Category: neck dissection

neck dissection, radial artery, spinal accessory nerve1 Comment

Its been a year…

rbspecht

It was one year ago today that I underwent surgery for an oropharyngeal carcinoma that was located in my right tonsil. What they did:The surgery was one of the ugliest, most invasive procedures that I could have imagined being performed on me. It involved removal of the tumor and a clearance margin of 4 centimeters (or was it 8 centimeters?) around the tumor site, and the reconstruction of that area. There were at least two teams working on me, and the operation lasted almost eight hours. You know, I just realized that I’ve forgotten how much time they actually took. … Continue reading Its been a year…

David Williams, neck dissection, Norman CousinsLeave a comment

Healthcare System Complaints? Got none again today…

rbspecht

Shortly after 8:30 pm mountain time last evening, my surgeon, Dr. David Williams called to let me know what was happening with the pathology on the samples taken during the surgery on the 26th of November. Now, think about this. At 8:30 pm a surgeon calls a patient. This call is made at the end of what was probably a very busy day. In fact, knowing what we do about David, this call was probably made at the end of another surgery… Norman Cousins once said: “Nothing is more essential in the treatment of serious disease than the liberation of … Continue reading Healthcare System Complaints? Got none again today…

neck dissectionLeave a comment

Moving onwards, again

rbspecht

Okay, I will admit that I am still trying to organize my thoughts, trying to figure out how to present the observations and feelings I have about my recent surgeries, so this blog is a bit lame at the moment. There are two thoughts that I will share right now, that I will put into some sort of context in a day or so once I work out a structure for the blog.Thought One: When you first wake up in ICU after having a tracheotomy done, you feel like you can’t breathe… which is actually not true. For me, my … Continue reading Moving onwards, again

mandibular swing, neck dissectionLeave a comment

December 7, 2007: Home again, home again, jiggety, jig…

rbspecht

I’m pretty sure that the date stamp on this post will show as December 8, 2007, however I am writing it at 2:00 am, mostly ’cause I just can’t sleep. So I’m counting this as December 7, 2007.The big news is that I am actually writing this from my home! Yes, my home! I realize that there is a bit of a disconnect here, with my previous post being November 20, 2007. I did manage to complete or somehow hand off or close off the stuff that needed doing; paperwork at the office, finished up the training that I desperately … Continue reading December 7, 2007: Home again, home again, jiggety, jig…