Just got a call from Greg's dad Jim. The surgery apparently went very well.

It turns out that a hernia was the cause of the blockage - not scar tissue from the original colon surgery as was previously thought.

Dr. Beecherl repaired some (possibly all, your correspondent is not certain) of the hernia, eliminating the cause of the blockage. Also, he found a lot of scar tissue from the original surgery, which could otherwise pose a threat of future blockage, and removed it.

All that messing around in Greg's innards causes a lot of pain in the recovery, and the recovery is further slowed by the fact that Greg finished a round of Avastin just four weeks ago.

Dr. Shapiro was very complimentary of Dr. Beecherl's work.

Greg will be in the hospital for 5-7 days depending on how much the Avastin has impacted his body's ability to heal.

So far, the first day post-surgery has gone well. Greg has been able to get up and walk around, and his pain has been manageable. No recurrence of the epidural problems from last time, thanks be to God.

Please continue to pray for Greg's recovery, for relief of Christine's suffering, and for Jim and Judy's health and rest (they were up at 4am today).

Greg's surgery is complete - they got going right away at 7:45 and finished around 9am.

The doctor described it as very routine, and said it went well.

There were 4 lesions, but they did not have to remove very much lung tissue at all - his lunch lung capacity should still be very good.

Greg is now recovering, and so far all is well. Since Greg did so well last time, the doctor does not expect to have any problems, so they are hoping he will be able to get out quickly.

Praise God, they got everything they know about at this time.

The pain last night was excruciating. It was made worse because he had to sit up and hunch over so the anesthetist could insert the second epidural needle near his spine.

However, the second epidural needle found the right place, and Greg is now feeling much better than he was last night. He called Susan to update her this morning, and reported that he has been able to get up and move around a little bit. He is very, very thankful for everyone's prayers and hopes to be able to post his own updates soon.

Thanks to everyone for their prayers last night as he waited for that relief, and thanks and praise to God for answering those prayers in this way. Please continue to pray for relief of Christine's pain, and for God to strengthen her as she ministers to her husband.

The surgery went very well! They found just the two expected nodules and removed them without complications. The doctor was very pleased with the outcome. Christine is on her way down to Houston right now.

Greg will be in ICU for the next two hours. Praise God for a very good outcome and please pray for quick healing.

Greg's dad, Jim, called late this afternoon to report that Greg's recovery is off to a good start. He was moved to a regular room today and was able to briefly stand up and sit back down. So far he seems to be doing better than he was at this point after the previous two surgeries.

Greg and Christine greatly appreciate all the prayers and support they have received from so many loved ones. At the moment Greg is not in too much pain since they continue to give him a lot of medication, but please be praying that as the medication ramps down he will be able to cope with the pain.

They are surrounded by many caring people. Jim and Judy, and Carl and Sue Mantegna as well, are close at hand, and several Houston friends are available too. In addition, several of the nurses who cared for Greg after the previous surgery are in charge of him again - and remember him well. Given the change of floors and the passage of over a year, this small "coincidence" is yet another mercy in the midst of many answered prayers.

Please pray:
- for rapid healing and no post-operative complications.
- that Greg can tolerate the pain as he is eased off medication.
- for complete elimination of cancer from Greg's body.
- for rest and strength for Christine. She has so far been relatively pain-free, which has enabled her to be with Greg during this time.

Some of you may be wondering how the parents have been doing through this. Jim reports that they survived the surgery, if barely.

Christine just called to report that Greg's surgery ended a short time ago. The surgeon was able to remove all the cancer that could be seen! This is a tremendous result and exactly what everyone has been praying for.

This procedure is very difficult and lengthy, and Christine noted that the surgeon looked exhausted as he reported the results. Given the location of the tumor and the closeness of various parts in that region, removing it had some side effects, which will need to be managed. However, at this point our overwhelming response is one of thankfulness and praise to God for granting the doctors success in removing Greg's tumor.

Greg will spend the night in recovery where he will get excellent care, and begin the process of healing.

Greg took his first steps yesterday as he continues his excellent recovery from liver surgery this past Monday. His progress continues to be remarkable and we all were impressed with his strength, determination, and grit.

Items removed on Friday: Foley catheter, IV in jugular, epidural. The removal of all of these so early signifies that his liver function is good and his blood should clot well. This is great news and a real answer to prayer for swift healing.

Of course, great progress does not mean that there are no difficulties or dangers. Please keep the following requests in mind as you pray for Greg:

* That the doctors would let him out of the hospital at the right time, that he and Christine would find the best place to stay in Houston for up to a week after release from the hospital, and that the transition to the new living situation would go well.
* That the wound from his jugular IV would would heal when the bandage is removed today.
* For dealing with the effects of droopiness and incoherence now that he is on morphine instead of the epidural.
* That he would regularly practice the breathing exercises prescribed for him, and that he would not develop excessive fluid in or around the lungs.
* That no infections would develop.

Greg asked me to pass on his thankfulness for the many notes that came to him as a result of the patient contact system at MDACC. Any notes received are printed and hand-delivered to Greg or Christine and they have drawn tremendous encouragement from them. He is also checking the website as and when he can, and will hopefully make a post of his own very soon.

That's a quote from the surgeon's report, and by all accounts an accurate one. Greg looks good today and was working on crossword puzzles by 11:00 this morning. Everyone is thrilled by the great outcome and thankful for the answered prayers of many.

However, as with any surgery of this magnitude, the road to recovery will be rough at times. Please continue to pray for both Greg and Christine as they face many challenges:

* Greg cannot yet be moved to a regular hospital room until his urinary function resumes normal levels. This is not unusual, especially given that his blood pressure remains a bit low due to the anesthesia that he is still taking via epidural. Instead, his doctors plan to move him to the ICU, not because of any crisis or problem, but because there he will receive greater levels of exactly the kind of care that he needs right now (not to mention the fact that ICU rooms are more private, have more generous visitation rules and have a TV). Please pray that he would be able to go to a regular hospital room very soon - his nieces cannot visit him in the ICU and there are still quite a few limitations on visitors.
* Greg is in a lot of pain; while they have managed to get it under control, the anesthesia causes a lot of itching. Between the pain and the itching he wasn't able to get much sleep last night, but today they seem to have struck a better balance. Please pray for alleviation of his pain and the ability to slowly reduce the amount of medication he needs for it.
* Greg's temperature this afternoon was just about 101, which is a normal post-op temperature, but of course it needs to go down. His heart rate is also high.
* Christine is also in a lot of pain. Please pray that her pain would be relieved so that she can be with Greg as much as possible.

Time and time again Greg has had to Stan' Up and Git Hit. As he stands once again, pray that by God's grace he will stand strong.

Greg's surgery ran from 7:45am to noon, and went better than expected with no complications. The cancer was not touching Greg's diaphragm, so none of that muscle had to be removed. In fact, the cancer does not appear to have spread anywhere else in his body. The right lobe and half the left lobe of his liver were removed, which is about what was planned. The area of the cancer was about 2 1/2 inches in size, having been significantly reduced by the chemotherapy. Greg had no excessive bleeding, and there was no need for a blood transfusion.

Greg is doing so well that he was moved directly to the recovery room and is not going to spend any time in the Intensive Care Unit. After spending the night in the recovery room, he will be moved to a regular room.