Greetings.
This is the one hundred and thirty-seventh in a series of NANCY UPDATES I have posted-- now celebrating the fact that even though her post bone marrow transplant and brain seizure recovery continues... the amazing Nancy Neufeld Callaway is still in full remission and has kicked her leukemia on its ass.
Nancy's corneal patch graft surgery appears to have gone without a hitch.
Even if it was delayed by some pre-op blood lab issues, I have to say, the UCLA Stein Eye Institute's surgical facility is pretty top notch. And her anesthesiologist, a wise and angelic man named Dr. Fang, was also extremely attentive to Nancy's complex medical journey of the past four and a half years-- and after conferring with her corneal specialist, Dr. Aldave, decided he didn't want to take the risk of prompting any seizure activity or causing any further memory loss by putting her completely under with general anesthesia. Instead, the decision was made to carefully administer a combo of gas and a strong local anesthetic-- which blocked all of Nancy's pain, but still left her awake and able to hear the surgeons doing their work.
And three hours later, the job was done. The specialist told me her donor cornea had been carefully trimmed to perfectly fit into the damaged area of Nancy's cornea and he was very pleased with the end result.
Oh, and maybe the best part? In the hours since getting her home afterward-- she hasn't really felt any significant pain or discomfort. Granted, her left eye is completely covered with gauze and a big aluminum shield-- but so far, so good. And we'll be back to UCLA tomorrow for a post-op exam.
Thank you so much for all of your kind emails and texts to Nancy. Your thoughtful encouragement and prayers mean the world to our entire family-- and your continued healing energy and prayers for a swift and complete recovery are more appreciated than you'll ever know.
I may lay off the daily blog updates for awhile-- but will definitely keep you all posted on her progress. In the meantime, just know this...
WE LOVE NANCY, and...
ALL IS WELL!
If you'd like to learn more about the UCLA Jules Stein Eye Institute and/or support their work, here's a link to more information:
If you'd like to register for the International Bone Marrow Donor Bank, here's a link. You could be someone's cure. You could literally save a life.
If you'd like to donate to City of Hope and help them continue their tireless efforts and research to stop cancer, there's a link for that as well.
City of Hope Online Donation
City of Hope Online Donation
And if you'd like to be automatically notified of updates to this blog-- just enter your email address in the window on the right beneath Nancy's picture, click SUBMIT, and follow the prompts!
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