Daughter's cancer

1 minute read time.
Hi, I just recently joined, having been on the 'other side', the Macmillan Share site, for almost a year now. Our lass, C has had lymphoma now for over 4 years, diagnosed 20th October 2004. she has had a great deal of treatment, all the usual 'gold standard' stuff, ABVD, ESHAPP, BEAM, Radiotherapy, nothing killed this stuff off so she had a trial drug at the Christie hospital, a 12 week once weekly infusion which ended in September 2006. Miraculously, ever since then she seems to have been relatively 'stable'. she is checked every 3 months, scanned every 6 months so she doesn't add too much radiation to her system. The trial drug didn't do as well as the drug company had hoped so was withdrawn. C is remarkably well, following her career which is also her hobby! She has put on a bit of weight, being a very slim young woman, so that was good to see. She says that her cancer, like her, is obstinate! She had such a tough time with the stem cell treatment, the BEAM,( wanting just to die, she felt so ill) and wishes she never ever has to face a donor transplant, so was pleased when she was told of further trials for refractory lymphoma like hers. We carry on waiting and hoping that she will keep as well as she is now.
Anonymous
  • FormerMember
    FormerMember

    For a moment I thought I might need the services of a good medium when you said you had been "on the other side" lol!  Welcome to the site and thank you for sharing your daughter's story.  I can imagine (as a mother myself) how worried and concerned you must be about her but she seems to be a fighter and very lucky to have such a supportive family. I hope that her journey continues to have lots of positive moments and that you will continue to share here (including the not-so-good times) so that we can support YOU.

    Take care

    pheonix  xxx

  • thanks for talking to me, it all helps! It's so good to know there are folk out there who care, as well as having this uninvited squatter in their lives too!

    She is still really well, which i think mystifies her Professor consultant, he has been monitoring her himself on her 3 monthly clinic appointments, unusual for a high-flying chap like him! In fact, the appointment before this one was quite remarkable, we both had to get on the train up from the south, she from london, me from 50 miles further north, we arranged to get on the same train. She had to get back to London to go on stage by 5pm, so they had been warned that her clinic time would need to be speedy! She was called in to have her blood test within moments of us arriving (having shared a taxi from the station) and she was called into the room ready for the Prof before she had finished the blood test, Prof came almost immediately, and we actually had to wait till the blood result came back from the lab ( usually fast) before we went, she caught an earlier train than she was planning!

    Pheonix, I do hope all is going well for you, and you are feeling well too, not the same thing, i know!

    thanks again for replying to my blog, love and hugs, Helen xxxxxxx

  • Our lass has just recently got back from India,(Mumbai) she hasn't really seen such a poor country before, and was also surprised about the totally mad driving, nobody takes any notice of traffic rules like traffic lights, and all drivers seem to have hands on horns all the time! (her Dad and I saw this on a holiday in Cairo, so it was no real surprise!) She just loved all the vegetable curries, though!

    She is busy now working near home, enjoying the fact she can get home after a concert! She is normally such a jet-setter that to work near home is a real treat! No suitcases!

  • She has been here overnight, bless her, after a spell working 'down south', its a trek back to her place so she often comes and stays over, its good to see that she still looks great.

    I keep hearing of folk with her degree or worse, of HL, have had lots of treatment, like her, who are in remission, and while i am thrilled for them, it does hurt a wee bit for our lass who still, we think, has active cancer. I guess this sort of envy is a very normal human state to be in!

    Her next adventure will be to teach in Peru, and Morocco, where she has never been, and Spain again, where she has taught low brass courses for a couple of years now, last year there, she even taught the chap who was her teacher himself, before she had gone off to Conservatoire! He just loved it!  

    More performing to come, too, in orchestras and big bands around the UK, more teaching too in the UK, mostly in London.

    we continue.....

  • Our lass will be in the band on the Chris Moyles show on Channel 4 !

    (one very proud mum)