2 years ago we began the scary journey of cancer,my hubby was 61 and a non smoker who was never ill with anything serious in our 42 years of marriage,we started our lives together back in 1984 so you can maybe imagine how this diagnosis hit us like a ton of bricks ,he had started with a pain in his chest which was so bad he took himself to the A and E department who checked him over for heart problems etc and were unsure why he was in so much discomfort after explaining that he had his gastro reflux medicine had recently been changed he asked them to send him to have the camera investigate his ousophagus,and appointment arrived and they found he had a small tumour,he phoned to tell me what they found and I will never forget the sound of utter disbelief in his voice,things moved quickly he went through chemo and then was booked in to have surgery,it was a big operation but he came through it remarkably, even his surgeon couldn't believe how fast he was getting better and 10 days later he came home with a feeding tube to help him keep up his strength, he hated having it in but you go through the recommendation of the dietician,after a short time recovering he saw his surgeon who told him that in his cancer removal they had found no cancer cells and also in a lymph node that they removed it was as good as it got he was informed,he was going to complete everything with another round of chemo in a few months time giving him chance to be fit and well to understand go it , when he went to have his line put in he developed a weekening in his right leg which was so bad he couldn't walk out of the ward ,so suspecting a stroke as his pressure was elevated he had a scan,this showed up 2 fissures on his brain which had developed swelling around it causing the problems with his leg ,yet again he was fortunate that they were very small and he was sent to queen Elizabeth in Birmingham to have radiotherapy with what they called a cyber knife ,he has this done and then for the next nearly 12 months given regular scans showing no cancer.....this brings me to our present situation in that in last few months started having a weakness in his left side which slowly got worse and I called the specialist cancer nurse who told us to get booked into And E and they would send him to the ward ,so he has another tumor and now awaiting a phone call from his consultant to inform him of the way forward and results of his scans a couple of weeks ago,we know they have been forwarded to QE hospital again,in the last 6 months he has lost his job and he has had numerous job interviews,the strength of character he has amazes me ,home life has been very stressful as a family,the steroids he takes makes him irritable and out of character,that is our story so far and I hope I've not gone on too much,but it's my way of reaching out to others who can understand, Macmillan are helping us to sort through financial help as up to date we have used up all our savings to basically live so that's in the works , I lost my dad while all this has been going on and I miss him ,the future becomes so uncertain and frightening so any good advice I would welcome,thank you for reading x
Good evening. I am on a different journey myself . I'm newly diagnosed and post surgery with aggressive tumour. Waiting for treatment .
I just wanted to say that I am really sorry that you and your husband are in your particular situation. It is heartbreaking and distressing .
I send you love from me in Derbyshire and think you are brave to tell your story
Hi
a warm welcome to the online community and thank you for sharing your story. You've definitely not gone on too much. It's good to open up and share. I was also glad to hear that MacMillan are already on board to help you sort through things.
My personal experience lies in supporting my late husband through the three years of his stage 4 brain tumour journey so I can empathise with how uncertain things look and how scary it can feel too. I'm not big on giving advice as such but I will share the link to a community blog that I wrote during G's journey. “I’m fine”: how do you really cope as a carer? - Macmillan Online Community I hope it helps.
This is a safe and supportive space so please reach out here anytime. There's always someone about to listen who gets it, someone to hold your hand and to offer a virtual hug when its needed. You're not alone. We've got you.
It’s always good to talk so please remember that you can also call the Macmillan Support Services on 0808 808 00 00 - most services are open 8am to 8pm, 7 days a week Clicking here to see what is available. This service provides lots of cancer information, emotional support, benefit and financial guidance or just a listening ear.
For now though I'm sending you a huge virtual hug and lots of positive energy.
love n hugs
Wee Me xx
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