Pats Paraganglioma

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Pats Paraganglioma

A page for updates on Pat Dunks Paraganglioma surgery.

04/27/2022

Everything went well. I have a voice but I have to stay overnight to make sure I can breathe.

04/25/2022

Tomorrow afternoon I will finally have my vocal cord implant surgery!

A little background to catch everyone up. Last summer my voice began to get weaker as the vocal cord injection from post surgery wore off. This injection type was supposed to last a year and for many it will last even longer. However, my voice was so quiet that I could not be heard with any background noise at all.
I met with my ENT, Dr. Pelczar in September 2021 and he agreed that the injection was no longer working and requested preauthorization from insurance for a vocal cord implant. Surgery was denied as “not medically necessary”. Dr. Pelczar appealed and it was again denied so he requested a peer review so he could explain the necessity. He finally got approval in December but surgery dates were limited so I was scheduled for mid January.
A week before my surgery date, Dr. Pelczar called to inform me that the implant kits were on back order so surgery was postponed.
At the end of January the kit became available so surgery was scheduled for February 8. A week before surgery, I took the requisite Covid test. I felt extremely tired after I got home and the next morning I was really feeling quite sick. I went to the walk-in clinic and was told I had an ear infection but my rapid Covid test was negative. That afternoon I got my results from my PCR test and it was positive.
I immediately contacted the surgery scheduler. Because I wasn’t having any coughing or other respiratory symptoms, we could reschedule for just 3 weeks out for March 1. The scheduler made me promise to call if I developed a cough or other respiratory symptoms.
A couple of days later, I began coughing from Covid. Note: I cough a lot from my vocal cord issues but this was definitely different.
I called Kathy, the scheduler, and she had to juggle some things around to get me a surgery date as early as possible after the required 6 week wait period for respiratory symptom Covid but worked her magic.

That day is TOMORROW! Yay!

All my family, friends, colleagues, patients and especially Doug will be so relieved to be able to hear me once again. It has been a struggle for everyone and it will be wonderful to be past this obstacle.

Thank you all for your support, prayers and encouragement.

09/14/2021

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09/11/2021

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09/09/2021

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09/07/2021

Just like PI, you have infinite potential. May your creativity be endless, your kindness unbounded and your exploration limitless.

09/04/2021

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09/02/2021

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08/31/2021

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08/28/2021

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08/26/2021

"The journey of a thousand miles begins with one step.' - Lao Tzu

08/24/2021

No day is so bad that it can't be fixed with a nap.

08/18/2021

I haven’t posted for awhile so I thought you might all like an update.
I got the final release from Dr. James K. Liu today. All my scans still show he got the entire tumor and I’m healing well. A miracle for sure. I won’t need another scan until next year.
The left pinky that I broke from a fall 6 days after getting home has healed and I was released from therapy a few weeks ago. My left hand is still a little weak and stiff but gets stronger every day.
I’m still in physical therapy for my left shoulder for muscle atrophy from the cranial nerve damage but my range of motion and strength have improved a great deal.
I started speech therapy a few weeks ago. My voice is quite weak and I cough and get a sore throat if I talk too much. To alleviate this, my therapist is teaching me how to talk from the front of my mouth rather than my throat. Doug Montgomery got a kick out of my homework assignment the first week because I had to blow bubbles in a cup of water with a straw. I graduated from that this past week I have been trying to blow “raspberries” in the air. I’m getting better but it’s harder than I remember for sure.
My overall strength and energy are coming back slowly. I started back to work part time a few weeks ago and am back full time this week so life is trying to get back to normal.
Thank you again for all the love and support. Your prayers and best wishes have kept me going.

07/13/2021

Friends and family have been asking for updates so I will catch everyone up on what has been going on in my life. I didn’t mean to just drop off with updates but it seems so mundane to me that I thought it would bore you all. But you asked for it…….

My pinky that I broke June 8th is almost healed. I got the pins out on July 1st and had to wear my protective brace for about a week and a half after thatbut it’s off now. My therapist does a treatment called ASTYM and it works wonders in loosening up my hand. That together with exercises have gotten me back a long ways. I will continue to work on it and it should be good to go soon.

I also have therapy for my left shoulder. The accessory cranial nerve was damaged during surgery so the muscles are weak. I saw good improvement this week though so I have faith that it will continue to improve over time with stretching and exercise. Nerves can heal but they do so slowly.

I am supposed to start speech and swallow therapy as well. My voice has come back a long ways but is still weak. If I talk much I start coughing so Doug doesn’t have to listen to me jabber as much. 😉🤭 I also struggle with swallowing somewhat though it is so much better than it was right after surgery that I hate to even mention it. I can eat most things if I concentrate and chew everything really well. I was also shown to turn my head to the left and down which is a big help.

My overall recovery from the surgery has been great. My incision has healed nicely and since it is covered by my hair or the crease of my neck, most people don’t even notice it. I walk a few times a week and have been slowly trying to get my life back. It is difficult a lot of times because I still feel quite tired and I don’t have my stamina back. Some days are great like today (I took 2 walks for a total of over 5 miles). Other days I can barely make myself get out of bed. I have a weird stinging sensation on random places on my body which prevents me from falling asleep or wakes me up shortly after I fall asleep. A couple of nights ago I woke up to my whole left leg kicking. This has caused my sleep schedule to become quite erratic. My doctors and I are working on a solution.

I met with Dr. Liu this afternoon and he is really pleased with my recovery. He gave the okay for me to return to work at the end of July. I am thinking I might return part time at first if that is allowed with my contract. 🙏

I started driving again last week and feel very comfortable with it. My alertness is back though I continue to struggle with finding the correct words. This is definitely worse now than before surgery.

I will be getting a follow up CT scan and MRI the middle of August. I have a few more doctors appointments for various aspects of this bazaar disease so I will let you all know more later.

As always thank you for your thoughts, prayers, and support. You have all been so good to me and I know I couldn’t have done this alone. Hugs to you all.

07/12/2021

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07/07/2021

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07/05/2021

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555 Kattenhorn Drive #14
Powell, WY
82435

Website

http://patspara.com/

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