Even longer marathon at Christie's

In the context of the seismic changes taking place in the Middle East and the hundreds of people dying for democracy, it seems very self-indulgent to be blogging about my health concerns, but in the classic phrase from Mastermind – “I’ve started, so I’ll finish” – but I’ll keep this short.

I decided to go ahead with the 3^rd dose of chemo yesterday, despite my trepidations about the likely cumulative effect of it.  The day at The Christie was even more of a marathon than before – 15 hours in total.  The treatment centre had 5 fewer staff than needed and too many patients booked in.  I didn’t finish on the drip until 1am, and wasn’t the last one to leave.  The staff didn’t allow the stress and the late working hours to change their behaviour towards the patients and were very cheerful and efficient, but they shouldn’t have had to tolerate the situation, nor should the patients have had to suffer such delays and additional stress.  I shall be putting in a complaint to the Chief Executive of the Trust.  

Anyway, today (as with the previous pattern) I’ve felt very well and able to eat normally.  I expect the real problems to kick in tomorrow, but Peter is here and staying overnight and my sister (Barbara) is coming tomorrow, then Karen is back on Saturday, so I shall be well looked after. I couldn’t have wished for better supportive care.  I expect to be out of contact for at least 2 weeks, but will then hopefully be back in touch and able to catch up with everyone’s news 

Poorly but still optimistic

I know its been 2 weeks since my last posting, but I’ve really been too ill to focus on it.  My reaction to the 2^nd dose of chemo on 2^nd February was much worse than the first.  I didn’t have an infection and I didn’t have the thudding ache all over my body that I had the first time, but I felt more nauseous and generally unwell for much, much longer.  In fact, I felt so bad that I was contemplating not continuing with doses 3 and 4 – reasoning that I’d rather have a shorter lifespan feeling well than a longer one feeling like sh…..!  By the time of the review meeting at the Christie yesterday, I was feeling a good deal better (although not as well as I’d felt after the first dose), but very breathless, and had decided to ask for a week’s deferral for dose 3 on the grounds that I was not strong enough to withstand it.

I saw a different doctor who was very forthcoming and explained a lot of things about the chemo and the life expectancy - basically - for patients with non-small cell lung cancers who respond to the chemo, life expectancy increases to 2 years (or more with further treatment) so they do recommend continuing.  The X-Ray and blood tests showed no fluid on the lung or infection (possible causes of the breathlessness) and no progression of the cancer.  He thought that I would feel much better by next week (23^rd) and so shouldn’t yet cancel the appointment.  However, if I continue to feel bad by Tuesday, I've to phone the specialist nurse and they will defer the treatment for a week and arrange a CT scan so they can really check the impact of the chemo so far.  I’m happy with that arrangement and in fact do feel a lot better, and a lot less breathless, today.  

Linda was brilliant at the Christie and pushed me in a wheelchair from the treatment centre to the x-ray, then to the cafe to get lunch and then to the afternoon clinic (after the doctor had chance to examine the x-rays and the blood samples (I think she was knackered though). I got a taxi home and slept for an hour and felt a lot better afterwards.

To all those who have sent me e-mails, cards and letters, please accept my apologies for not replying.  Now that I’m feeling so much better, I will get round to it in the next few days, and I will post a blog update next Thursday.

Two chemos down, two to go.

Just a short posting to say that since the last posting I have felt relatively well, but the 2^nd chemo session at The Christie yesterday was even longer than the 1^st one (didn’t finish till 10.30pm) – partly because the blood samples weren’t taken till 9am (half an hour after my appointment) and it took 3 hours to analyse them and make up the chemicals for the drips.  Then there were delays in the treatment room and I wasn’t called up till 2.30pm (good job I’d brought a good supply of food).  The nurse struggled to find a good enough vein for the cannula.  After 2 attempts, he called a senior nurse who managed to find one straight away (so I have 3 bruises rather than only 1), and then the drips were started around 3pm.  Visitors all arrived on time to entertain me, but I was a bit too tired to fully appreciate them (did enjoy Drew’s holiday photos of Ramblers holiday in Turkey though).

Today has been a good day (as per the 1^st chemo session) so I’m preparing to be hit hard tomorrow and for the next few days.

However, my problems have been as nothing compared with what Karen and Peter have had to cope with.  On Monday morning, Karen was de-icing the windscreen of her car, parked in Northampton outside the house of the friend she stays with when down there, when a car crashed into it (narrowly missing her legs).  The car being driven by someone who hadn’t properly de-iced their windscreen and didn’t see Karen’s parked car!!  Eventually police cleared all away, but Karen had to spend the rest of the day negotiating with insurance company and getting car taken away and a courtesy car arranged.  This turned out to be a huge car and an automatic which she didn’t feel comfortable driving.  Then the garage decided that her car was actually drivable and so the courtesy car was taken back.  But, her car had to be left in Northampton to be fixed and so Karen had to come back to Manchester by train on Wednesday.  There are some other complicating factors with the car (including the MOT being due and her need to get it to Heathrow (and park there) while she is away in 2 weeks time) but it would take too long to describe it all.  As if that wasn’t enough, Jenny (Peter’s partner) heard that her mother (who lives in Johannesburg) has had a serious stroke and so she is going to fly over tomorrow and Peter is going with her for support.  A slight positive bit to add to that is that Jenny has put Karen on her car insurance so that she has something to drive here while Jenny and Peter are away.  

So is this family jinxed or what?  Peter says crises are like buses – nothing for ages and then 3 or 4 come at once!