First Blog - My Mum's Story (and mine, I guess)

Hello there. Maybe you have read my profile, but in summary: I am 30 years old, live in Dorset with my dog. I work full time and I own a heavy horse, for whom I rent a field 6 miles from where I live and do all the work myself. I live quite a country life, have a 200 yr old terraced cottage with no heating, double glazing, modern furnishings etc!! Which suits me fine! (i'm perpetually skint, live in an overdraft and tatty clothes tho!) My Mum (Diane) on the other hand is completely different!! We hail from Hemel Hempstead and moved to Dorset in 1989 (I was 11, hence I became bumpkin-fied after little initial resistance) She is a confirmed townie and a clean and tidy freak. We often joke about her having OCD, at one point in her life the hoover never actually got unplugged and put away, in case someone dropped a crumb! She lives with her perfect partner, they married when Mum was 60yrs which was 4 years ago and they have a perfect new build bungalow, decorated completely in white, with white furniture, white carpet, drapes etc. On the rare occasion I am allowed over the threshold its like snow blindness!!! No, seriously, I am allowed in the kitchen, provided I take off my shoes. And sometimes my socks, if they have hay on them. Mum has been a smoker all her life, she gave up a few years back, then started again as she "didn't have enough to worry about". Great reason! She retired from work this March and has had a cough since then. Her lovely hubby, Neil, eventually convinced her to see the doctor and she was referred for a chest x-ray (she had packed in the fags again now for about 2 weeks). She had an x-ray about 3 years before, which was clear. This was organised at Royal Bournemouth General Hospital. They called to say there was a shadow at the bottom of her right lung and further tests would be needed. This all happened in October, she had a bronchoscopy with biopsy, a CT scan and an MRI scan on her brain. At an appointment with her Oncologist on 10th November she was diagnosed with small cell lung cancer. They were afraid it had spead to her kidneys and so a PET scan was organised, but as it would have been a 10 day wait, they gave her a full MRI instead. She was then referred to the oncologist at Poole General Hospital on Monday 17th November for the verdict. The Saturday before (the 15th) I had dinner with them. It was like the Last Supper. Having read up on the internet, I was pretty sure the prognosis would be bad. She cried and begged me not to let them make her suffer. I think my heart broke. When I went to see her Monday evening at home I feared the worst. When she told me it hadn't spread, and it was confirmed as early stage I couldn't stop crying. It felt like a reprive, my God, it was the first positive in weeks. She started chemotherapy the very next day and for another 2 days after that. There's nothing really of my Mum, she's a tiny little thing, she likes to say she is built for style ! Always loved her clothes and a very young and stylish 64yrs. I was afraid she would have a rough ride with the chemo, but she is feeling fantastic and we went out for lunch today. She says she is feeling completely transposed. Before the chemo, the cancer was making her feel severely nauseous, tired, hacking cough, zero appetite. She says she is feeling better every day and has even got her appetite back and had a steak dinner in the week. She's been shopping and got 2 bandanas and a wig (I worried she would cope badly with hair loss as she is proud of her looks, but she is such a strong old bird, I needn't have worried). She's coming up to her low immune period and so I wont be able to see her for a week, but she is pretty positive and I am hoping things will continue in this vain. The cancer nurses say she isn't an exception, that many people take chemo in their stride and have no (or very few) side effects. She is due to have chemo for 3 days (IV) every 3 weeks for 3 months, then hopefully radiotherapy to finish the bastard off. I live in hope. I must say that we seem blessed with the local health authority down here. The service has been fantastic, incredible even. So speedy and all the staff are amazing. I do hope this continues. I will let you know. Lots of love - Simone xx