March 21, 1994,

Dear Family and Friends,

On December 6, I went on medical disability leave from Turner Broadcasting System, Inc..  My doctors had been encouraging such a leave since early 1993, when I experienced a barrage of both spinal and knee problems that had continued to worsen with each passing month.  With the recent arrival of a new wave of corporate management, the imminent reorganization of many of the divisions within TBS, and the progressive worsening of my physical condition, the timing seemed ideal for me to stop putting myself through what had become a grueling, daily ordeal of struggling to go to work, while rapidly deteriorating both physically and mentally.  Obviously, this was not an easy decision because I've never wanted to think of myself as "disabled", but I believe that God paved the way for my much needed departure and its timing through all of the circumstances at hand.

In December and January, I went to Piedmont Hospital for several rounds of tests (i.e. myelogram, discogram, CT scans, and MRI) to assess the severity of my spinal condition.  The verdict was not good, as I have three more degenerated and/or ruptured disks in my back.  My neurosurgeon and two spinal orthopedic surgeons agree that I need to have additional back surgery (lumbar fusion), and they need to redo one of the two disk fusions that was done in 1989 because it hasn't healed (i.e. the bone grafts failed!).

A decision for additional surgery has been difficult because of the obvious severity of the operation and because I learned from a rather biased "20/20" broadcast on December 17, that the fusion technique that was used on me in 1989 (i.e. fusion with pedical screws bolted to the spine) is under a full-scale, federal investigation.  Apparently, the use of this "experimental technique" has never been approved by the F.D.A. and is leaving some people with intractable pain and severe disability.  In agreeing to additional surgery, I've needed some reassurance that I'm not going to make matters worse than they already are, so I've sought the opinions of four specialists, including the advice of the orthopedic surgeon who has done five of the eight knee operations performed on me since 1965, and they all agree that the technique is sound and that there is a good chance for some improvement, although there is no guarantee.

As of this writing, I am scheduled for surgery at Emory University Hospital on April 12, 1994.  The surgery will be performed by Dr. William Horton, the spinal orthopedic surgeon who did my previous back surgery at Piedmont Hospital with Dr. Dale Richardson, my neurosurgeon, in 1989.  Dr. Horton is a renowned specialist in diseases of the spine and is an associate to Dr. Tom Whitesides at the Emory Spine Center.  Because of Dr. Horton's relocation to Emory in 1989, I've had to choose between him and Dr. Richardson.  I've chosen Dr. Horton because eighty percent of the surgery is orthopedic in nature, and I'd prefer to stick with a doctor in whom I have the utmost confidence, rather than risking an unsuccessful outcome with an unfamiliar, and perhaps less qualified, orthopedic surgeon at Piedmont.  I regret that Dr. Richardson cannot be involved, but since he has no professional privileges at Emory, there's no choice.

Many of you have mentioned to me that you are praying for me.  I am very much in need of your prayers and hope that you will remember me in this regard throughout the coming months.  In 1989, my close, personal friend, Susan Kuebbing, brought me chips, salsa, and cheese dip from El Toro's while I was in the hospital recuperating from back surgery.  Susan's untimely death in July of 1990 has left a void that can never be filled, but I hope that someone out there can learn from her example of generosity and friendship by making sure I don't go into El Toro's "detox shock" while I'm hospital confined.  I know that God will bless you if you minister to this need  (my "Last Will and Testament" is to be buried on the lawn at El Toro's so they can throw their daily leftovers on the ground in my direction!).

Obviously, I do expect to survive this operation, and I'm confident that, in any event, there will be Mexican food in Heaven!  So join me in my faith and confidence that God is in control and will bring healing to both my back and my knees in His time.  The root of both problems is said to be a genetic abnormality called "degenerative joint disease," which I was born with and which is aggravated by injury and the aging process (I am now over twenty-five!!).

Thanks for all of your prayers and support!  I expect to be in the hospital for ten days to two weeks.  Overall recovery is expected to take at least a year, at which point I hope to be released to swim several thousand meters per week in a lap pool.  Once my back is stable, I'll begin working on physical therapy for both my back and knees.  I'll try and keep you updated in the months to come.  I plan on finishing a book I started writing in 1987 while I'm recuperating; it's about eighty percent complete.  Be praying for a publisher "who likes to take chances with unpublished writers!"

God Bless!
Margie Y. Cash

P.S. Chip is fine!  He'll hold down "the fort" while I'm in the hospital.  I'm sure he'd appreciate a call or a visit while I'm in the hospital.  Thanks!