Hi all,
I find myself on here as I could do with a chat from others with experience.
On Friday I attended an appointment with my 88 year old Nan where she was told she has cervical cancer 1b3. My Nan has the beginning of dementia and is hard of hearing. My Nan nursed my grandad through bowel cancer and has seen and experienced the heartbreak associated. She immediately went into panic mode and cried reminiscing. It was explained to us that she could possibly have a hysterectomy as at the moment it is contained. My Nan was confused and as always just said ‘my granddaughter will sort it’. It is very difficult to help her to understand what is happening and her options and she forgets what you have discussed and the implications. She has been told that she needs to decide if she wants the operation or not… but how can she make an informed decision if she doesn’t understand everything and her mind changes from one moment to the next.
After reading on this forum, my Nan seems to be in a much better place than many and for this I am grateful. It’s just that my Nan’s life situation is tricky at the moment and I need to know what to expect if she decides to have the surgery. My Nan lives with my aunt and they are struggling even with carers. My aunt is 64 and is in the final stage of liver disease- she is nearing end of life and cannot do anything. With the carers, each other and me doing what I can it is a struggle but we keep going. My Nan has said that she cannot cope but social services and the GP has said that as my aunt is of full capacity she can choose to stay at home.
Now Nan has this… What can I expect if she chooses to have the hysterectomy? Will she need respite somewhere to recover? There really is no chance for that to happen at her home and I need to do what’s best for her as well as my aunt.
Thanks for listening… hopefully a clear and honest picture of what lays ahead may help me to make the right decisions when supporting my Nan through this.
Hi Cherryanne and a very warm welcome to the online community which I hope you'll find is both an informative and supportive place to be.
I'm sorry to read that your nan has recently been diagnosed with cervical cancer and I know what a difficult time this will be for you all.
As you know, the online community is divided up into different support groups so I hope you don't mind me suggesting that you also join and post in the cervical cancer group, which is a great place to ask your questions, share experiences and get support.
To join just click on the link I've created which will take you directly there. You can then join and start a new post in the same way as you did here and join in with existing conversations by clicking on 'reply'.
When you have a minute, it would be great if you could pop something about your nan's diagnosis and treatment so far into your profile as it really helps others when replying to you and also when looking for someone on a similar pathway. It also means that you don't have to keep repeating yourself. To do this click on your username and then select 'Profile'. You can amend it at any time and if you're not sure what to write you can take a look at mine by clicking on my username.
x
"Never regret a day in your life, good days give you happiness, bad days give you experience"
