Day 9. Feeling Fine.

A silly amount of IV bags.  The TPN is the Yellow bag.

The doctors start their rounds early and because we are the 3rd room in the rotation, they usually arrive between 8:00 AM and 8:15 AM.  I am staying at a cottage that is owned by one of our friend's relatives.  It is a short 2 miles away from the hospital, but it takes 10-15 minutes to get there.  The traffic is completely unpredictable and although I leave the cottage at 7:40 every morning, I have arrived at the hospital any time between 8:00 and 8:30. 
This morning I left 10 minutes late and drove like the wind to make it to the hospital before the doctors rounded.  It was divine intervention as all the lights were green and I made it to his room at 8:05.  The second I sat down, the team of doctors entered the room. 
He has a double door room to keep germs out.  The first room has a sink, with gloves and masks so the nurses and visitors can sanitize before entering.  It is a small room, about 6'x8'.  Every morning, the team of 8-12 doctors huddles in the first room while they wait for the first door to shut before opening the second door.  We had the blinds open on his door this morning and I couldn't help but laugh as I watched them all crammed in the small space like sardines in a can. 
They came in the room and asked about his progress. 
He had nothing to report. 
The nurse practitioner did her morning exam, looking in his mouth then listening to his heart and lungs. 
"You look great!" She said when she was finished.  "We are going to start you on TPN today."
Willie nodded.
TPN is short for total parenteral nutrition. It is a bag of liquid that contains pre-digested calories that are pumped directly into the veins.  There is no digestion required since it bypasses the gut, so it is a good solution cancer patients with compromised digestion. I learned about TPN long ago when I was studying nutrition in college.  The teacher informed our class that this source of nutrition was a last resort and only used for dying cancer patients and the elderly.  Since then, I have associated TPN with death. With this mindset, it was naturally alarming to me when we started the transplant process and they informed us that TPN would probably be part inevitable. 
The radiation and chemotherapy he received damaged the cells that line his gut so his digestion is not optimal.  On top of that he has nausea and no appetite so he hasn't been too interested in eating.  I have changed my feelings on TPN after watching him eat practically nothing for a week.  The last thing we need is for him to leave the hospital weak and malnourished from starvation.  The TPN will supply him with the protein, fat and calories he needs to avoid muscle loss and tissue break down.  He will still continue to eat whenever he feels like it. 
I checked on Casey today and he is looking a bit better.  He was sitting up in his chair typing on a laptop.  I asked about the surgery yesterday and he said they couldn't do it because he counts are too low.  His new complaint are that his feet keep swelling and he has to take a diuretic to keep the fluid off.  He wanted to know if Willie is having the same problem, but I had to tell him no.
Willie hasn't had any problems to speak of.
He has a mild rash on his chest and back that itches at times and he still has one patch of mucositis on his tongue that looks like a canker sore, but all in all, he is doing fantastic!  He is doing so well that I have very little to blog about.  The fact that he has stunned me into a silence is a miracle indeed!  Thank you for your continual prayers.  They are creating daily miracles for us.  Keep them coming!