Hoping For Good News

Annie came through today's surgery just fine. She was in the operating room for nearly three hours, after which, Dr. Burch let us know how he felt the procedure went. He said that while about 65% of people have one major thoracic duct, the remaining 35% have a variation in this area of the lymphatic system. Not surprisingly, Annie fell in the group with a variation. He said that where a single thoracic duct would typically be found, he was able to instead see two large ducts and several smaller ones in the surrounding tissue. He ligated and placed staples in all the ones that he could see. He then used a glue to cover the area and hopefully seal any leaks that he had missed. He told us that while he had intended to do a pleuradesis (scraping of the chest wall that they did during her last major surgery), he found that the lung had already formed scar tissue and was adhered to the chest wall. Therefore, the pleuradesis was not necessary, except for in the small area that he had been working. We were so glad to hear this, as we believe that this is what Annie responded so poorly to last time. Following today's surgery, Annie has done quite well. She is swollen, but not drastically more so than she was this morning. Her pain has seemed to be well controlled and tonight she is resting comfortably. Over the course of the next few days, we will see if this surgery has been successful in decreasing her chest tube drainage. We are, as always, hoping for some good news in the coming days. Thank you for all the prayers that have been said on behalf of Annie and her doctors today. We appreciate each and every one.