Warm hello and a question

Amy999 1 month ago

3 replies
104 subscribers
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Hi there,

I’ve just posted this on the general cancer forum but perhaps this is a better forum to ask - apologies if you’ve read it twice.

I was diagnosed with stage 4 inoperable bowel cancer last April at 42. I’ve been on palliative chemo ever since and recent scans showed good news, I’m not in the clear but there’s been a big improvement.

My question is: is it routine for cancer units in hospitals to not have any doctors working on weekends? Following an unexpected skin flare-up this weekend I had to rely on the 111 service on the advice of my cancer team as they don’t have doctors available (which I’m told is standard practice in the unit).

I wonder if anyone else has experienced this? I’m considering raising the lack of doctors on the ward at weekends with the hospital in question but if this is standard practice across hospitals perhaps I’ll be wasting my time. (I’m based in South Devon and treated at Torbay)

Any insights very much appreciated

Amy

Kareno62 1 month ago

Hi Amy999 and good to hear that the treatment you’re on is showing to be effective. I went through my treatment in 2016/17 and was readmitted a couple of times with issues. Yes I found that my consultant wasn’t available on the ward at a weekend and the guy doing the daily ward round was a pediatrician!
Having said that I was given a 24 hour chemo support phone number during my chemo - do you have one of those?

Hopefully someone with more recent experience will be along shortly

Take care

Karen x

Macmillan Support Line - 0808 808 00 00, 7 days a week between 8am-8pm

court 1 month ago

Hi Amy999

I think most major hospitals have on call oncologists especially if they have in patients . If it’s a smaller hospital that may change and patients would be admitted in emergency to the next teaching hospital . But good question. Be interesting to see if it could have been transferred to an on call oncologist.

Great news on your treatment . Are you on a biological agent ?
Court

Helpline Number 0808 808 0000

Marjolica 1 month ago

I also had my op on a Friday at Torbay mid -July.

I didn't see my surgeon until the Monday but other doctors came round briefly Saturday and Sunday. Needless to say nothing much of interest happened then. My only issue early on was that I had difficulty keeping food down at first and couldn't stand when the physios first tried to get me up to walk as I had low blood pressure: my BP is always low, being typically 90 when I was in hospital, but this was down at 60. But nothing that required medical intervention.