Sarah's upcoming surgery

Sarah's "froggy hug" Daddy made for her and her real stethoscope

So....today was Sarah's pre-op appointment with the surgeon for her upcoming enucleation on Monday. Enucleation is a fancy word meaning eyeball removal. She will be getting her right eye (the small, blind one) removed, and her left seeing one examined with possible treatment to zap the little tumors that are likely still in there.


When Sarah was originally diagnosed with cancer, her tumor was so large, it filled her entire eyeball/socket including some of her optic nerve. I learned today that the doctors sort of assumed that it was so bad they would end up having to remove not just the eyeball, but all of the contents of the eye socket, including muscles, tissues, everything. I didn't know this, but what that meant was that she would end up looking pretty disfigured, and most likely would not have been able to even wear a prosthetic eye. I was pretty stunned by that thought, and even more thankful that God helped the chemo to work so well that the tumor shrunk beyond all of the doctors' hopes, making it pretty manageable to remove with a simple enucleation. Meaning...that if all goes according to plan, she will look just as beautiful as ever when all is said and done with a perfectly matched prosthetic eye, which the doctor said she could get in about 5 weeks!



The surgery is outpatient and will only take about 40 minutes (plus the time the other doctor takes on his procedure on the other eye.) She will wear a patch and bandage for about 5 days, and there shouldn't be a big risk of infection. The other doctor is trying to save the vision in her good eye. There are two small tumors in there that are the type that don't typically respond well to chemo. He will check them out that day and decide which treatment option to try-- laser or cryotherapy (freezing.)



Please pray that the surgeon gets all the tumor out of the small eye. He won't be able to know if he got it all until it's all done. There is still a chance he will have to go in later and remove everything out of that socket, and my mommy's heart really really doesn't want that to happen. Also, please pray that she will be able to keep her vision in her good eye. After these treatments she could end up with blind spots or other damage. I am praying that she will end up with none of this! God is always good, and He is in control. We continue to trust Him!



The surgery is Monday morning at 7:30. We appreciate your prayers!