Dear readers,
Feeling good, my main complaint now is this mysterious stomach ache that comes and goes.
I am trying to pull together all the questions that I want to put to Dr Yip, my medical oncologist, who I will see tomorrow. In fact I have only seen him twice over the entire course of my chemotherapy. I guess this next appointment will be the 'review' process. I will ask about the following:
- Follow up to the tests done prior to chemotherapy: gated heart pool scan; hearing function. Do they need to be repeated now that chemotherapy is over? My heart and hearing seem good, so I guess that no repeat is necessary?
- New tests to be done to assess cancer staging and hence my suitability for surgery. Possible tests include: PET scan; barium swallow; laproscopy; endoscopic ultrasound. [The obvious CT scan has already been done and shows favourable results]
- Overall management of my chemotherapy: symptoms; side effects; toxicities. What was my comparative rating?
- Need for a new referral to my surgeon Dr Mosse.
While working all this out I once again laughed and cried my way through another great EC story at Cathy's EC cafe website. It was the story of blind musician Ray Warke at http://www.eccafe.org/sto/rwarke.html. He is still around two years after surgery and hooking into Guiness, spicy chow mein and potato chips...he must be recovered!!! [Seriously though, there are complications and I sent an email just to check that he was still in the land of the digesting]
Then I got more technical and read through the audit of gastric and oesophageal cancer [including cancer at the junction] in Scotland at http://www.crag.scot.nhs.uk/committees/CEPS/reports/0_prelims.pdf. I finished that with the realization that curative surgery for cancer at the junction is the biggest surgery that can be performed on a patient..ie longest and most risky!! Nobody wants to perform or be subjected to it unless there is a real prospect of good outcome. Happy daze!!!
4 comments:
Hi, good luck with the tests, I had chemo for the same thing 48 weeks ago - one suggestion would be to eat as much as possible now, also, get as fit as possible, I swam, it helped as your lungs get hit rather badly by the operation. Best wishes with your journey,
Aoife
Wow, Ray Warke had an amazing story to tell! Good to hear he was able to give up the cigarettes! The whole chemo and surgery was a real roller coaster ride for him. Great reading - he writes an interesting blog of his experience!
Speaking of healthy appetites, this is the iron chef experience in Melbourne I was telling you about. Its over for this year, but perhaps they will return to the Observatory Hotel in 2008?
http://melbourne.citysearch.com.au/restaurants/viewContent/1119945819575/1137545812990
Hi Peter
Good to hear things are progressing and the chemo is done. Enjoy the next few weeks, stay fit and enjoy the simple pleasures of eating what you want. Good luck with the surgery.
Michael Milton
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