On Saturday my brother in law and sister (Paul & Anne) arrive in the UK then on Sunday he enters hospital in prepartion for a 10hr operation on Tuesday.

He has “pseudomyxoma peritonei” (link) which is so rare (I’m told) that he is the first where he lives to get it / suffer it? Treatment has been going well but all along they’ve needed to consult with specialists, mostly in America.

Anyway, the long and short is that he has responded well to treatment to date and the operation is to de-mucus him, remove what is left of the tumour(s) and other organs. One of the side effects of the cancer is that it coats the internal organs with a mucus which if not removed can cause complications down the road. If you follow the link above Paul will be undergoing the “Sugarbaker technique” which includes removal of sections of his bowel, his spleen and gall bladder as well as removal of the mucus. As well as all this he will be undergoing a form or chemotherapy during the operation.

Paul describes it as akin to taking a bag of vegetables out of his insides, removing the skins and then replacing as much as possible.

Anyway, the reason for my post is to ask for your prayers.

Specifically:

• that the surgery goes well
• that the after effects are minimal
• that he is one of the 7 in 10 who respond well to surgery
• that his recovery is speedy and subsequent return home.
• for my sister, Anne, who will be in the UK throughout to support him
• for their son, Max, who has been left back home
• for myself who will spend the day with my sister during the operation.

From the very bottom of my heart, thank you.