Some concern from the surgeon this morning

Dad is up and eating breakfast this morning in bed (not quite the breakfast in bed we all dream about), seemingly eating a bit better than yesterday. He's pretty stiff and sore from all of the hiccups, staying in bed the past week, and not a lot of activity.

His neurosurgeon was in this morning, and when asked at what point does he get concerned about how Dad's doing, and he said, "I am concerned." The surgery was very successful in removing the swelling and pressure on the brain stem, but there is significant swelling in the parietal and frontal lobes of Dad's brain. This is in part caused by the surgery itself and the brain is revolting a bit, but also with possible additional necrosis from the radiation. Surgically, he can't go back in and remove any more safely. So they are very aggressively treating this swelling with a high dose of steroids and will watch him over the next couple of days to determine if there is any improvement.

If not, then what they would need to do is to go in and remove a bone flap and let the brain breathe. Basically create a window in the skull to allow the brain room to swell. They apparently sew the scalp back over the opening, and some people go home with a helmet, others go home with nothing. It would be like that for a couple of months (or so), and once the swelling was down, they would go back in and replace the bone flap and stitch him back up.

This makes it really hard to plan and determine next steps. We may be talking with some family members to see if anyone is looking to get a few days in luxurious Rochester to allow Mom a few days back in Omaha to tend to a few things in the next week or two. We will be in touch. :)

We will see our neurologist yet today. Not sure what time he will stop by, but anxious to talk with him as well since surgical options seem to be pretty limited to help with the swelling. More later today.