Okay you know I do the prostate thing and in fact it happens daily that I see someone in my office who comes specifically to me for advice about prostate cancer diagnosed by another doctor. These patients like their urologist…they just want the perspective of someone who treats prostate cancer and has been through it himself. I am always able to add a perspective to this particular type of patient that they have not had. They are usually amazed at all the stuff and options I present. It doesn’t hurt that I have written a book…for better or worse this does add a bit of credibility to my “second opinion.” I love giving prostate cancer decision-making second opinions. What is nice about it is that I don’t have a “dog in the fight.” I speak and advise as a third-party. It is nice. I told a guy that stopped me in church today, who wanted to come by for a second opinion, “Come by anytime. It will be fun.” He took a second look at me and I said, “Yes it will be fun and we’ll discuss things you haven’t considered.”
Anyway that is not the reason for today’s post. Let me say this being a doctor is a wonderful thing. Helping people and they are appreciative for it is a beautiful thing. My patients by and large are a very respectful and grateful bunch. I am told nice things by patients all the time and I must say it makes my job, for the most part certainly not always, a fun thing. “Enjoy your work and you’ll never work a day in your life” the saying goes.
So you didn’t know this about me…I do something that very few urologists do well and that is microscopic vasectomy reversals. Since I have my own ambulatory surgery center, an operating microscope, a staff accustomed to helping with this procedure and a knack for using the hair sized 9-0 suture I do a fair number of reversals. They take about 2-3 hours, they are tedious and since they are not covered by insurance and the fact that the success rate is not 100% it limits both the number of couples who desire the procedure and hence the number of urologists who can do them well, efficiently and in a cost-effective way. If a urologist has to do them in a hospital then the cost sky rockets.
About every month or so we get a note or call that one of the reversals resulted in a baby. And it is a wonderful thing. I never tire of someone calling to say they are pregnant or that they had a baby as a result of a reversal I have done. Last month someone had twins. And the parents are always so nice and appreciative. It truly makes my day.
So the picture above is a “success story” that we received the last week. Below is the note that accompanied the picture.
As a doctor and surgeon, ” It don’t get no better than this.” (The initial post vas reversal specimen did not show sperm and why I told the couple that the procedure may have not worked, but in this case it was a case of the testicles being slow to start producing sperm after the effect of the vasectomy.)
Dr. McHugh and staff,
We wanted to thank you for your genuine concern and sorrow after you told us that the reversal was a failure. It was a tough few months after that news. We did a lot of research and had planned on giving the surgery another try during the summer of 2012 with a doctor in Seattle. So for our anniversary in February we let loose and had a lot of fun. Little did we know that during that fun we had gotten pregnant. In March of 2012 we found out we were going to have a child and the surgery you performed worked after all. Thank you for being there before, during andafter the surgery. We waited until Liam was born, on October 26th at 8:28 pm, 7 pound 6ounces and 20.5 inches long, to email you and let you know the good news. We don’t know how to ever thank you for what you did and for what you have given us. I don’t know how we could ever be happier. Thank you and all your staff for what you did for us and for what you do each day. We are forever grateful, and Liam will too one day be grateful when we tell him about how he is a miracle baby. Again thank you from the bottom of our hearts. I have attached two pictures of a completely healthy baby and his ecstatic parents.
R.D.
Prostate Diaries 