Dad recently diagnosed with Mesothelioma

1 minute read time.

Hi there,

found out last week that my dad aged 74 has Mestholemia, it was a huge shock but we knew it was something serious.  i am 33 yrs old and my brother and sister are in their 40's.  dad has never ever been ill in his life and so to start with this now is a real shame.

we have had advice from doctors etc but to be honest we are still finding it hard to understand the condition, we keep getting confliciting information and communication between hospitals and departments is terrible, he goes for appointments and no one knows anything about them !!

we are meeting with the cancer specialist on friday to see about chemo / radium, we know it wont take it away but they tell me it might slow the growth of the tumor down.  he has a plurex drain in and is draining around 100mls every 5 days, he feels really well and the only symptom he had was a cough that started 6 months ago.

my dad is confused as to how much time he may have left and also when he is likely to start feeling ill with this condition, can anyone offer an advice ??

we are all being as positive as possible and mum and dad have a holiday booked in 8 weeks, we are trying to get them insurance but its looking around £1200 for 2 weeks cover for gibraltar.

Anonymous
  • FormerMember
    FormerMember

    I am sorry to hear your sad story. It is a terrible and cruel disease.

    I lost my husband to it 4 years ago he was 64.

    He lived for 4 healthy years after diagnosis and even worked up until a week before he died.

    Things have moved on since then and there are alot more treatments on offer as you say to pospone the inevitable.

    My advise to you is to wait until your dad see's his oncologist and discuss the options.

    When you have got over the shock and things are being done to help your dad, try to be strong enough to help him through this. Make every second with your beloved dad count. Don't think about the future and what is going to happen, whislt he is well make wonderful memories together.

    My husband and I did and they are what gets me through the dark days.

    It should have been our 20th wedding anniversary today. I have wonderful memories of the anniversaries we shared we made each and everyone of them special.

    Good Luck to you and your family and especially to your dad.

    Lots of Love Julie X

  • FormerMember
    FormerMember

    Hi Shevaun,

    Very good advice from Julie. She knows what she is talking about.All the best for the future.

    Take care and be safe Big Hugs Love Sarsfield.xxx

  • FormerMember
    FormerMember

    Thanks so much, your words are very encouraging, i have been doing some research and it seems everyone who is diagnosed survives for different lengths of time.

    i am trying to be strong, i have a 2 year old little boy who keeps me smiling even when i feel very low.

    i will take your advice Julie and treasure every moment, we see the oncologist tomorrow so things should be clearer then.

    thanks again, shevaun x