Wes' illness

Hello everyone:
It is with an extremely heavy heart that I let you all know that my dad is seriously ill and in the hospital. He underwent many tests over the weekend, yesterday the doctor called a family conference (with Daddy) and notified us that he has a horribly large mass in his brain, most likely a stage 4 Gleoblastoma, very fast growing, and most likely malignant.

I could go into a lot more medical stuff right now, but most importantly I want all of you to know that my mother and sister are staying as strong as possible (as we all are) but it's a lot to handle. I am home right now (I live about an hour and a half away from Sacramento) and will be going into work today to discuss flexible work options with my boss, and I'm going to encourage Mary Anne (since she lives there and is their primary caretaker) to request FMLA leave at work and take advantage of the state's Paid Family Leave benefits.

After much family discussion, daddy has decided that he would like the doctor to operate to get a biopsy so he can get some radiation therapy. They will remove as much of the mass as possible, but cannot get everything without risking damage to his brain. There are many risks to this course of action, but it is the option that gives him a chance to be with us longer. We haven't gotten word yet if the surgery is scheduled for today or tomorrow. I got the four of us (me, Mary Anne, Mom, Daddy) in the room together alone yesterday and we said a few words to God to ask for guidance and acceptance of his plan and for him to place his hand on the surgeon's while he is working on Daddy.

I also took some time last night to go over some questions with Daddy that were in a booklet in his room. It was about advance healthcare directives. I think it was one of the hardest things I've ever done, and some of the questions he wasn't really able to answer right now. He said "your Mom knows" and that's probably true. However, I wish that there was a document so I wouldn't have to burden my mother with this right now. Please, if you haven't already, have these discussions with your kids NOW and better yet, put it all down in writing.

Daddy's spirits are pretty good, he talks a lot and asked to see his psychologist to go over some things. He's accepting of the hospital routine, and takes everything with hardly a complaint. His heart rate is strong, his blood pressure is stable, but he's very weak. He has TV in his room, but was wanting us to change it to his "big band" channel, which the hospital doesn't have. So I loaded up an Ipod with all kids of big and and jazz, it's on battery operated speakers and he can listen to his music to his hearts content.

Love to you all,
Terri