Wednesday - He's Home!

I just spoke to Ben on the phone as he was travelling down the Gateway Motorway on his way home from the hospital! Yes ladies and gentlement.. he's home a day early!

Monday - Could it be the Best Birthday Present Ever?

Ben's birthday is on the 1st June (this Thursday), for those of you who didn't already know, and it looks like, with a little bit of luck, that he might be released from hospital! The Doctors are confident that if everything goes to plan over the next 2-3 days Ben will be released from hospital on his birthday, fantastic news!

His rehab programme consists of three vital things.. exercise, diet and education. At the end of his stint in hospital he'll have to be self sufficient in these areas. At this stage he's been educated on all things from what to eat, what drugs he is taking and when, what exercises to do, what the signs of rejection/innfection are, etc. This education is vital to him staying fit and healthy and not returning back to hospital anytime soon.

Today his exercise regime increased from 20 mins on the bike to 25 minutes, still both morning and afternoon. He's also doing weights to build up strength in his shoulders and arms. Overall he's seeing the benefits with him commenting that he's much more mobile than he was 3-4 days ago. He's walking totally unassisted (no frame or oxygen) with better stability and ease than he was and in general, he's just not getting puffed out the way he use to. It's amazing to see how far he has come.

Once he leaves hospital he'll still have to return twice a week, both Monday and Thursday for a check up. The visit will involve a blood test, breathing test, chest xray, visit to his consulting doctor. Over time he'll be visiting less frequently as he gets better.

It's great news and as he's getting better life for all of us is finding some nomality again at last. I'll keep you posted on further developments.

Post a Comment!

Want to send Ben your best wishes and words of encouragement? Just click on the little white link (next to the pencil img) that says "comments". Select "Anonymous" and go from there, just be sure to leave your name in the message.

He'd love to hear from you!

Saturday - Best Lunch Yet?

We awoke to a pleasant suprise this morning with Ben ringing with the news he's being let out for this afternoon. I must admit it did come as a bit of a shock after him being in hospital, mainly bed ridden, for the past three + weeks. It was one mixed with eager anticipation and a worrying decision about where we wanted to go (we're all way too indecisive!).

After umming and aahhing (only a little) we ended up at a nice little restuarant at Redcliffe (Scarborough was it?). Although the food took an eternity to arrive and the service wasn't quite customer focused (to say the least) it was just great to spend the day out with Ben (Dad) without being trapped in by the hospital walls... it was freedom and one that was much enjoyed. The meals were delicious as well! The whole outing lasted from around 12-4pm.

Consider this..

A month ago Ben struggled to walk a couple of metres without being puffed out and having to stop. All the while being hooked up 24hrs a day to oxygen. Finding it harder and harder to do simple little things we all take for granted, such as taking a shower.

And now.. after a major operation, here he is walking on his own, unassisted, no oxygen, walking from the car to the restaurant, up and down steps, enjoying a meal.. all without hesitation. It's great! And although a little puffed from the experience, with him continuing to exercise and eat properly he's only going to get fitter and more capable.

The wonders of modern science!

Friday - Excercise Regime continues

Mr Fitness is straight back into the excercise regime today after the little break he had yesterday. Everythings going well so it looks like the Bronch helped! Along with this he's eating well and polishing off those smaller portions of food he requested (he's never been a big eater!).

Thursday - Bronch to clear things up!

Ben's had a Bronch this morning to clear some of the muck out of his lungs. Coughing is the natural way to bring this up however, with new lungs Ben needs to re-train himself to do this as it doesn't occur naturally anymore. The more muck builds up he visibly becomes unwell, so it's best to clean it out and double check it's all ok.

Yesterday was such a big day that he's probably a little tired also. The plan is to take it easy today and recuperate the body to hit it full steam ahead again tomorrow.

Wednesday - Mr Fitness Cont.

After a little three hour nap Ben was back into it. He did another 20mins on the exercise bike. The previous stint he did the 20mins on oxygen with three small breaks. This afternoon he did it with no oxygen and with no breaks. It just shows you the rate at which he is improving, it's amazing!

Wednesday - Mr Fitness

I can't get over how quick things are proceeding. It's an obvious sign of just how much he has improved the past few days.

The tracheotomy has come out completely! He's breathing solely by himself with the help of oxygen (2L) when needed. They've also removed the IV line as well.

The fitness regime is moving full steam ahead. He spent 20mins straight on the exercise bike this morning. If there was any doubt about the lungs it's now been squashed with his lung capacity up to 97%. Just think, pre-transplant he was only getting around 27%, absolutely amazing!

He's starting to do more things for himself. Like getting in and out of bed, eating, walking, showering... all these things that bring back the normality of life. It's great to see.

Wednesday - The Home Coming

Wow.. hasn't a lot happened in the last 24hrs!

It can't be summed up better than Ben can say it himself, "I feel wonderful!". The past two days he's seen a dramatic lift in both physical and mental health. He's feeling wonderful, he's looking great and it's really hard to imagine this man who's doing so well has just come out of a 19 day stint in ICU.

He's talking well and it's given us an opportunity to reflect on his time in ICU and how he sees himself moving forward from here. There is no shortage of enthusiasm to get well. There's an awe inspiring recognition of those who have helped him and the commitment everyone has shown to seeing him get home. He's confident, and I am confident, that he'll be home sometime soon!

The ward is a nicer environment than the ICU. He's sharing it with three other men, one who had a double lung transplant 5yrs back another with emphysema. It's noisy but it's comfortable and most importantly it's another very important step in the right direction!

Tuesday - HE'S OUT OF ICU!

I just received a phone call from Janyne with some fantastic news... Ben's moving out of ICU and into a Ward as we speak!

Earlier today Ben had surgery to remove the current tracheotomy and insert a smaller tube that will no doubt be more comfortable. After surgery the Doctors commented on how pleased they were with his progress. They signed him out of ICU and he now moves off to a nice roomy, peaceful, ward.

Some more great news is he can talk! The smaller trachi doesn't inflate against the vocal cords, allowing the air to pass through and for him to communicate. He's extremely pleased after worrying he might not be able to speak again.

I'll keep you posted..

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Monday - Two Steps Forward

Ben spent most of today on the TP which is fantastic news. The plan for tomorrow is to take out the trachi and insert a smaller tube, yet another couple of steps forward!

He's been getting a lot of exercise, doing laps of the ward and his weights. People are saying he's already looking 10 yrs younger.. you better look out Mum, he'll be a handful in the ward with all those female nurses around! =P

Friday to Sunday - Progress Report

Ben's been doing extremely well over the last three days. His strength has improved considerably as well as his ability to breath on his own. It's significant progress.

Friday night I witnessed him walking (with the help of the walking frame) for the first time, off the ventilator and just with pure oxygen. It was a brisk walk around the ward, a considerable distance if you compare it to what he was doing previously. He actually did it with relative ease, an amazing and inspirational effort.

Janyne was able to speak to him on Thursday. They do a procedure in which they deflate the sweedish nose on the tracki letting air flow past his voice box and allowing him to speak. Janyne commented how wonderful it was to hear him speak after having to read his lips for so long.. haha, something in which he says we only do right 50% of the time.

They spoke again on Friday (if I recall correctly) and they were lucky to have a 20min conversation. They talked about the operation, what he had remembered, his thoughts and feelings throughout the recovery, etc. It must have been great for him to get it all off his chest. Admist that there were lots of hello's and thank you's to the Nurses and Doctors who have helped him thus far.

His daily progress is amazing, he's looking back to his normal self. When I say "normal" I mean he looks as well as he did 5yrs prior to the transplant.. it's fantastic to see him with such life and colour in his face again! He's obviously, and by his own admission, feeling a hell of a lot better about things.

His strength continues to improve considerably as well. Just yesterday (Sunday) he walked the whole distance to the Cafe unassisted (except for the walker). It's a distance I'd say of over 100m.. something I was excited to hear about. He also enjoyed his first coffee post-transplant as well. Oh no, I'll be in trouble for saying "coffee" without commenting that it was only half a coffee, something he was scalding us for not mentioning each time we told someone!

The big question of course is "When will he be out of ICU?". The answer to that question is "When he's ready!". When that'll be, no one can tell. What we can say is he is making dramatic steps on the road to recovery and whilst it has taken a while, it's probably better for him in the long run. I'd personally rather see him do the hard yards now so he can benefit by not going back into ICU anytime soon, although a risk that is always evident regardless.

It's been an amazing road thus far and it's really exciting to see him doing well. I've filled him in with everyones comments and best wishes to which he was thankful for. He's writing something today so I can post it on here for all of you to see.. so stay tuned!

Just a quick note.. today he's alternating every 2hrs between the TP and the Ventilator with his other vitals being excellent! So keep your fingers crossed that he'll be up to a ward soon!

Thursday - It's Paul's Fault!

I must apologise, there was an incorrect quote in the previous post. The TP wasn't going to be administered for 2hrs it was actually half an hour every 2 hours, my mistake!

Ben actually struggled a little bit on the TP this afternoon so they've kept him on the ventilator for most of the day. As he's lungs are working solely on their own he's finding some muscular pain associated with breathing. This is something that will improve over time.

Thursday - TP Success

Ben coped quite well with the TP (oxygen humidifier) yesterday. They're increasing the stint to 2hrs every 3hrs with 1hr being spent back on the Ventilator.

To give you an idea of what a TP actually is I've included this link below to the Fisher & Paykel Healthcare (the brand of product he's on) Web site.

Fisher & Paykel Healthcare - Humidification System.

I believe the next process in wheening him off the Trachi will involve him breathing totally with the TP (no Ventilator). I'll keep you posted on how today goes!

Wednesday - Morning Update

Ben's doing really well today.. yesterday's day off from exercising has obviously helped him regain his stregth! He was back at it for his morning walk, covering a distance of around 30m or so.

The process of wheening him off the ventilator continued this morning. He'll be on the TP (see Tuesday's post) for 1/2hr every 4hrs. He's handling it well thus far and commented that he's feeling "much more confident" with it than yesterday.

Tuesday - Steady

Ben's struggling a little today, especially this morning. It's understandable after having such a big day yesterday, notably the extra walk in the afternoon. Rather than overdoing it they've opted to let him rest for most of the day.

They experimented with taking him off the ventilator. Rather than pulling out the Trachi straight away and seeing how it goes, they slowly wheen him off needing it by putting in some stepping stones to measure his progress. Today they attempted to put him on a small machine they nickname the "TP". The TP doesn't provide any PEEP or assisted pressure as such, just the pure oxygen. Unfortunately he didn't feel totally confident with it and only lasted roughly 5 minutes or so. The plan is to try again tomorrow.

Just a few quick things to inform you of... the ventilator is set to Spontaneous (his breaths only) with an oxygen flow of 30% and PEEP of 5. He's doing most of the eating himself with a drip providing a topup each night. Overall his mental state is great!

Dr Peter Hopkins filled him in on the Bronch this morning commenting that his lungs are "looking great".

Although he had a rough morning he's come good this afternoon and it really looks like it won't be long until he'll be out of ICU! We've been passing on all the comments and best wishes which he really appreciates, so thanks from Ben!

Become an Organ Donor

I'd like to quickly say a few words about the Organ Donor program, something that is particularly close to my heart.

It's important to remember that Ben would not have been given this fantastic opportunity if it wasn't for an organ donor. Over 2000 men, women and children are listed on transplant lists across Australia, many of whom die waiting for an organ to become available. Ben was just one in a list of many and one who fortunately was lucky.

Pulmonary Fibrosis is a critical illness, one that is not curable. His condition pre-transplant was extremely critical. After being on the waiting list for almost 6 months, and his condition deteriorating rapidly, it was obvious that time was something Ben had little of. And then we received the phone call.. something that will no doubt change our lives forever.

Medicare Australia have become quite active in promoting Organ Donor awareness in the recent years, even promoting an awareness week which this year took place on Feb 17 - 24. However, even still the number of registed donors is quite low with over 20 million Australians NOT on the 'consent' list. It is not enough just to say "YES" on your licence, you need to officially register to participate!

I've visited the ICU ward, I've talked to many Doctors & Nurses involved with organ transplants.. I've spoken to the families of recipients and heard the stories myself.. and most importantly I am lucky enough to see the whole process carried out before my eyes with my father, Ben. Being an organ donor is an opportunity to give the gift of "life" to another! What could you do that would be more rewarding?

Register to become an Organ Donor by clicking this link OR by calling 1800 777 203.

Remember.. one donor can save up to 10 lives!

Monday - Quick Update

Ben's still making excellant progress! Again he started with his morning walk, walking almost three times as far as he did yesterday. He found it a lot easier suggesting that he's definitely getting his strength back day by day.

Just to give you an update on his vitals as I know a lot of people are wondering. His mean blood pressure is stable (and back to normal) at around 70-80. His heart rate is still a little quick but a lot better than the previous days at 90. His PEEP is really low at 8.8, this being his experiatory pressure and relates to the earlier issue of his lungs collapsing. The oxygen flow is also down to 30% which is the lowest we've ever seen it. The ventilator of course is still assisting his breathing however, all the breaths Ben takes show up as "spontaneous" meaning they're all his, which is fantastic!

Todays chest xray showed that the condition of the lungs is still continuing to improve. The issue with the lungs "collapsing" is under control and the inflamation is clearing. Also the secretions are quite low resulting in them not doing a Bronch today and opting to do it tomorrow.

Another small hiccup has occured however, with the xray showing signs of emphysema. Don't be worried though it's not to do with the lungs but rather small air pockets that have formed under the skin. This is something that will disappear as Ben gets more exercise.

This afternoon Ben went for a walk outside again! This time earlier in the day so he could catch this afternoons raise. It's a good point to mention that Ben isn't actually doing the "walking" he's just sitting in a wheel chair however, it gives him an opportunity to get some fresh air and see something other than the mundane ICU ward.

Dr Peter Hopkins visited him again just to reiterate how well Ben is doing. He joked about getting him up out of bed and doing another walk to which Ben replied "okay let's do it!", somewhat to the suprise of Peter I'd say. He's obviously very motivated to get better and out of ICU. It looks like this might happen early next week if all goes to plan, fingers crossed!

Sunday - Another Great Day!

Ben's doing really well again today.

He went for a big walk this morning, around 15-20 steps unassisted. He's still tiring quite quickly but this will improve as he continues into his daily exercise routine.

They did another Bronch just to check for any secretion build up. It was minimal. The nurse commented that it's looking quite healthy down there at the moment. Again it was while Ben was awake, which is a little uncomfortable on him but allows the nurses to keep him awake without needing to sedate him for the operation.

This afternoon he jumped in a wheel chair and went for a little trip to the front of the hospital (around 100m). It was great to see him outside and after only being allowed 2 visitors at once he was for the first time able to see the whole family.

Another great day. If things keep going on this path than it won't be long before we see him out of ICU!

Saturday - Update

Ben had a very good day today. His morning Bronch was great, showing only a little build up of secretions since yesterday. Things are definitely improving.

Another first today.. his first proper shower post-transplant. Although he complained about the quality of nurses who accompanied him (haha) it's definitely a rewarding effort! One that's left him looking a lot better as well!

Dr Peter Hopkins met with Ben around 5pm tonight. He filled us in on the progress thus far, commenting that the "lungs are no longer collapsing", which is great!!

Overall his spirits are high and like yesterday he is a lot more lively. His sense of humour wasn't left behind either with him constantly having us in fits of laughter with his antics. It's great to see him getting back to his normal self.

The goal is still to get the ventilator tube out as soon as possible and with his current form it looks like this might only be just around the corner. Fingers crossed!

Saturday - A Room with a View!

Ben moved out of Bed 9 and into Bed 4 today. Bed 4 is almost the deluxe suite of the ICU. It's a corner room with large windows letting the natural sunlight shine through. A little roomier than the old Bed too!

He's very pleased with the move, now he feels like he's really getting looked after (haha)! Thanks Cathy (the nurse) for making it possible!

Friday - A Night at the Movies

Ben was lucky enough to snag a TV & VIDEO tonight so that he can enjoy a movie. A more than welcomed escape from the reptitive nature of the ICU. When we left tonight he was glued to the TV watching Entrapment with Sean Connery & Catherine Zeta-Jones.

Thanks to Cathy (the nurse) for making it all possible!

Friday - Another Cardioversion

Continuing on from yesterday Dr Peter Hopkins has opted to perform a Bronch again this morning, just to ensure that all the muck (secretions) that were cleaned out yesterday aren't reforming and blocking the airway. The Bronch showed a small build up of secretions however, it's 100% better than yesterday.

It's a good point to note that the issue with the "secretions" is only natural due to Ben's inability to cough. With Ben being unable to cough, the nurses perform routine "suctions" which help to clear the muck for him. This will be something that will be resolved after he is off the ventilator and able to learn how to cough again.

Ben's heart is still beating a little quicker than normal, at around 110 - 150. This morning they performed a cardioversion to help fix this. In short it's an electric shock that helps even out the heart rate with out the use of drugs. The drugs they would normally use in this situation may effect the lungs which is why the doctors and nurses have shy'd away from this approach.

The cardioversion worked, bringing the heart rate down from 150 to an even 90-100!

Thursday - Biopsy Results

Dr Peter Hopkins just informed us that Ben's biopsy results came back clear. There were no signs of rejection or infection at all, just as he suspected. What a relief!

Thursday - Who knew yoghurt could be so good!

As you may have guessed from the title, it's true, Ben's had his first dose of real food post-transplant. You'd be fooled into believing he always liked it, with him describing it as "Beautiful" when asked how it was.

This is a great step.. first walking this morning, then the Bronch fixing the blood oxygen levels and now he's awake, he's happy and he's eating. I wonder what tomorrow will bring!

Thursday - Great News

It looks like the Bronch has made a dramatic change.

Ben's the best we've seen him post-transplant! We returned from lunch to find Janyne coming out of the ICU in hysterics, which made all of us breathe a sigh of relief!

He's heart rate is back to normal (around 80) and his blood pressure is great! Overall his whole attitude has improved immensely. It's almost as if he is a completely different man, full of colour, smiling and laughing (as best he can with the Trachi still in) and mouthing words to communicate. He obviously recognises the progress he has made!

Let's hope this good luck continues!

Thursday - Another Hiccup

We awoke to find Ben had really struggled overnight. He's blood oxygen levels have dropped to a worrying level and they're going to do a Bronch later this morning to see what's going on.

He is looking extremely ill.. very pale and sweating a lot. Whilst unsettling there were some positives in it. He was up and sitting in his chair, getting some movement. The nurse informed us he'd walked around 10 feet or so, unassisted to the chair. Great news however, he looks like he's paid the price for it!

We'll see how the Bronch goes, with fingers crossed that it might improve the situation.

Wednesday - Still in the Woods

As the title suggests, we're not out of the woods yet. Today was fairly slow with Ben's condition not really improving for much of it.

The doctors had said the chest xrays did show slight improvement in his lung condition so that's a positive point to take from today. His heart rate is still quite high, around a constant 120-130. They're going to administer some new drugs to help combat the higher-than-usual levels.

He's still got a lot of colour in his face however, his general mental wellness isn't the best. He's obviously struggling and the situation is still quite serious. We're keeping him going with words of encouragement, focusing on small goals that will mean alot when achieved. It's slow and steady but as they say "the turtle wins the race!".

Wednesday - He's still awake!

Ben's up and awake again this morning which is really pleasing to see. He is still quite restless as he begins to undertake another day without any sedation. The ventilator tube is again causing him a lot of discomfort, with it hitting his sensitive gag reflix and causing a choking type feeling. His blood pressure is stable and his heart rate, which was climbing when we left last night, seems to be back under control.

He has a big day ahead of him already having a Bronch this morning. Later on in the day they'll be getting him up, standing and walking, but not until this afternoon.

It looks like today is going to be a very productive day!

Tuesday - Inflammation

After speaking with Dr Peter Hopkins it was explained that Ben has some inflammation of the lungs. This is quite common and is caused from the doctors handling the lungs pre-transplant. The inflammation is clearing so things in this respect are getting better.

He's Awake!!

Today Ben's made a very big improvement! He's up and out of bed, sitting in a chair. It really is such a big step considering he has been in bed for the past 4-5 days!

He's condition is stable. At the moment he's breathing by himself with just a little help from the ventilator. He's blood pressue (mean 100-110) and heart rate (11-130) are still a little above normal but due to the fact he's in hospital and on life support, it really isn't that bad.

Mentally it seems he is struggling a little in the new surroundings. Being awake for the first time without sedation is giving him an opportunity to learn what's happened and what's new. He's still slowly coming out of it but with each time we see him, and the encouragement and motivation we are giving him, he seems a lot better!

We're still waiting to speak to the Doctors about the health of his lungs and we'll fill you all in once we know!

It's been a great morning!!

Tuesday - 2 steps forward, 1 step back!

After speaking with numerous nurses and doctors you begin to realise that this all isn't just an easy procedure where they have you in one minute, out the next! It's clear this is a hard road and that it's going to take some time.

One thing to remember is the "rule" (used loosely of course) they follow in ICU.. "two steps forward, one step back".

If you do the calculation and you break it down into a day, theoretically Ben should be getting one step closer to recovery each day. And in reality that's exactly what's happening. Whilst the path is slow and often agonising, he is progressing, he is doing incredible well and this is both extremely positive and very pleasing!

The Tracheoscopy

He's gone in for the Tracheoscopy ("Trachi" as the Doctors call it)!

The procedure went through without a hitch! The plan from here is to try and wake him up and mobilise him. This will help the new lungs settle.

Results of the Bronch

He's had the Bronch this morning. The Doctors have injected a drug that they use on premature babies. The drug, which name I can't recall, helps with babies that have undeveloped lungs. Hopefully this should help "soften" up the lungs which will help him retain the PEEP himself. The Trachi is all go for 2pm this afternoon!

Monday Morning

Ben's condition hasn't changed. He's still in bed and on the ventilator which is controlling his breathing. The plan for today is to do a Bronchoscopy ("Bronch") which coupled with the chest xray will reveal how the lungs are doing. If the condition hasn't miraculisly improved they'll most probably put in a Tracheoscopy to relieve the aggrivation he is receiving from the tube through the mouth. We'll know more around 12pm.

Sunday - Positive News

We've justed spoken with Dr Nikki Blackwell about the posibility of doing the Tracheoscopy on Monday. She's filled us in on the procedure and the benefits in having it.

So why does Ben need it?

To put it short (really short!), he needs to get mobile! The quicker they get lung transplant recipients up and moving around, the better the lungs get use to their new home.

The issue we found out about yesterday (Saturday) about the lungs callopsing is quite a serious problem. The Trachi will help Ben to wake up and excercise, thus helping his body recover from surgery as well as giving his lungs time to "loosen up".

Sunday - Rest Period

Ben's still heavily sedated and sleeping. They've increased the oxygen flow and the level of PEEP in hope that lungs will stay expanded and the PEEP will naturally occur by itself.

He has moments where he is slowly waking up, although once awake he appears quite agitated (most definitely because of the tube down his throat hitting gag reflexes). Once agitated his blood pressure and heart rate start to climb and become irregular. To keep this under control they supply a further dose of sedatives to help calm him.

Although not much has changed in Ben's condition the situation is still immensely positive!

Saturday - The Hiccup

We found out today that Ben's new lungs are having trouble becoming accustomed to their new body. Given that his old lungs were quite badly scarred, the lungs themselves had shrunk and so did the cavity they fit into.

The new lungs are a little bigger than the old, meaning that they press in snugly against the other organs in his body. This extra pressure is unfortunately causing his new lungs to "collapse".

What does this mean?

When you and I breathe, we expand our lungs with oxygen and expel the carbon dioxide. The lungs after expelling still retain some oxygen. This is known as PEEP or Positive end-expiratory pressure. Ben unfortunately isn't retaining this PEEP naturally, due to the extra pressure of the organs pushing against the new lungs.

Whilst this is a hiccup we were told pre-transplant that these types of complications could happen. To help combat this we're needing to increase the oxygen flow to the lungs, meaning the ventilator for now go back to a "controlled" breathing state.. with the machine breathing for Ben. The target is to help over expand the lungs so that they get use to the new, now smaller, lung cavity.

Friday - He's opened his eyes!

Janyne phoned the hospital to find out Ben had woken up slightly. Basically his eyes were open and he was answering to the nurses question/commands.

We rushed into the hospital but by the time we arrived he had drifted off to sleep. Just missed him! It's great news though and came quicker than we had anticipated. We're all very positive and can't wait until morning!

Thursday - The first day

Ben is recovering well post-transplant. They have him heavily sedated and he will be sleeping for most of the afternoon. The surgeons explained that the surgery went well and the lungs seemed to "slot in nicely".

They'll most probably wake him up sometime tomorrow (Friday) morning, if not earlier!

Thursday - Transplant has commenced!

The transplant operation has commenced!

Thursday - He's off to Theatre!

The orderlies along with two trandplant team coordinators (Trish and Liz) have come in to take Ben off to theatre.

Thursday - We're going ahead!

We just received word that the donor was a successful match and that the operation is going ahead! He'll be going to theatre around 3am this morning. They're administering injections of antibiotics and anti-rejection drugs to prepare for surgery.

Wednesday - Blood matches

During the initial tests blood from Ben and the Donor were matched successfully. They then proceeded on to do further tests. We were informed that if the donor was a perfect match we'd be informed at 11pm and that he would be taken to theatre around 1am Thursday morning.

Wednesday - Arrived at Hospital

Ben arrives at the emergency section of the Prince Charles hospital. He is taken from emergency to ward 2b where tests started to confirm the suitable "donor" match.

The Phone Call

5:15pm 3rd May 2006
Ben received a phone call from the Prince Charles hospital notifying him that they had an offer of some organs and that the transplant could be a possibility.