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Hubby spoke with the doctor last night. She went in to surgery so they could see what is going on with the leg. Her femur is pulverized just above her prosthetic knee. There is nothing connecting the thigh to the knee. It was what they feared, but could not be sure of from the x-rays because of all the knee surgeries she's had. The problem is her blood count is so low and her immune system depleted from the chemo. So, instead of going ahead with a 5 or 6 hour surgery that had a chance of losing the patient on the table, they stabilized what they could and sewed her back up. They need her to rest and keep the leg immobilized for 3 or 4 weeks so her immune system can recover and then they will go back in to surgery and put an additional prosthetic in.
In the meantime, they are not sure they want her to stay in the hospital since she is at such a high risk for a staph infection. They are looking into different options now, including bringing her home and confining her to bed. They also confirmed she does have to stop the chemo so she can get her blood count up for the surgery. And then she will have to recover from that surgery before she can start up again.
My poor MIL. She's a strong lady, but no one should go through all this. My FIL is beside himself. I'm beginning to fear he might be in the first stages of alzheimers and this is just putting him over the edge. We are going to have a long summer ahead of us.
thanks everyone for your good thoughts. I'll keep you posted when I have more news.
In the meantime, they are not sure they want her to stay in the hospital since she is at such a high risk for a staph infection. They are looking into different options now, including bringing her home and confining her to bed. They also confirmed she does have to stop the chemo so she can get her blood count up for the surgery. And then she will have to recover from that surgery before she can start up again.
My poor MIL. She's a strong lady, but no one should go through all this. My FIL is beside himself. I'm beginning to fear he might be in the first stages of alzheimers and this is just putting him over the edge. We are going to have a long summer ahead of us.
thanks everyone for your good thoughts. I'll keep you posted when I have more news.