About Mike (Sorry I'm Late)

[bassin_bug]

Just a short update on my son, Mike, whom I have requested pray for. As I told you in a couple of other messages he began having severe chest pains during the night and was rushed to the new emergency hospital in a nearby town. They did x-rays, blood work, etc., and came back saying he had 'spots' on his lungs, one on his thyroid gland, and a mass first on his chest wall, later changed to a front heart muscle. He was transferred to a well known hospital across the stateline in MS and about the same was said except they did an MRA and myelogram. Something just didn't sound right to us because they started giving him heavy doses of antibiotics to see if the spots on his lungs may have been caused from a severe case of pneumonia that he had 3-4 months ago.

We set out to find Dr. Louis "Trey" Brunsting III, the best heart surgeon in the nation and possibly one of the best in the world. He is at University of Alabama Birmingham Hospital. Mike was examined by him yesterday and he already had all of Mike's radiographic images and the reports. He told Mike that he didn't have a mass on his chest wall or front or back heart muscle. He has a tumor the size of a golf ball INSIDE his heart. He said he didn't know if the tumor was causing the fluid around his heart or if the fluid was feeding the tumor.

This morning at 10 am (CST) Dr. Brunsting is doing surgery on Mike's heart to remove the tumor and patch the hole, drain the fluid off his heart, and to remove some of the spots off his lungs and test them. He said that, when he removes the tumor from his heart that he will immediately freeze and test it to see if it is malignant or benign. I don't know if he will be doing robotic or scalpal surgery, he does both and has taught many classes on both procedures both in the US and foreign countries.

I talked to Mike at 7:30 this morning, told him that I love him, and prayed with him. He asks me to pray for him every time we talk and I do. He said for me to ask everyone I know to pray for him while he undergoes this extensive surgery today. I'm asking each of you to send up your prayers for him today while he is fighting this horrible battle in the operating room.

Many thanks for your prayers. I'm doing everything I can to remain strong and not break down so I can continue to pray for him.
bassin_bug

[jcb]

Bug, praying now.

[DJD]

Sounds like he is in good hands. Prayers sent bug.

[mhall]

Prayers for sure