I began the day by having an MRI procedure...

Doctors have poor penmanship, new software needs to be tested, and medical technology is rapidly advancing. All of these things had to combine just right or I may not be able to tell this story. Sound strange? Let me explain.

The luckiest day of my life did not start with me feeling lucky. I began the day by having an MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) procedure. I had been having neck and shoulder pain and my doctor wanted to rule out disc problems. A co-worker told me the machine was small, scary and loud, so I was really dreading the whole thing.

I didn’t know ahead that they were going to inject me with radioactive fluid, but I didn’t think to question it when they said they needed to. So they put the needle into my arm, I felt a rush of heat come over me and I was put into the machine. In minutes it was over. Relieved, I put on my clothes and headed toward the door through the lobby.

I was almost out when I heard my name. I turned and saw an older gentleman motioning for me to come back. The man was noticeably pale and nervous as he introduced himself. “I am Dr. Clark, head of radiology, and we need to talk. Please sit.” He directed me to a nearby chair.

Dr. Clark began by telling me that the technician had misread the writing on my doctor’s orders. As a result, I was injected with radioactive fluid. That should not have been done. He apologized and continued by telling me that the technician had then used the results of my test to test new detection software. He took a deep breath and told me that the mistakenly administered test indicated a problem. The new software had found a brain aneurysm in the left side of my brain.

This was the first time in 20 years of practice that he had located an aneurysm before it had caused any ill effect. It was a “one in a million” catch. He explained that the aneurysm was large and could burst or leak at any time. If that happened, I could suffer brain damage or die. Something had to be done to correct the aneurysm right away.

I was referred to a neurosurgeon in Kalamazoo. The surgery would entail cutting into the brain and putting a clamp on the aneurysm. The surgeon said he wanted to be sure I understood that there is a real chance of brain damage or death with the procedure.

Fortunately, I have a cousin who is a neurosurgeon in Kentucky. I hadn’t seen him in years, but in desperation I called him. He said there was a brand new procedure being used by a Dr. Devacus at the University of Michigan. With the new procedure they could inject a hair-thin platinum wire through the arteries to form a coil that seals the aneurysm. There would be no need to cut into my head.

I was crying when I dialed the phone. I expected to reach a nurse, but Dr. Devacus answered the phone himself. After I explained the situation, he asked me to send the MRI results to him by overnight express. He must have received them early the next morning because before noon I received the only phone call I have ever received from an airplane. It was the University of Michigan’s head of neurosurgery. He had his nurse schedule a diagnostic angiogram to be sure I was a good candidate for the procedure. The test came back positive and Dr. Devacus did the procedure the following day. I only had to spend one day in the hospital.

I was one of the first patients to ever have the procedure and I am happy to tell you that everything went fine. I have had no side effects. My last follow-up angiogram report said, “Cured, no further follow up needed.”

It was a happy ending to a truly life-changing experience. And, to think my luckiest day all happened because my doctor has poor penmanship and I was there when they tested new software.