Lung Biopsy

After a week in American Fork Hospital, the doctors and staff came to a conclusion about Chris...they did not know what was wrong with him. Our next step, would be Utah Valley Regional Hospital for a lung biopsy. 

Dr. Jolley sat us down, looked at us with very comforting eyes, made us laugh with his jokes for a few minutes, then gave us the bad news, "we have exhausted our efforts, and we need to move you to Provo for a lung biopsy. Your bone marrow biopsy confirms that there is something wrong, and you are not producing any new blood, but we do not know what is causing the bone marrow to fail. Our only next option is to look at your lungs because your breathing is so labored and your chest x-rays and CT scans shows a type of pneumonia, possibly. Possibly, your lungs could be causing your bone marrow to be out of whack. We will move Chris in the next few minutes by ambulance. Mrs. Long, you can follow the ambulance in your car, and bring Chris' stuff."

In order for any type of surgery one must have at least 150,000 platelets, Chris had 14,000. In order for  Chris to have such an invasive surgery they felt Utah Valley would be better equipped for such a procedure, in case he bled out during surgery. What if Chris bled out during surgery? I was terrified.  

As the ambulance crew wheeled Chris away, I was left holding his bag of undies, a bag of my snacks Denise gave me, a bedpan, and the rest of Chris' dinner that I would bring for him to finish later; and it hit me hard, like a ton of bricks. Here I was standing in an empty hospital room holding all my belongs and the tears just started to pour down my cheeks. The poor nurses that we had grown to know through the past week tried to comfort me and offered to help me to my car, and I let them. 

When in my car, I couldn't drive, I couldn't think, I couldn't do this....I called my friend Kathy, and she calmed me down, comforting me through the phone. This was too big for me anymore, I needed help. Finally, I got my self composed enough to drive to Provo. Driving through the tears. 

Scared to death, I walked through the halls feeling like a fish out of water, trying to find the right floor...all the way to the top, the cancer floor. Why were we going to the cancer floor? My arms full of plastic bags, full of clothes, I sat down in Chris' room and waited, and waited. I heard Chris cough down the hall....they sent me to the wrong room! Finally, I found my husband, and we were not separated anymore...I look back and I think that is probably what scared me the most, not knowing where Chris was going, and how could I help him so far away.  

The nurses immediately started to pump Chris full of platelets in preparation for the biopsy...they wanted them to be at least 50,000. The lower the platelets you have, the thinner your blood is, and the less ability you have to clot, and a greater risk of infection with no white blood cells. It was a long night...the chairs at Utah Valley really suck, but who is complaining, right?

Before the biopsy, we were giving the stats, complications, risks, what would happen after surgery...all that jazz. Chris would have a chest tube placed for about a week after to clear inflammation and fluid buildup. However, because Chris was a bleeding risk, he would not have an epidural like most people, he would only have IV pain meds, I felt so bad for my dear husband. Hadn't Chris been through enough with all the tests and blood? Little did we know, this nightmare would continue into May and beyond.  

Some family came to visit, Trudy brought my kids to visit, and our dear Bishop Needles and Brother Webster came and gave Chris and I a blessing (Chris put his loving, weak hands on my head from his hospital bed), beautiful blessings of comfort. Our Bishopric has amazing, strong, spiritual men in it, and I wouldn't know where I would be today with out these men; my family and I owe them the world. 

The surgery didn't take too long, Chris' parents and my friend Kathy came and sat with me; it was a Sunday, I remember taking the Sacrament in the waiting room; praying and hoping Chris would be alright. 

As they were bringing Chris up to his room from the biopsy on his stretcher, I was allowed to walk beside him. Here was my sweet husband, coming out of surgery, vomiting, crying, tubes coming out of him...I was scared for him, but my motherly instincts kicked in and I helped him the best I knew how...with all my love.

We would be in Utah Valley for another ten days, waiting for the biopsy results and for Chris to heal from the chest tube. Chris was weak, could barely walk, and still needed blood...but he was getting stronger. 

I sat by Chris' side waiting for him to recover, I wanted my family to be together again. Riley even came and spent one of the days with him watching cartoons...it was good for both of them. One evening, I went home early and got the kids and brought them back to the hospital for dinner in the cafeteria...and we ate with daddy. 

Finally, the day would come when they would let Chris go home, after 17 days in the hospital...we as a family would sleep under one roof, at last. The only bad thing was, it would only be for one night...the test results showed pneumonia, but they had found Chris to also have a type of leukemia called Aplastic Anemia. Aplastic Anemia is a condition where your bone marrow stops working, stops producing red blood, platelets, and white blood cells...pancytopenia; if let untreated, it would be fatal immediately. 

LDS Hospital contacted us and made an appointment for Chris to enter into their clinic...the BMT (bone marrow transplant) unit. Apparently, life was not going to slow down....it had other plans.