After multiple failed attempts to got any bit of TPA into the line, surgery sent Noah for a line study using contrast put into another lumen. The line is not displaced, linked, etc. - it's just that the one lumen is hopelessly blocked. We were at the hospital all day and didn't get home until 7. I would have updated sooner but have been fielding a number of phone calls.
Dr. B is meeting with the palliative care team next week and we'll be meeting with him and hospice shortly thereafter. In the interim, we can limp along with just 2 lumens as long as Noah does not require antibiotics and all of the other drugs that go along with an acute illness. We are simply not prepared to replace this line if we can manage with it. We will be changing a number of Noah's protocols and handling a number of things differently all with a view toward keeping this line. At this point, there is simply nothing more important.
I ran into our cardiologist, Dr. R., as we were wrapping up at the hospital. He's a wise and godly man who is one of our absolute favorite doctors. I brought him up to speed and he said that sometimes we need to choose whether to ride the wolf or ride the lamb - both have potential for good or negative outcomes and the decision can come down to how aggressive one chooses to be. In this case we are riding the lamb for now and accepting the risks inherent in that choice rather than risking aggressive options that could end Noah's life very quickly.
To say we covet your prayers would be the understatement of the century.
Kate
