Wednesday, July 24, 2019

On The List: Day One

As of 9AM yesterday July 23, 2019 Far Guy is on the UNOS Lung Transplant List.  His donor must be Blood Type A, tall (6 feet tall or taller).

Lungs are fussy organs and the match must be a good one.   Our Transplant Coordinator's name is Chris...she says we should prepare to wait for about 6 months to a year...but a lung could come available at any time.

Are we ready to go?  Yes, I do need to get my Driver's License renewed so I will do that today.

The suitcases are packed and ready to go in the vehicle.  There is a list on the board in the dining area of the last minute stuff that should be grabbed.

Hard to pack absolutely everything we will need for three months.  But you know what... that big old city has just a few stores...and if they don't there is Amazon!

Far Guy is both excited and a bit scared...the thought of all the tubes he will have scares him shitless...I told him at least he will have good drugs...me not so much...at which point he told me "Stay home then and I will call you when I get all my tubes out."  (Funny Guy)

We must wait for the call, it could come anytime day or night.  Once we get the call it is a 3 plus hour drive, Far Guy must be examined and declared okay for the transplant, then they retrieve the lung from the donor and put it in a box where it has oxygen and a blood supply until it is transplanted.  If the surgeons declare it a good lung then the surgery will take 8 or 9 hours.  If it is not a good lung then that is called a dry run and we come back home.


Far Side

27 comments:

Rita said...

Congratulations!!! On the list is such a huge deal!! Step one on a new ladder.
Love and hugs from Fargo!! :)

Val Ewing said...

Oh yes, that sounds very scary indeed. But I sure do hope you get that call!
Love those pretty impatiens!

linda m said...

I am so happy Far Guy made the list - congratulations. Praying he gets the call real soon and that everything will go well. Love the impatiens.

DJan said...

I am so glad he got on the list (how could it have been otherwise?) and am also scared and excited for him.

Pauline Persing said...

Glad to hear Far Guy is on the list.

Miss Merry said...

Prayers for good health for the transplant, for a successful transplant, for a sooner than later transplant. And prayers for you, too!

Tired Teacher said...

Good news!

Linda W. said...

Glad to hear Far Guy made the list. Here's hoping for a good donor soon.

Terry and Linda said...

Well...you are on the way, now! Rather exciting! And scary! And, oh so wonderful!

thecrazysheeplady said...

So I think it sounded the other day like he would only get one lung, correct? If so, if something goes bad with that one, he'd still be able to use his remaining original lung?

Bonnie said...

Thankful this is a sure thing now! You both sound well prepared. You have many supporting and praying for you.

Betsy said...

Well this is very good news indeed. You are so prepared and ready to go. I have you both on my prayer list and pray for you every day. Strength of mind and health while waiting is what I'm praying right now my friend.
Blessings,
Betsy

Red said...

It's a complicated process so that the chances are high that it will succeed. Good luck.

Far Side of Fifty said...

one lung, yes because of his age. The Dr is confident that he will return to normal...no Oxygen after one lung transplant. Yes if something goes bad the remaining lung would function...but not well.

Jo-Anne's Ramblings said...

I truly hope your wait isn't too long

Laurel Wood said...

Thankful for this news that he is on the list. I pray that the Lord will work out all the details and give you both strength.

diane in northern wis said...

Oh wow you guys.....you're on the list! And now the waiting begins....will keep prayers going forward for far guy and you as you wait out this time. Praying that when you get the call, everything will be looking great and everything will be able to go ahead as planned. Yes, it is all scary indeed....but gives far guy and you hope for better health in future days. Take good care of each other.

Karen said...

Wowza! Scary but exciting times. Hard to wish for the transplant to happen quickly, as someone else must die to provide the lungs, but hoping all does go well for everyone involved. Hugs to you both.

Susan Zarzycki said...

Praying that it will become available very soon! The waiting will be tough on you both.

Jacqi Stevens said...

Here's hoping no dry runs! But glad the docs will check out the lung even up to the last minute to make sure everything is a go. If you mean blood type A positive, at least that's the second most common blood type in America, and at least a third of the population. Glad to hear Far Guy is definitely on the list, and you two are as ready as anyone could be, under the circumstances.

farm buddy said...

I'm rooting for you!

Far Side of Fifty said...

They don't do RH Fatcor at all in lung transplants. So it is all the A's:)

Victoria Zigler said...

Glad Far Guy is on the list.

Gemma's person said...

Good to have a definite plan . You know exactly what will happen in any case.
Keep up the good work you two. We have faith in you.

Cynthia said...

So happy for you! I hope there are no dry runs and you get that call as soon as possible. So much to think about and plan for, as much as you can without knowing when it will happen.

Shirley said...

Prayers that all goes well and that you don't get the call in the middle of winter.

Intense Guy said...

I truly hope things gout smoothly on the first call and that it is soon.