the cyst off to pathology and we should
know what it is in about 5 days. Thank you all so much for your love and
prayers! So thankful for how the Lord has held us through all of this. The
journey is not over, please keep praying. No matter what circumstances we face
or what the outcome may be, God is good all the time.
Jan 27th
Brain Update: Please pray my
natural plumbing begins to work on its own tomorrow when testing begins. 25% of
cases like mine fail and the shunt has to be surgically reinstalled after being
taken out because normal brain flow never returns. I'm not sleeping all that
well here in the ICU and if all goes well tomorrow, I could be in my own bed at
home as early as Friday night (that would be a huge win!). Thank you for the
love+prayer coverage over Lauren
and I.
January 29th
Thank you all for your prayers
that were heard by our loving Father. I've been officially discharged from
Harborview with follow up and recovery plans.
Jan 29th
David update from Lauren:
We are home
His natural brain plumbing passed
the test! They took out his drain this morning... as you might have already
seen 😮
We got the pathology report last
night... it was not a parasite. It was actually a grade 2 ependymoma tumor...
which is considered cancerous, BUT has been completely removed. Because of this
type of tumor's nature, it has a 20% chance of recurrence, and another one
could manifest in his brain or spinal cord at any time- BUT they tend to be
slow growing and he will be having frequent scans. An MRI of his spinal cord
was taken to check for other tumors, and none were seen at this time.
He's been scheduled with a
neuro-oncology doctor to further discuss his prognosis, but it looks as if it's
all gone and he will just have to have periodic scans for the rest of his life.
Whatever the case, we are thanking God and asking Him to use this for tons of
good. There's so much freedom in Christ, friends. His perfect love drives out
fear. Thank you for how you've loved and prayed- we so appreciate it.
Finding
it difficult to keep this update at a reasonable length...Here is a helpful
link on frequently asked questions about ependymomas.
https://cern-foundation.org/?page_id=230
We love you all
so much
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