In July, my father had some alarming symptoms that sent him to the emergency room. The doctor scheduled him for a colonoscopy the next week, and the results was cancer. On August 10th, he had surgery to remove a portion of his colon. Hopefully the cancer, as well as his diverticulitis, was removed.
Most people with colon cancer have no symptoms.
I flew from Fairbanks to Cincinnati on August 2. My father picked me up at the airport along with Curtis and Jacob. He was in good spirits and didn't seem to be too alarmed by the cancer diagnosis. Five days before the surgery he began preparation to empty his digestive tract. He was particularly sensitive to the process, and he became nauseated. He had a difficult time eating or drinking anything, and he lost weight during the days before the surgery.
Right in the middle of his preparations, the family reunion was scheduled. All of my father's siblings were attending, and they wanted a family photo. The group came out to my parent's house and had the photo taken on their porch since my father was too weak to attend the reunion.
The day of the surgery my brother took him to the hospital. I got a ride with my Uncle Walt. I met my sister there along with several other members of our family. The surgery waiting room was filled with people during that morning while we waited for the results. The doctor came out and informed us that everything went well, and we were able to see him for a few minutes.
We were so relieved that everything went well, that we all went out to lunch at the Ponderosa. We had 32 people at our table.
My father was in the hospital for about a week, and now he is home recovering. He is scheduled to see an oncologist to see what further treatment he will need.
My Mom and Viv took us to the airport on the 23rd. Curtis flew back to Fairbanks with me.
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