Update on Tim

Tim and I went to U of M again on June 18th. This was to start the lung transplant evaluation process so Tim can get on the waiting list. We met with different people that are part of the lung transplant team. They told us about preparing for a lung transplant and some of what to expect. At the end of the day, the last person that we met with was a lung transplant surgeon. He had never met Tim before or seen his case. He told us that he didn't think it was the right time for Tim to get on the transplant list. He thinks that Tim is too healthy. It was frustrating to us. I asked the surgeon if he thought that Tim would not continue to decrease 2% per month with his diffusion capacity. He said that Tim most likely WOULD continue to decrease at that rate. Right now, Tim is at less than 29% so that does not give him very much time as it is to wait on a list for lungs. We really don't understand why this surgeon thinks it's too soon to list Tim.

I was really upset and angry that day. It just seems like time is slipping away. Many times, patients have to wait more than a year on a list before they get their new lungs. With the rate Tim's health is decreasing, it doesn't seem that he'll have enough time.

Tim is still in the process of the evaluation. He has to have some testing done on his heart and some other tests. The heart tests are scheduled for July 21st and 22nd. After that, the whole lung transplant team will get together and look over Tim's case. They will decide whether or not to list him and if they do list him, they will decide at what priority to list him. We are just praying that if the surgeon we spoke to is wrong about his opinion that the other people on the team will "Outvote" him.

We are still hopeful and positive that things will turn out well for Tim.

Financially, we are doing ok right now. We have had some help from anonymous friends along with our church and family. Tim has been approved for disability, but will not receive payment until November. We are happy to know that that is approved though.

Please keep praying for Tim, our family, the doctors, and just that God's Will will be done in our situation. We know that it's all about Him and we want Him to be glorified through all of this.