Justin was going to update everyone on last Friday's appointment over on his blog, but he now says that I "need all the posts I can get". We all know this isn't true. None-the-less I will give you guys an update...
As I said on my last "Friday Appointment" post we were going into this appointment with two possibilities in mind 1) there would be nothing else the doctors could do for Justin, or 2) they would be able to do surgery on him and fix his ciliary body. Of course, Justin was really hoping that they would be able to do another surgery.
After the doctor examined him, he told us that Justin's retina had partially detached. Think of it as an envelope. You know when the middle starts to bubble up, but the sides are still stuck down? That is how Justin's retina is right now--or at least when the doctor checked it. We don't know how long it was detached for because this past Friday was the first time the doctor has been able to see all the way to the back of his eye since the air bubble is almost gone.
As for the whole ciliary body surgery: there is NO way in heck that the doctors will touch it. Justin's doctor does want to go back in his eye, clear the scar tissue that is on top and behind the retina, re-attach the retina, inject silicone oil, and give him more steroids. Sounds like a lot doesn't it? It is. They are going to destroy the retina in order to repair it.
Justin had the choice of whether he wanted another surgery or not. He said yes. In fact, it is scheduled for this Thursday. If Justin doesn't get the surgery his retina will fully detach and without a retina you go blind.
The doctor said that because Justin is a rare case they have been very nervous every time they have gone into his eye. They described all of his surgeries as a "heroic cause" because it seems that there is a lot going against him. When the doctors look at the big picture they see that Justin wasn't suppose to have vision after the age of 10. He's 23! So I guess they kind of feel like they're skating on ice. Well, his doctor said that this upcoming surgery is very heroic because there is a large possibility that it won't work. That means that there is a large possibility that Justin will never see again.
Well we weren't sure what kind of vision the doctors were actually trying to save. Light perception only? Color and shapes? The good news is that if this surgery works they believe that Justin could go back to seeing things the way he was in December....which was GREAT! Also, the silicone oil bends light differently than the water that is normally in your eye, so if Justin does get to see again, the oil will actually magnify things so that he can see them even better.
There is a lot of uncertainty on our part as well as the medical staff's. We know that this is a huge opportunity for God to take something that so many see as impossible and turn it into something that is possible. We also know that this is an opportunity for God to use this as a tool to refine us so that we are more like His image...even though it may hurt.
Please pray for Justin, his mom, the doctors, and myself this Thursday. His surgery is at 10:30. I'll most likely let you know how everything goes via Justin's twitter.
[Justin slurps down a White Cherry Icee]
[And of course my cheesy smile.]