Wednesday 11th May 2005.
This is a post script from yesterday...
The hospital had arranged for me to see a welfare rights officer at 2.50pm before my treatment at 3.50pm to see if he could find anyway to help me get any benifits while I'm going through this and not able to work. As I walked past Mandy's (cancer nurse) room she saw me and asked if I had a few minutes to spare, she asked me how I was and was there any problems I told her my throat felt really sore and I could feel a lump in it. She told me exactly what the nurse had said yesterday about it being normal but she said she'd have a look just in case there was an infection then if there was she could give me something for it. It was fine and looked normal for what I was going through as she backed away she commented on how well my neck looked and that it wasn't as red as she expected it would be by now and asked if I was using the cream. I told her I was and she said that my skin must have good healing properties as it looks really well.
After we had finished our chat I went to the reception and said that I was very early because I was seeing someone else first but thought I'd better check in, the radiotherapy nurse said that they had got the machine fixed sooner then expected and that I could go in in 15 minutes, I told her that I was meeting someone at about that time, so she suggested that I go and tell them that I could have treatment earlier then expected and that she was sure they wouldn't mind waiting a few minutes. She was right, The couple we saw the other Saturday was in the waiting room, he was hooked up to a drip so I went across to see how he was doing. He'd been admitted again on Monday as he still wasn't eating and he isn't allowed to leave hospital until he does, he asked if I could still taste food I said I could he said hang onto it as long as you can because it goes and food just doesn't taste of anything at all. He also said keep doing that and he indicated to my bottle of water because he hadn't been doing it as much as he should and they think that is what is causing the problems he's having at the moment, my water bottle never leaves my side and never has done since I started my treatment as that is one of the things they told me to do and that was drink plenty so even when I'm at home I alweays have a drink of some sort in front of me. He also asked about the skin on my neck I told him it wasn't too bad and his wife leaned forward and said you can hardly see it, he said are you using the cream I told I was he said so am I four times a day and look at mine, he lifted his chin up and it was a really dark red, so is this something else I have to look forward to as my treatment progresses? As this was my 10th day and it was his 19th. I like to know how people are doing but seeing someone going through what he is and me having the same cancer as him it's something I could do without seeing. It kinda scares me and makes me wish it was all over with. Anyway, as soon as I'd finished in the treatment room I saw the guy I was supposed to see and was walking out of the hospital at 3.05pm!

Nothing to report today as far as my treatment is concerned arrived 10 minutes before my appointed time, was called in right on time and left ten minutes later, I like it like that..smiles..
The worst part of my day was when our GP came to see my dad, she told him that his cancer in his bladder had grown so that it's now inoperable, it's also spread to his liver, kidney and possible his brain it's also returned to his lung. She was really very good at talking with him and answered all questions and told him that even though they can't cure him now they would make him as comfortable as possible. There was one question he didn't ask so as my brother and I saw the doctor to her car we asked her in her opinion how long she thought he had left. She said that she couldn't see him lasting much longer than 3 months! Even though he is ill and you can tell he is he doesn't look "that" ill we're hoping she's got it wrong.