Although it was a struggle, LA Tenorio remains grateful that the health issue and the necessary minor surgery happened while he was home — and not inside the PBA bubble at the Clark Freeport Zone.
The Barangay Ginebra floor general said as much in 2OT on Wednesday night, when he opened up for the first time about his laparoscopic appendectomy that delayed his arrival in Pampanga.
“I’m still thankful kasi number one, hindi nangyari while I’m here inside the bubble. Malaking bagay din na hindi nangyari dito kasi marami akong maiistorbo pa rito,” he said, speaking from his room in Quest Hotel.
“Tsaka mahirap ang sitwasyon ko rito kasi my doctor is not here also. And siyempre mag-aalala pa pamilya ko sa’kin. ‘Di nila alam kung anong nangyayari sa’kin dito.”
The 14-year league veteran underwent the procedure several weeks ago after experiencing pain in his stomach, which, according to him, was so excruciating that he could not even sleep.
“Nag-Zoom meeting kami nung afternoon. Okay pa, nakapag-work out pa ako, although hindi ko natapos ang workout kasi sobrang sakit ng tiyan ko,” he recalled. “I thought na food poison lang ako.
“And then until night time, madaling araw, hindi na ako pinatulog. So I called our team nurse, pumunta sa bahay para bigyan ako ng dextrose, ng IV. Pumunta siya to relax my tummy. May nilagay na parang painkiller. And then in the middle of the night, wala nang sakit ‘yung buong tiyan, sa kanan-kanang part lang. But I cannot really move.”
Tenorio shared that he had hoped it was just a common case of stomach pain. But at the same time, the Ateneo de Manila product could feel something was wrong.
“Nung nag-research kami ng wife ko dahil lahat ng mga symptoms… Alam ko ‘yun na eh. Medyo kinakabahan na ako nun eh, nung masakit ‘yung right side ko nung pine-press. Parang may feeling na ako,” Tenorio said. “Pero I was still hoping na sana acid reflux lang or food poison lang. I was still hoping. Pero hindi ako pinatulog eh.”
He then decided to have it checked. “So early morning Friday, I went straight to CT scan,” he recounted, “and then pagka-CT scan ko, diretso na ako operating room. ‘Yun na ‘yun.”
It was more difficult for Tenorio since he was in the hospital all by himself. And though the procedure is minimally invasive, he still considers it as a “major operation”.
“It was really hard. Siyempre mag-isa ako, wala akong kasama and then very strict din sa hospital, hindi ka pwedeng may kasama,” he said. “It was scary because that was my first-ever major operation, first time ko talaga.
“For me, major operation na ‘yun, although it was only laparoscopic procedure. Hindi naman siya hiniwa, pero still, I mean… The idea of taking out the appendix is a major procedure for me. So that was my first-ever major operation.”
Still, Tenorio is simply happy it’s over and he’s now treading the road to recovery. His current concern is whether he can play in Ginebra’s match versus NLEX this Sunday.
His also condition threatens his Iron Man streak. Tenorio holds a record for consecutive games played at 641 — he hasn’t missed a game since entering the league in 2006.
“Day-to-day ako ngayon eh. ‘Di ko rin alam kung aabot ako Sunday,” said the 36-year-old. “But I’ll definitely be okay, probably in a week. I just have to recover lang my shape — my game shape, my body, kasi bumagsak talaga eh.
“Okay naman na, it’s just the wound outside — ‘yung butas ba — ‘yun lang ‘yung kailangan pa pagalingan pa or patuyuin. So it’s really day-to-day. [Nag-vi-]Video call every day kami ng doctor ko ngayon para lang makita niya kung okay na. But I will try. Hopefully by Friday and Saturday I can do a little bit of treadmill and biking. Hopefully.”
