My Dad 66yr old with bowel cancer stage 4 with liver mets

Hi All,

Just a quick update, mum had a rough week but is now home and enjoying being home. She is two stones heavier with fluid and the grand children dont know what to make of her new yellow look!!!  However her small liver is working well and time will take care of her new look. Will fill in later on the excellent care she received. To be honest there were a few scary moments and I still cant believe they removed so much liver. They are happy with the quality of the remaining liver .

Ann , I am  sorry to hear Nev is feeling unwell and hope they get the chemo going to help relieve that. Still trying to work out why they have kept him waiting so long!  Wishing him the very best and hoping to hear that the chemo is working well. Is it the Avastin that is holding things up ? Hope your holding up ok. This last op took a bit more out of our my dad. Really felt for him . Tough old job, so sending lots of love to you too.

Love to all out there.

Court

Hi All,

Ann , I have it in my mind that Nev was meeting with the oncologist this week. Hope he got the Avastin. Just want to let you know that I am thinking about you both.

Love to all,

Court

Hi all, Court how is your Mum doing?  I hope recovering well, and the fluid ploblems have slowly decreased, or decreasing still.  Ann, I too have my fingers crossed for you and Avastin!  Look forward to hearing how the appointment goes.  

Had a rough week really, just seem to get angry a lot about the small stuff - I think it is really sinking in, and I miss Dad so much...  We have booked  afamily holiday to the Gold Coast in Australia to have some FUN, my husband thought that our family needed something to look forward too.  Our kids and us are so looking forward to it - just what the doctor ordered!  Take care all and thinking of you all. - Jules  

Hi Jules, Great to hear from you. You have been through so much and I hope you have a wonderful time with your family. The gold coast!! Brill.My son wants us to go there. Just a LITTLE more saving. How is your mum?

Thank you for asking after mum. I think she is ok but very slowed down with the fluid which is not moving. I have bought her more clothes today to accommodate the swelling. Two years on and I too am needing an emotional break. I think its the physical changes that are getting to me. We are still pleased though and just have to accept that her recovery is slower this time.

Jules your husband is great looking out for you. I hope your holiday gives you the rest you need.

Always wishing you the best,

Court

3,2,1, I'm back in the room!  Hi all, had a few problems lately so not been around much.

Court,

How is your Mum now, is the fluid shifting yet, it must be vey uncomfortable for her, how is she otherwise, everything going the right way I hope. 

Jules,

When are you off to Australia, sounds wonderful and hopefully it will do you all good.  I think everyone gets to "angry" eventually, it all seems so bloody unfair why wouldn't you be angry.  How do the children cope with it and how is your Mum doing, I hope your uncle is not still giving her grief.

Well, Nev is not having the bowel tumour removed now, unfortunately the surgeons have not deemed it necessary to tell us or the Oncologist why!  I am livid about the way it has been handled and I was pleased to discover that the Onc. is just as annoyed.  He has written to them demanding an explanation.  In the meantime Nev is to have 5 days intensive radiotherapy, this is to stop the tumour bleeding.  He is then going back on chemo.  Oxaliplatin, 5fu and, if we get funding, Avastin, this is why they have to stop the bleeding first.  I can't wait for them to get on with it because he is really unwell again now.

Anyway, would be nice to hear from everyone else, Jacqui, I've been wondering about Alex, how are things?

One piece of good news, I've seen a few posts from Patrick recently so he obviously got through his op.

Well, Take care all

Love 

Ann xx

Hi Ann ,

Nice to hear from you. I hope the radiotherapy is going ok. No experience in this area and hope it stops the bleeding. It sounds a good combination and will do powerful things. I hope Nev feels an improvement soon. I take it the bleeding must be making him aenemic .  You must be very weary yourself as you too have been through so much.Thinking about you.

Slow progress here and not her usual bounce. The fluid will take the liver to regenerate before the fluid will drain properly.Pain relief is limited but she accepts that this is what she has to go through.

Nice to see Patrick too. Hope everyone else is doing ok. Love to all.

Court

Hello all, how are we all?  Court sorry it is taking a bit longer for your Mum to recover this time...  as long as they have sorted her pain and even if the fluid is going slowly, then things should begin to improve.  Ann, I know things are tough for you and Nev at the moment, I hope the radiotherapy helps and they can get back into chemo again soon.  I read one of your other posts, and you said Nev is down too, well I'm not bloody surprised to say the least.  When things are at a stand still, it's hard to know where you are going.  He and you are such and inpiration here too so many - keep going forward Ann, and sending strength to that awesome Nev.  Oh Court - I remember you mentioned photo's...?  How about the rest on this site, how are you all?  Jacqui, how is Al doing?   - XXX        Jules

Hi all,

Court,

How is your Mum doing, I really hope she is starting to improve now.  With Jules on the photo's - you did promise!

Jules,

How are things, is your Mum ok?

Nev just keeps throwing  'em in!  I finally got him to hospital yesterday and he has pneumonia and a collapsed lower lobe in one lung, unsurprisingly he has been feeling pretty rough!  He hasn't started his radiotherapy yet, starts Monday week for 5 days.

If anyone else is looking in we would really like o know how things are.

Take care all

Love

Ann xxx

Hi all.  Ann, so sorry to hear that things have not been great with Nev, how is his pneumonia?  I hope he is on the mend.  Excuse me if I am asking if you have already stated, but when does chemo start again for your guys, have your heard about Avastin yet?  My love and strength goes to you and Nev, you guys are amazing, hang in there Ann.  Mum is a bit up and down, we are on school holidays here at present, and had a nice dump of snow for the kids to go wild in!  Our two older girls have had turn about with Mum, doing the ice skating thing and keeping Mum busy.  I think they have all benefited from the one on one!  Mum appears to be quite angry and very short fused, hell I get why!  But is tough all around if you get what I'm saying.  She went through some of Dad's clothes in the weekend, which I didn't handle very well at all, burst into tears and wasn't much help at all.  Very hard, Mum wants to see someone else get 'use' out of them, and I just see 'DAD'.    Well all, very quite on this site, how is everyone going?  I hope as well as they can be -   Jules x

Well Hi all again.  So sorry that I have not posted on here for a long time but I really am struggling to know what to put.  I have been very down and finding everything a struggle at the moment.

Since Als last trip to the oncologist when we were told that it had spread to the spine and chest we have found it hard to be positive about anything.  We have even talked about funeral arrangements (thank god we did because I would have done it all wrong) and Al asked me the other day what did i think it would be like at the end!

He had a scan on Monday and we are now on a 5 week holiday in spain (which we have been told to come and enjoy our time as a family by the oncologist) He gets the results at the beginning of Sept when we get back.  To be honest I really don't think the lastest chemo has worked as his back is getting worse.

He is so grumpy and cross and he is just clashing with one of the boys all the time.  He seems to be finding something just to moan at and I feel I should support him as we have always shown a united front where the boys are concerned but I really cannot see what he is moaning about and why so I feel as though I should support the boys.  Then i feel guilty.  God I hate that word guilty.  If its not one emotion that makes you feel guilty it is another.

So many emotions about at the moment and not of them are nice.   Anger, sadness. dislike, hate, guilt, etc.  I cannot believe that chemo can change someone so much but he is no longer the man I married either personality or looks.  He has lost so much weight and aged so much.  We had everything and now it feels that it is slipping through my fingers.

Ann, how are you getting on with Nev.  Has he managed his scan and is the radio going to go ahead as planned.

Court. I really hope your mum is feeling a little better.

Jules. I cannot imagine what you or your mum are going through.  I hope the children are having a nice time off school. I think when you loose someone the grieving is different for everyone and when your mum feels ready to do something you might not.  Very hard.

I know I should be enjoying ourselves at the moment but there is a big black cloud above.

Take care everyone and as I am on holiday I will probably be more likely to update.

Jash