So this NOTES surgery story is downright wild, right??

Now, at the end of the Friday 5pm story I mentioned doctors all over the world are working on these "orifice" procedures in ways that may seem, well, a little surprising.

I figured it would be perfect blog fodder because I just didn't want to have to explain about yanking out a woman's gallbladder through her vagina on the 5pm news. Okay, I'm overstating it just to be dramatic. There is positively no yanking involved. But removing it through the vagina is precisely what some doctors are looking at. And other organs/surgeries through the rectum. And, you get the idea.

In the way way way future, it's *possible* doctors could even do surgeries like gastric bypass through an orifice. WILD.

Now, Dr. Lee Sandstrom and his surgical partner Dr. Mark Whiteford like the mouth for gallbladder removal because, well, only half of us have vaginas so they need something we all have in common.

While the test procedure involves including some extra medical instruments inserted through the abdomen ((leaving only little baby scars)), the final version of it would involve NO exterior incisions. All of it would happen right down the ol' gullet.

I'm out of here (about two hours later than I'd hoped, but what can you do).

Oh wait... I just got this in the mail.

Notice anything? It's a flyer talking about a recent event I attended called "Hats Off To The Hill" which raised $350,000 in the fight against cervical cancer. THAT'S me!! Front and center on the flyer! You open it up and it is full of awesome photos of us ladies in hats. I hung out with Dr. Druker's wife, Alex ((who is incredibly talented and brilliant in her own right)). Talk about an uber-couple. You can't help but feel like a slacker next to them. Let's see, Dr. Druker essentially invented the new frontier of cancer treatment and Alex is a journalist who has written for publications like People magazine, and in her spare time organizes events that raise boatloads of cash to save lives. Hmm, today I ate a burrito for lunch. How does that stack up? :-)

Life is good. See you Monday.
sstricklen@kgw.com