I am writing this post to hopefully help other and if anyone wants to reach out. It is long and goes into detail.
This time last year I was so happy and everything was perfect. I gave birth to my little boy on the 25th July 2019 and gave both sides of mine and my husband’s family their first grandchild Caleb.
Fast forward to 27th August Calebs jaundice hadn't gone so was admitted to check bloods ect. My dad also had a routine camera to check which I dropped him off to have on his “ Hiatus hernia“ as he was struggling bad with reflux.
CANCER my dad says. My world crumbled they told his straight afterwards it was definitely cancer and they need to get cut scans and this looked at ASAP.
9th September 2019 we got the full diagnosis. T4 N3 M1 oesophagus cancer which had spread throughout lymph nodes right around his body. Devastated as my dad was totally fine weighing around 16 stone and literally no problems eating.
he soon started treatment and lucky for him started on immunotherapy clinical trial.
fast forward to February 2020 he was doing great his cancer had shrunk by about 60% and things looked great. He has lost abit of weight and was admitted to rehydrate and they expected a little weight loss he was about 13 stone 10. Only side effects he had from chemo/immunotherapy was tingling sensation in fingers/toes and a bit of sickness but that was all only recent.
I didn’t see him for sometime due to lockdown but how things changed. I went around to sit in garden 23rd May and I noticed he was very vague, lost a lot of weight and just wasn’t bothered which is not like him at all. I rang his clinical nurse as I was really concerned. But she assured me all this was “normal” in my gut something told me things aren’t and this was so out of character but I believed her professional opinion.
1st June 2020 we went over again and he was pretty much the same but was abit wobbly on feet. He jus had his appointment and was told they think why he’s in pain and why he is so exhausted is due to his main tumour breaking down and his overall cancer on his lymph nodes had shrunk by 75% and they said if he carries on they would say he’s got years left. Everyone was so happy and celebrating but I just couldn’t shift a horrible feeling.
24th June 2020 me and my sister went on a bike ride and we rode to see mum and dad. I was so shocked at his weight loss and he said he was struggling with food. He was due his chemotherapy the Friday and was awaiting his routing call after bloods t say everything was ok. He had his routing 6 weeks scan on the 14th May & everything was brilliant as so positive.
25th June he was admitted to hospital as his liver levels had come back abnormally high and needs to scan him to find out what was happening.
29th June mine and my dads birthday we got called in to hospital which we thought must be bad as no one was allowed in to visit dad due to COVID.
they told us his liver was failing and needed to put him on an immunosuppressant to try reverse the damage on his liver. They said the immunotherapy had started attacking dads liver which they could hopefully reverse. But did say the treatment also had stopped working and unfortunately new cancer had started growing in his abdomen and near his oesophagus. But got told there I a new treatment once the liver is sorted.
Monday 6th July my dad felt that ill and couldn’t stop been sick and his pain was 9/10 he asked the dr if he was dying. They said don’t be stupid what makes you think that. From this point my emotions were all over and I couldn’t settle. He was told treatment had started to work and if his markers carry on improving he would be home and start the tablet treatment.
9th July things changed I spoke to dad on the phone and cried at how he sounded. It didn’t sound anything like him and he said he struggled getting out of bed and soiled himself. I got a phone call 4 hrs later after taking to him t say he had started to deteriorate and that his marker levels which should be between 20-40 had risen above 500 and when he was first admitted they were 95. I was then told the devastating news he most likely only had short number of months to weeks left of things don’t improve.
Me, my sister and mum all moved into the hospital room with him as things drastically changed within every 24hr period that passed he became weaker. By Sunday the 12th I rang around all his friends to come say good bye as I new he only had days left.
he passed away with me, mum, my sister and his brother on the 15th July.
that’s how quickly things can change and I had no idea it would happened to my dad especially losing him within less then 12 months of his diagnosis.
We did manage to celebrate my little boys birthday early so he could be there and I’m truly broken he’s no with us to celebrate this Saturday.
But he is at peace.
any questions please don’t hesitate to ask.
