Brody will be getting an ileostomy

We just talked to the surgeon.   Brody will be getting an ileostomy tomorrow.   

The priority for now is to take care of the bowel obstruction.   It's possible Brody may still have some sort of tumor debulking surgery in the future and he may possibly be able to have the ileostomy reversed.  

The surgeon we spoke with today was not  willing to do surgery to debulk later on day the road without knowing there was a chemo regimen capable of "shrinking the tumor" to give to Brody after the surgery.   This is the same mindset we have heard from other surgeons too.  If we actually were to find such a regimen we wouldn't even be considering very risky surgery.    We would be considering ourselves lucky to find such an option and stick with it.   We wouldn't risk a 50% chance of losing Brody in surgery if we found a chemo that was shrinking his tumor.  

I would be considering the risky surgery to remove the tumor if we had a chemo regimen that could at least significantly slow and keep growth pretty slow of the tumor.   And,  I wouldn't do this until we were at the point that if the tumor were to grow,  it would risk Brody's life/he likely would not suurvive much longer without it.   I wouldn't want to debulk the tumor while Brody's  bowel is distended like it is either.  

For now,  we need to just think more one step at a time.   The surgeon felt that the ileostomy was the safest next step and the highest priority concern.   We agree with this.  

The questions as to other surgical procedures to remove the tumor will need to wait until after this surgery.  

Better and more clear scans can be done after he has recovered from the ileostomy.   These will help guide us to the next step more clearly.  

The expected recovery time is 3 to 7 days for the ileostomy.   Brody is expected to be on the longer end of this range due to his previous surgeries in the abdomen and his large tumor.  

Brody has been comfortable for most of the day and the pain has been well controlled.