Holly was doing some gardening at her place one afternoon. She crouching down and suddenly felt a severe stabbing pain in her head. Bewildered, she called me , even though the pain had subsided.
"Call the doctor," I said. "Right now!"
She did and they ordered tests, both blood tests and a CAT-scan. They found a brain tumor, about the size of a walnut, at the top of her skull.
She never had any indication of problems before. In fact, other than bum knees and a bad back, Holly was pretty healthy. She ate right, exercised and kept active.
Brain tumor. Right away I told her, "You'll be OK," when I hugged her later that night. God and Mom didn't have me find her, only to take her away from me.
Holly went to a local Neurologist who advised her to wait. "Let's keep an eye on it for a few months,' he advised. Not satisfied with that answer she got an appointment with one of the leading neuro- surgeons at the University of Pennsylvania, in fact, in the worl. His name was , Dr. Brem.
I had not been on the Penn campus since my days studying computer programming for Vocational Rehab, back in the 70s. The new Children's Hospital was located next to the sprawling Penn medical buildings. Most had shiny glass exteriors. One of the best hospitals on the world.
"Soft hands," I thought as we shook hands in his office at Penn. Holly liked Dr. Bren from the start and so did I. A soft-spoken gentleman, maybe in his 60s, with a friendly smile, he oozed confidence. I sat alongside Holly as the doctor asked her numerous questions and discussed the results of the scans that were forwarded to him.
The good news was that he didn't think it was malignant. He knew his tumors after so many years, and thousands of operations. His manner was calm and that rubbed off on me and Holly. He was positive she would ultimately be fine. But a long road was ahead.
He recommended the tumor be removed. No waiting. It was still small enough to reach before it started tangling itself around arteries, veins and what have you. It was too close to the main artery in the brain to fool around with. Get it now while the getting was good.
Holly could wait and think about it. But the longer she waited the more likely the tumor would start to effect her senses. Loss of vision, more painful headaches, possible weakness on one side of her body, the list went on and on.
It wasn't much of a choice. Holly was a true fighter and she agreed to the surgery. Dr, Brem got out his phone and scheduled it right then and there. She was booked for the morning of Monday, July 21st- less than two weeks away.
We left Brem's office still shaken. One day she's fine, the next a brain tumor? It didn't seem real.
Dr. Brem was very reassuring however, and he explained all the details of the impending surgery. She would still have her lovely blond curls- they would make an incision where it would hardl be noticed. The operation would last seven or eight hours, depending on how things went. She would be in the hospital for a few days, then recover at home for about eight weeks . No driving during that time.
Those were just the basics. A lot to take in and digest. I went home and prayed. Even though Brem sounded pretty positive I was the ultimate worrier.
Holly rarely cried. She did get misty-eyed at the movies when we watched a good tear-jerker about dogs or a love story. I can only remember her crying once before the surgery, when she saw me crying. So I would head for the bathroom when I felt sad, thinking about life without her now.
She was always learning, always interested in information, and the brain tumor was no different. She looked up everything she could on the internet about her type of tumor, everything about the upcoming surgery. Me, I would rather not know and deal with it when it happens ,but Holly wanted to be prepared, for better or for worse.
There were six of us in the car as we left my house for Philadelphia on the morning of July 21st. It was still dark but there was a hint of the coming dawn on the horizon. More of Holly's family would meet us in the waiting room at Penn. We had to be there early for prep as surgery was scheduled for 8 o"clock sharp.
We stayed with Holly for as long as we could. I held her hand through the side-rails of the stretcher. She was already hooked up to IV's and machines. Both Dr. Brem, his assistant and the rest of the team popped by. Just like that she was gone and the long wait began.
I chatted with Holly's family, who by now were like my own family. I'm glad they liked me, even after they found out how we originally met. I'm glad they gave me a chance as well. I had a history of disapproving families.
We read newspapers and books, worked on a laptop, napped and mostly watched the clock while sitting in the waiting room. I tried to believe my own words: "You'll be OK..."
Almost seven hours later we met briefly with Dr. Brem, who brought us the good news that the surgery went well. They removed the tumor and the prognosis was good. Most importantly it was not cancer.
Soon we met Holly in Recovery. She was wide awake and alert, far more awake than any of us expected, her head wrapped with bandages. We were amazed how well she looked and sounded, considering that she just went through major brain surgery.
She mentioned something about "needing to take the car down the expressway" so we knew she was still a little woozy. I was wearing a Brian Dawkins midnight green # 20 Eagles jersey, which was brought up in the conversation somehow and Holly laid her head back and sighed "God, I hate football!"
Her family thought she was still loopy until I said, "No, she's right. She really does hate football!" That made me feel better.
They would take her to a regular room soon. Before we departed the hospital to let her rest she said "I'll call you tonight at seven."
"No you won't!" I replied. "You just had brain surgery. You need to rest. I'll talk to you tomorrow, if you're up to it."
Damned if she didn't call, right at seven, my new cell phone ringing. We talked briefly. She sounded good but understandably tired. What a long day. Yet she still had me on her mind to call at our usual time.
Holly was quite a girl.
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