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Archive for June 2nd, 2008

Today around 9:00 am EDT Senator Edward M. Kennedy will be undergoing approximately six hours of surgery on his brain tumor at Duke University Hospital.

Duke is one of the premier hospitals in the country, and I ask you to be in prayer that God’s hands will be working through the doctors’ hands. After the surgery the Senator will have chemotherapy and radiation on the area.

The 76-year-old senator was diagnosed last month with a malignant glioma, an especially lethal type of brain tumor. A statement from the Massachusetts Democrat’s office said he would be operated on Monday morning in Durham, N.C., by Dr. Allan Friedman, followed by chemotherapy and radiation. Anthony Coley, a Kennedy spokesman, said the surgery is expected to begin around 9 a.m. It is expected to last about six hours.

“I am deeply grateful to the people of Massachusetts and to my friends, colleagues and so many others across the country and around the world who have expressed their support and good wishes as I tackle this new and unexpected health challenge,” Kennedy said in the statement. “I am humbled by the outpouring and am strengthened by your prayers and kindness.”.

He expects to remain at the North Carolina facility for one week to recuperate and then will begin further treatments at Massachusetts General Hospital and start chemotherapy.

Kennedy said that over the past few days he and his wife, Vicki, “along with my outstanding team of doctors at Massachusetts General Hospital, have consulted with experts from around the country and have decided that the best course of action for my brain tumor is targeted surgery followed by chemotherapy and radiation.”

Kennedy said he selected a team of neuro-oncologists from Boston’s Massachusetts General Hospital and Duke University Medical Center.

Friedman is chief of the division of neurosurgery in the surgical department at Duke and also co-director of the neuro-oncology department there. His clinical interests are brain tumors, skull-based tumors, peripheral nerve surgery, pituitary tumors and cerebrovascular disaster, according to his resume on the Web site of Duke Medical Center.

All our prayers and good wishes are with Senator Kennedy and his family today.

Update: Senator Kennedy’s surgery is complete and his surgeon has delivered his first statement:

“I am pleased to report that Senator Kennedy’s surgery was successful and accomplished our goals. Senator Kennedy was awake during the resection, and should therefore experience no permanent neurological affects from the surgery.

The surgery lasted roughly three and a half hours and is just the first step in Senator Kennedy’s treatment plan. After a brief recuperation, he will begin targeted radiation at Massachusetts General Hospital and chemotherapy treatment. I hope that everyone will join us in praying for Senator Kennedy to have an uneventful and robust recovery.”

HT:Drudge

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