Surgery Recap

We're happy to report that my (second) surgery is done!

Gwyneth and I drove up to Boston last Wednesday (seven hours door to door) and we stayed in a hotel near BU for the night. Surgery was scheduled for 7:30 Thursday morning, so we were up and going at 4:30.

Everything went smoothly in the hospital admitting office and preoperative area. I met with the anesthesiologists, had an IV placed, my surgical site was signed (to make sure that the correct side would be operated on!), and - last but not least - I got my Versed. I recall going to the operating room and getting on the table - everything until they put me under.

The procedure took about two hours and, by the surgeon's report, went very well. She took the superficial inguinal lymph nodes (just under the skin) as well as some along my external iliac artery. First thing I recall is being back in the postoperative recovery area, where I stayed for a couple hours until going up to my inpatient room in the early afternoon.

To prevent fluid from building up in the surgical site, my surgeon left a drain in place (basically, this looks like a piece of IV tubing that comes out near my incision - a Jackson-Pratt drain). This will stay in place until the drainage slows down, probably a week or two.

Gwyneth and I stayed overnight on the surgical inpatient service. Happy to have visits from Matthew Hansen and Pat Helm. We were comfortable enough (for being in the hospital...), but were glad to be discharged Friday afternoon. We had a followup appointment Monday morning and didn't want to travel right away, so we stayed in a hotel downtown until Monday morning - not a bad way to convalesce. Really, a pretty typical weekend for us: fancy hotel, narcotics, booze, staying in bed all day. We were able to visit Jason and Katie Faris (and their children Ryan and Meghan) and also Elizabeth Strenio.

Our followup appointment and the drive home on Monday were uneventful - we'll be at home until after Thanksgiving. Overall, I've not had much pain (haven't needed any oxycodone since Saturday), but I'm still pretty slow getting around.

So, we're very encouraged by how smoothly things have gone. The report from pathology will be important, which we're likely to get on the Monday after Thanksgiving. Thanks for all your prayers and support! Will keep you posted.
Robert, Gwyneth, and William