It's almost a month since my new cancer journey started. I have been thinking a lot about that timeline today and I need to put it down to demonstrate just how amazing the NHS is.
October 15th 2013 - Secondary Bowel Cancer (Peritoneal disease & Liver Mets) diagnosed
October 16th 2013 - St Luke's called to arrange my first three appointments
October 17th 2013 - 4 units of Blood Transfused in Comet Ward at Crawley Hospital
October 21st 2013 - Initial nurse led chemotherapy information appointment at St Luke's
October 23rd 2013 -PICC line in (St Luke's)
October 24th 2013 - first chemo & last breastfeed (St Luke's)
October 26th 2013 - 5FU Pump disconnected (Cardiff!!)
October 30th 2013 - first PICC line flush and redress (Crawley)
November 4th 2013 - Family flu jabs (GP)
November 5th 2013 - Pre Chemo bloods (GP)
November 6th 2013 - Chemo round 2 (St Luke's)
November 7th - November 10th 2013 - Emergency Admission with acute pain (East Surrey), including 2nd 5FU pump disconnection, and 2 unit blood transfusion.
November 11th 2013 - Imogen gets UTI (GP)
November 13th 2013 - Counselling for the children at St Catherine's Hospice, Crawley & PICC line flush & redress (Crawley).
Still to come before my next chemo appointment
November 14th 2013 - Isaac's first play date ;)
November 15th 2013 - Tony comes back from Liverpool!!
November 18th 2013 - washing machine to be repaired!!
November 19th 2013 - pre chemo bloods (GP)
November 20th 2013 - chemo number 3 THE HALF WAY POINT.
We would not have got this far without everyone who has offered their services to us. Whether it has been doing a load of washing, hosting a Halloween party and feeding the children, cooking meals for our freezer, coming round to make me do something creative, providing all the generous and unexpected items for our boxes and bags of love, picking up the children, dropping off the children and just being there and helping me feel like a normal member of society.
You know what you have done, if we have not taken you up on your offer, do not be offended. Unfortunately cancer is not a sprint, it's not even a normal marathon, I am facing marathon upon marathon upon marathon. Several things have happened this week to remind me that this is not a project with a definite end date. This is an unknown quantity that is going to be hanging around for years and years.
We are so grateful for all the support and help we cannot say thank you enough, but if I don't get back to you straight away or I ignore you for a couple of days, it's nothing personal, sometimes I just need space to process things alone. Keep pestering me and I will respond it just might take me a while. This has hit like a tonne of bricks, and I have not really had the time to just sit so please indulge me if & when I do.
But incase you didn't get it yet.....THANK YOU FROM ALL OF US
About this Blog
This blog started as an online diary and place for me to rant about annoyances in my family.
However since July it has become a place for me to catalogue and express my views and opinions on the treatment I have recieved following the diagnosis of a potentially cancerous tumor in my bowel.
On 3rd August 2011 I was told that it was cancerous. In April 2012 I was given the all clear.
October 15th 2013 I was diagnosed with peritoneal disease and liver metastases. The cancer was back and this time it is inoperable.
It is a little bit out of date as the NHS doesn't tend to have a WiFi connection in hospital and I can only post when I get home and posts take a while to write.
It is NOT about individuals or the nursing profession. It is about some of the inadequacies in the system and the way the NHS is failing some people.
For more inane ramblings, follow me on twitter
To see my crafty loves follow me on Pinterest
Why not like my new Facebook page
http://www.
Or follow my photographic craziness on instragram
Showing posts with label GP. Show all posts
Showing posts with label GP. Show all posts
Wednesday, 13 November 2013
Saturday, 21 September 2013
Moving forwards
Earlier this week following my disappointing colonoscopy, I managed to get one of those rare things, A same day GP appointment. I don't quite know how I managed it? I wasn't on the phone constantly pressing redial at 8am when the lines opened, instead I called about 9.10, when we got back from dropping Isaac at school and was able to get an appointment for later that morning.
Please don't hate me.
Why did I feel the need to go back to the GP? Well, I weighed myself again & was shocked to say the least, ready for it??
58.4kg, that's under 9.5stone, that definitely makes me underweight. It means I've lost about a stone in the last 6 weeks. This shouldn't have happened, I've been eating better - jacket potatoes, salad, soup, chilli, tuna and lots of fruit - plums, apples, pears, melon, grapes, bananas.
When I walked into the GP's room he took one look at me and made me stand on the scales. Finally someone agreed with me.
'There is definitely a problem he said.
We talked some more about my bowel issues, the clear colonoscopy, the referral for an endoscopy.
He agrees with me that my body is not processing something. He kept mentioning malabsorption issues. I bought up the coeliac connection and he has agreed to test for it, alongside a plethora of other blood tests and stool samples.
So, my endoscopy letter came today, it's on Friday. Not sure whether to go for the local anaesthetic or the sedation again? I am inclined to go for sedation given the discomfort I experienced when having an NG tube inserted almost 2 years ago.
Blood tests are also on Friday, it does take a couple of weeks for results, but hopefully we are moving towards some answers.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)