Hi everyone.
My Mum has just had her radical hysterectomy for stage 3c1 cancer. She previously had chemoradiation last year and chemo and immunotherapy this year. We are all hoping that this surgery has removed her cancer and that this will be the end of her treatment.
I am her 21yr old son and feeling nervous about the future beyond cancer treatment. This whole journey has been quiet impactful on me but I also feel apprehensive about it ending and moving forward from this. I am worried that I will always fear her cancer coming back or it impacting someone else that I am close to. I am not sure what life will look like if this surgery is the end of her treatment. I have been living in this cancer world for nearly a year since my mum was diagnosed and it is scary that this way of living and routine of her chemo and immunotherapy sessions may be coming to an end. Not sure if this makes sense but wanted to get it off my chest and speak to people who might understand.
Hi Cha03 and welcome to the group.
You asked if how you were feeling made sense and I think yes, absolutely it does. It’s scary to have anyone in your family go through cancer treatment, and surgery, and be powerless to help change things or make it better, and cancer has a huge effect on all the family.
You’ve seen your mum go through a lot of treatment, and when that finishes, it can be scary to think of the future and what it will be like. It’s very normal for both the patient and family members to feel like that.
It’s very unusual to have a radical hysterectomy after treatment for stage 3 cervical cancer, but the doctors must have considered it would have a good chance of success, so try to focus on that. You mentioned she had just had the surgery, so it will be a wait now for the pathology results to confirm whether it’s been completely successful and whether further treatment is required.
That period of waiting can be challenging to deal with, so if you’d like to talk to someone, please remember that the support helpline is available to you too, even though you’re not the patient. You are very welcome to call( the number is in my signature) and there will be someone you can chat to about any fears or worries you have. They are there to listen and offer support to you in dealing with this.
I hope your mum is recovering well and taking things very easy. It takes time to recover from this surgery as I know myself from my own experience. You sound like a very caring son, and I’m sure you will be doing the best you can to help as much as possible. Feel free to post in the group whenever you’d like to, and ask any questions if you need to.
Sarah xx
