Surgery UPDATE

UPDATE
November 30, 2007
6:30 PM

I want to let all of you know that are prayers have been answered beyond comprehension. Jack came through the surgery with flying colors. Not only did they remove the dead tissue, but 99.9% of the tumor tissue was also dead. The tumor, needless to say, had not progressed but had caused massive swelling due to the dead tissue.

Dr. Cosgrove said that he had a great deal of difficulty finding any live tumor tissue for the tissue test that I described this morning. He also said that it will be days to weeks before we know if any of the motor function will return. What he does feel confident about is that Jack will be able to come off of the steroids in several days. After Jack recovers from this part of his treatment, he will be moved back to NE Rehabilitation hospital for a few weeks.

Jack’s sister, Myra, a former student, Rich Shantross (surprised us by showing up at the hospital – he took a day off work to provide us with support), and I spent a couple of hours with Jack this morning and walked with him to surgery. The Lord has truly carried us to the heights today and we are most thankful. The legions of prayers have been answered. We will continue to wait on the Lord as the next phase of this journey unfolds. My birthday is next week and this gift is the best one that I could ever imagine.

We continue to desire your prayers, love, and support. We are all looking forward to a restful night’s sleep.
Carolyn