Spleenless

Dr. Mark Vierra performed my splenectomy on Valentine’s Day, as planned. I’m told it was a two-hour operation.

The results are excellent. My platelet count immediately roared upwards upon removal of that gluttonous spleen. Within a few days, the platelets were in a nice healthy range.

The pathology report was extremely encouraging. The spleen was four-to-six times larger than normal -- weighing in at 600 grams for an organ whose normal weight range is 100-150 grams. Although large, there was nothing sick about it. The spleen tissue was totally healthy, devoid of cancer or any other disease. It is a great comfort to know there aren’t any new enemies to fight!

The incision is large and it takes a hefty amount of narcotics to keep the pain down. I walk like someone twice my age, if you can picture a 110-year-old walking. I want to be careful to come down from the dope this time more carefully than I did after the colon surgery. That time I went cold turkey, not knowing any better, and it resulted in my shaking like a junkie (hmm, I wonder why) and suffering migraines. Managing narcotics is tricky business, even for people who are not likely to be prone to addiction.

At one point after the surgery, I thought I understood what caused the spleen to grow so large. After seeing Dr. Vierra for a follow-up, I found out that my attempted explanation was wrong. He says it remains a mystery.

I received so much loving attention while in the hospital from Pascale and many others. I was particularly touched by the students in my class, who sent us a beautiful Valentine's bouquet. Several friends and colleagues came to see me. Claire, Graham and Skylar's visits were very special. It was also a nice surprise to have Admiral Dick Wells, the President of my school, take the time to see me in the hospital.

My job now is to rest and recover from the wound of surgery. I trust that Roger will look at my eyes one day in the not too distant future and say it is time to resume chemotherapy. He will also look at my blood tests, vital signs, etc., but I think the really great doctors appropriately put a lot of faith in their intuition.

Cleo Joins the Family

A few weeks ago, Pascale decided she did not have enough caretaking to do with me around, so she adopted a cat from the Animal Rescue Center. All the pets coming from the rescue center are supposed to be neutered, so as to keep down the number of animals needing to be rescued in the future. Cleo is a cute calico. She came to us a bit skittish -- we did not know whether the neutering or her past history made her that way. We thought she had been spayed very recently because the fur on her belly had been shaved.

While I was in the hospital, Pascale discovered that Cleo was not actually spayed, as advertised. She went into heat. All the male cats of the neighborhood were gathering and Cleo was screaming for action. After two sleepless nights for Pascale, she finally relented and let Cleo out. The cat spent 48 hours straight fooling around under our house. We could not lure her back inside.

The Animal Rescue Center folks were quite embarrassed about all this. They covered the cost of getting Cleo’s procedure right this time. Here she is with a collar to keep her from licking her incision. By the way, when the vet performed the procedure, she discovered that Cleo had been pregnant for 30 days, definitely not what the Animal Rescue Center had in mind when they sold her to us.