Hello,
My 78year old Mum was diagnosed with incurable oesophogeal cancer last March after we'd noticed she was losing weight and struggling to eat. The GP/Hospital acted very quickly and within a couple of months she had a stent fitted and started chemo & immunotherapy. By August it was decided to stop the chemo as it didn't agree with her and to have immunotherapy every 6weeks to manage the tumour. At the last meeting a week ago, they confirmed that the tumour hasn't shrunk or grown and there is no spread. Mum lives on her own, is fiercely independent and reluctant for any help. She still drives and gets out and about but finds eating painful with the stent. She's been given some medication to ease the pain but is reluctant to take it. Our main concern at present is the weight loss. She assures us she is eating but at every appointment more weight has been lost. We have brought her a blender so she can make soups, smoothies etc. We've tried ready meals as she gets very tired, which she can warm up. She has the fortified drinks 3x daily but still isn't getting the calories in. Unfortunately I live a couple of hours away as does my sibling so we have no idea how much she really is eating. Does anyone have any advice or experience of this? Thank you.
Hi Moonshine and a warm welcome to the Macmillan Community but I am sorry to hear about your mum.
A cancer diagnosis in the family can be such a challenging and stressful time but getting support from others who are dealing with the ‘exact same' support challenges can help you a lot.
The Community is actually divided into dedicated Support Groups (Discussion Rooms) so can I recommend you look to join and post in our dedicated…….
……. support group.
This group is a safe place to talk to others who may have a similar diagnosis, treatment experience, to ask questions and get support from family members who are navigating the same support journey.
As for the practical and emotional challenges of supporting your mum and indeed yourself and the ready if the family you may benefit from joining and posting in our general cancer……
Carers only (if you are her caregiver)
Supporting someone with incurable cancer
……. support areas where you will connect with a wide range of members navigating the exact same support challenges.
To connect with a group click on the “Bold Links” I have created above …… then once the group page opens click in the [Black - Click to Join - Banner] that appears at the bottom of the page and this will then confirm that you have joined the group.
When you are ready……. you can introduce yourself by putting up your very own post by clicking [+ Create new post] or [+] in the top right of the group page.
You can copy and paste the text from this post into your new post.
It is an emotional time supporting family so you might find this Macmillan information your feelings when someone has cancer helpful as well as this link getting help with your emotions.
The Macmillan Support Line is open between 8am-8pm (timings may differ across services) 7 days a week on 0808 808 00 00…… this service provides cancer information, practical information, emotional support, benefits and financial guidance or just a listening ear.
Talking to people ‘face to face’ can be very helpful so do check to see if you have any Local Macmillan Support in your area, do also check for a local Maggie's Centre as these folks are amazing.
Do get back to me if you need further help navigating the community.
