Plan A for Again

It's Sunday afternoon and this time tomorrow my surgery will be more than half way over. It's going to be ugly! Still, I won't know anything about it as I'll be out cold under anaesthetic and I understand that I'll be pretty zonked out on morphine for the next few days. I'm told that facial surgery is not too painful so fingers crossed!
I have to have a couple of major grafts; skin from my inner forearm goes into my mouth to patch where the tumour is removed and then a graft from my stomach goes onto my arm. Apparently belly tissue is not good enough to go in the mouth. They also have to open my neck up as those lymph nodes have collected some cancerous cells. They will have to come out as will other tissue that may contain odd cells. Apparently this is the more delicate and demanding process.
Once it's all over the tissue removed goes off to pathology for examination and then judgements are made as to whether further treatment is required - that may be radiotherapy or chemotherapy. I won't know for several weeks.

I've already spent a couple of nights in hospital having a 'PEG' inserted. This is a little plastic tube that is stuck straight through into the stomach. It will be used for feeding me after the surgery on my mouth as I won't be able to eat for some time. They will keep it in, in case I have to have radiotherapy as that may stop me eating as well.
Having it inserted was not best fun. It's done under local anaesthetic and they stick a TV camera down the throat. When the camera is in the stomach they turn a light on which can be seen on the belly - punch a hole through and insert the tube. Of course you gag and feel uncomfortable as the endoscope is pushed through but the well trained team of nurses holds you down like professional judo fighters and resistance is futile. The wound is a bit sore but hasn't stopped me working in the garden (on light duties) this weekend.
Fortunately it has been a lovely weekend. Rather than go off shopping or exploring we've largely spent it at home although we did go out for afternoon tea yesterday. I'm going to miss working in the garden for the next ???? weeks - things are just coming together but there are still a lot of projects to undertake. I will feel cheated if for some reason I can't get round to them some time in the future.

Hopefully, by tomorrow evening Elaine will have been contacted by the surgeons. They've told her there will be no point in coming to visit tomorrow as I'll still be out cold so I don't expect to see her until Tuesday. I don't know when I'll be able to make the next entry here - or even talk as I'll have to have a tracheostomy during the surgery so the docs can control my breathing. That will be in for a few days at least so I'll only be able to communicate by writing. The next you'll hear directly from me may well be more than ten days away. My hospital recuperation is likely to be 10 - 14 days - well at least I'll be getting my money's worth out of the NHS.

Wish me luck!