The incident in July, to refresh your memory, was that Lee had a bacterial infection in his lung and that we needed to return to Duke within the next 5-6 days. This information was given to us as we were en route to a two-week vacation with our families. Now I will finish the "rest of the story" as Paul Harvey would say.
That trip to Duke involved a series of tests to rule out the possibility of the bacteria spreading to his brain or other organs. We learned that it can be a very dangerous and aggressive one, thus requiring aggressive treatment. Fortunately for Lee, the bacteria was only confined to his OLD LUNG! There was no evidence of it being in his new lung and so far that continues to be the consensus from both the infectious disease doctor and the lung doctor. We stayed for a couple overnights in the hotel and were relieved that he did not have to be admitted to the hospital. A Picc-line was inserted and he was able to return home for antibiotic I.V. which I was able to administer there. Because he was progressing so well, the line was removed after two weeks! Yay! Lee cannot stand being restricted and home-bound (which is the only way Medicare will cover all expenses!). He is on a strong oral antibiotic and will have to be retested after a period of six months. Even with the bacteria in the old lung, it can still migrate to other organs if not treated aggressively. Amazing that it was caught so early. He had no symptoms, no cough, no fever or any other neurological symptoms.
Our Summer kept us back and forth to Durham either weekly or every two weeks as he was now under the care of three specialists. 1. Cardiologist (follow-up from ablation in April and continued Tikosyn medication). 2. EENT ( follow-up from excision of cancer on forehead that did not heal due to previous radiation). 3. Routine visits with Pulmonary 4. Routine visits with infectious disease doctor. Whew! Good news is he is now released from Cardiac, only return as needed, and the forehead wound is healing ever so slowly. I apply wet to dry dressings two to three times daily and when necessary a gentle debridement. So far, success! Hoping for complete closure by Christmas! (Radiated skin does not repair and heal easily). Our next trip to Duke (unless called) will be for November 10.
We were not able to return to the beach and unfortunately missed the time we were looking forward to with our children and grandchildren. Even though we were not able to return, it was good to know that the rest of the family was able to enjoy a wonderful summer at the beach!
Amazing that in between all those Duke visits, we were still able to can some green beans, freeze some corn, and put some pickled cucumbers on the shelves for later use. We enjoyed birthday celebrations, Father's day, and of course Mother's day. We were given a surprise announcement that my grandson, Daniel and wife Stephanie are expecting their first child, a boy, September 23......this week! That will bring to a grand total: Five Great-grandchildren: Three for me and two for Lee. Actually, they belong to both of us!
So, now we are at the beach and hoping to stay until Lee can get his fill of fishing with Ted and all the other guys. Today they left at 7:30 for breakfast, all four of them in the truck, pulling the boat along the way. They will troll the waterway, and perhaps go for the ocean, and return early afternoon. We are both thrilled that he is once again able to enjoy this time.
As for me, I have to admit I arrived exhausted and plan to catch - up on several things.
1. Take as many walks on the beach as I can
2. Enjoy some sunsets with Lee
3. Write
4. Finish two or three books I have started
5. Find a good gym and continue the exercise and weight program that Lee and I began last month.
6. Spend time with good friends enjoying good food and companionship
I began today with a long walk to and on the beach.
Finally wrote a blog!
Did my weight work-out!
Time to sit in the swing and read my book!
We are off to a great start!
More Later.......................................................Brenda
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