I went to Assunta Hospital to see Dr. Raihanah and discussed my latest MRI findings today. The MRI indicated that tumors at my brachial plexus hasn’t grown, but a tumor at level C5 of my spine grew. Dr. Raihanah found my left arm is strong but numb.
Tomorrow, I will mail the MRIs in a CD to Dr. Lekovic for his evaluation.
I am glad to have done this MRI which we compared to the previoue ones to see if there have been any changes so that we do not operate unnecessarily.
When I told Dr. Lekovic that x-rays showed tumors at my brachial plexus were compressing the lung, he said we did not have firm radiologic evidence that these tumors have grown and he was not at all convinced that they were having significant compressive effect on the lung, so that’s why I went to do an MRI of the spine, brachial plexuses and lungs last week. He also reminded me about the risk of surgery. In general, HEI doctors will not remove a tumor unless it is definitely growing. If it’s stable, they will not touch it because doing so might injure the involved nerves. It’s not worth it.
In the past, some people in need of a second opinion to their cases have come through my blog. I put them in touch with Dr. Lekovic. There was this lady who has a five-year-old boy with an intra-cranial mass. According to her, doctors in Malaysia could not remove it.
When Dr. Lekovic reviewed the boy’s scans with Dr. Friedman, he sent this lady an email explaining his opinion. But the lady’s command of the English Language was limited, so she forwarded me that email asking what did Dr. Lekovic say.
He said there is the risk of facial nerve paralysis and cosmetic damages. They would need to include a ‘plastic surgeon’ in the team. The boy will be cosmetically worse off after surgery than he is now. So Dr. Lekovic said to wait awhile more because it’s safe to wait. Let the boy live as normal a life for as long as possible.
And when the boy needs surgery, Dr. Lekovic would be willing to discount or waive his fees.
When I read the e-mail, I felt so proud of my surgeon. Dr. Lekovic has four children of his own. Two boys and two girls. The youngest is a toddler. I could see Dr. Lekovic writing that email not just as a doctor but also a father. I wanted so much to give him a big hug there and then, but I was in Malaysia and he in L.A.
Whenever I see him, Dr. Lekovic makes me feel like I am his sister and student. He does not make small talks or joke. He always have this serious but gentle expression which makes me feel safe.
He’s like a strong ford to me.
There were times when my impatience could have kicked up a ruckus and put myself in big trouble. But Dr. Lekovic let it slide and continued to treat me as if nothing has happened.
We can see a person better by testing his patience. And I have tested Dr. Lekovic and Dr. Friedman’s patience enough.
