the cyst is dead

post-cyst, originally uploaded by Len Taing.

i had the surgery to remove the cyst on the back of my leg on monday. everything was routine and painless (an odd experience for someone like me). i laid on my belly for about 30 minutes, and was wide awake during the whole procedure. the only unnerving part was when the surgeon cauterized the bleeding, and i smelled my own burning flesh wafting toward me (conjures up smells of burnt porn rinds). magically, i felt nothing.

the surgeon said that the cyst was HUGE! and that he had to cut pretty deep to get it all out. as a result, he said, i’ll have a permanent divot in my leg to go along with the awesome surgery scar. today was my first chance to see the site myself, and overall, i’m pleased with how it looks–the site doesn’t look that big, and everything looks pretty normal. of course, the bandage is still on, but i’ll take concave (divot+scar) over convex (cyst) any day. i guess these are the perks of having a plastic surgeon do the procedure.

i have to keep my leg under compression with the same wrap that they use on horse legs (i think its a classic plastic surgery trick to promote healing), and in about three weeks he’ll remove the stitches.

i asked if it was cancerous–and he said that it looked like a cyst to him. so there you have it people, it was just a big ‘ole cyst.

in a completely unrelated note: he prescribed vicodin as a pain killer, and being a fan of House MD, i looked forward to partake. but i have to say that i’m pretty disappointed in its effectiveness…is house popping sugar pills?–can some corroborate that vicodin actually works?

01-28-09 update:
it took longer than expected to heal completely, but the site looks really nice! (i might post a picture, but i sense that you guys might be sick of looking at pictures of the back of my leg). the scar is about 1 cm long, and is barely noticeable. again, let me repeat: if you are going to have any surgery done, you should get a plastic surgeon to do it! the dermatologist that i went to in june said that the scar was going to be 6 cm long. 6 cm vs 1 cm–not that i care, but i’m really amazed at how skillfully Dr. L* carved up my leg .

so after the surgery, i think that Dr L* (accidentally) severed a nerve–and so there was this dead spot on my leg where i couldn’t feel anything. i told Dr. L* about it, and he said that i may regain sensation in that spot. after showering one day, i dried off my leg, and i felt this strange sensation: my leg hairs were hurting! the next day, my leg hairs stopped hurting, and i got sensation back in the dead spot! (i think that leg-hair nerves were recruited to take over) neural plasticity rocks!

~ by lentaing on November 21, 2008.