By Shelley Smith
ssmith@salisburypost.com
Officer Ian Lance made it through his nearly seven-hour surgery Friday, losing about 50 percent of his blood. And his parents are hoping God will heal him — and fast.
The Salisbury Police Department granted Officer Ian’s biggest wish Wednesday as Ian and his family met Salisbury Police Chief Rory Collins and other officers and were given a tour of the department.
Sunday night Ian was in the intensive care unit at Duke University Medical Center, with one partially collapsed lung and one fully collapsed lung and is in a lot of pain, his mother Angela said.
“He’s okay, he’s just tired,” Angela said. “His little body has been through so much.
“They said this type of surgery is just about the most painful you can ever have.”
Friday’s surgery was to replace hardware in Ian’s spine, which is twisting and growing to the side. Ian’s surgeon operated on two sites at once, putting two rods and 13 screws in his spine. In order to replace things, the doctor had to break one of Ian’s ribs and collapse his left lung.
But the lung was supposed to inflate quickly, and hasn’t, Angela said. Saturday the lung was starting to inflate a bit, but on Sunday morning doctors discovered Ian’s right lung had collapsed.
Ian was taken off of a ventilator Saturday, and is using an oxygen mask. If he’s put back on the ventilator, Angela fears Ian could face pneumonia.
“We’re still kind of on rocky ground now,” Angela said.
Doctors continue to give Ian pain medication every hour, but “it’s not even touching him,” his mother said. The physical therapy is helping a little, though, she said, and doctors will check on his lungs again this morning.
“To make it through a six-and-a-half hour surgery, he did well.” Angela said. “They anticipated eight hours.”
Another surgery success, she said, is that Ian will not have to wear a brace once he gets out of the hospital.
But the lung problems still worry Ian’s family and doctors.
“I think he’ll be fine,” Angela said. “We do want people to pray for him.”
Angela said prayers and God got Ian through his first two surgeries, and sheknows God is there with them again this time.
“We do believe in miracles,” she said.