Super Bowel

Well, a sense of humor has always been part of the protocol at the Casa de Lu! We have come to realize that some of you mistakenly thought that Daryl has already had his entire esophagus removed, when in actuality it was only partially removed. The part of his esophagus removed was from the back of his tongue to about the collarbone.  The above picture are  originals drawn by Dr. Barone.  The next surgery  is to remove the esophagus in its entirety ( see picture 1) and replace it with a portion of the large intestine or bowel ( see picture 2)

We are having  some tests this week to check that his “bowel” is healthy and ready. Then we are awaiting for the date of surgery.

We were able to enjoy the Superbowl with a visit from good friends Jeff, Chris, Dan and Kelly. This crowd offers great insight and entertainment on many topics of discussion.  It was great to see Daryl smile and laughing! He even had a few Superbowl snacks!

Daryl  is getting stronger everyday! His weight is up to 132 lbs!  We are adjusting to our “new normal” of life.  Daryl has a daily routine with his “lary” laryngeal tube of cleaning and changing it; he is quite good at it!  We have not ventured out much due to the cold and flu season. That is the last thing we need! Daryl is walking on a regular basis to gain strength and going to speech therapy every couple of weeks.  We will update more once we know the outcomes of his tests and the surgery date.  

Many of you have inquired on how to help. If interested, Daryl’s fraternity brothers Jeff Chine and Chris Yurcek, and good friend Dan Lawton have set-up a GoFundMe page.  www.gofundme.com/helpdaryllu.   There is a beautiful description of our journey and we cannot thank them enough for setting this up.   Please do not feel obligated to contribute.  All the prayers and moral support have been more than enough. They keep us going everyday!

Love, Daryl and Charlotte