dr. john healey prepared for battle.e that, like a warrior out on a battlefield? >> they are long, arduous procedures. it's a physical sport, if you will, and so you need to feel yourself as a warrior. >> reporter: healey's plans called for a rare surgery, one even he, a world renowned orthopedic surgeon, had only ever done twice -- remove the diseased femur, replace it with a titanium prosthesis and rebuild bruce's leg. for linda, it was yet another terrifying fight in their long campaign. >> there were so many times when we thought bruce will not come out of this. it was that scary. >> reporter: in the operating room, it was part medicine, part miracle and part magic. >> a little bit of a vaudeville act of going to a beautifully set dining room table with all of your china and crystal and silverware there, and you're trying to take out the tablecloth and leave the other things intact. >> reporter: the hours passed. bruce's leg, even his life, hanging in the balance. >> we didn't know how he was going to survive 15 hour