When I started to recover from the shock and despair assosciated with Mum’s diagnosis of Lung cancer, the positive side of my nature kicked in and I treat every day with Mum as a gift of time.
Mum and I have always had a close relationship even when I was engaging in ‘destructive behaviours’ Mum was always there as an unwavering constant in my life.
It may seem like a tired cliche but Family is really all that matters.
Now for the update.
We had gathered in Mum’s room and were waiting for the Doctor to arrive. Isaac woke up from his nap and started to scream. And scream and scream and scream and scream. So when he wouldn’t settle at all, Veronica left the room and so did half my brain *sigh*
I had been relying on my daughter to be there for this meeting as Veronica remembers every word the doctors say and she asks proper questions.
So there I was, half of me listening to my grandson screaming and the other half trying to concentrate on Doctor D.
Mum has Radiation Pneumotitis again. This is a side effect from the radiation and it affects her lungs. Mum was sick with RP at Christmas and it was fixed with steroids. This time Mum is already on steroids so there is no fix at all. She is now permanently attached to that oxygen tube. Mum can go for half an hour or thereabouts without the oxygen as long as she is sitting still. As soon as she needs to walk she needs the oxygen.
The Xray showed that the pain in Mum’s shoulder is just Arthritis (yay). But it also showed a cancer in the bone above her right elbow. This is where I am hopeless because as Doctor D was showing us the Xray of Mum’s arm I found myself looking at the line of Mum’s ribcage and thinking that that particular Xray would make a nice template for a series of jugs.I found myself thinking that I must remember to ask if I could have the Xray and then I snapped back to reality. Shit!Shit!Shit! I really annoy myself when I do that.
Doctor D wants to give Mum’s right arm a quick Zap. He also wants an orthapaedic specialist to have a look at Mum’s arm. We have a catch 22 situation here. Do nothing and Mum’s arm could snap, just like that. Zap the cancer and we could find that the cancer is the only thing holding Mum’s bone in place and Mum’s arm could snap.
The orthapaedic specialist could decide to put a pin in Mums arm to strengthen it. Apparently it is a staight forward procedure, a keyhole surgery type of thing. Hmmm we will have to see about that and ask lots of questions. Mum doesn’t want any surgery or any invasive procedures and honestly, I don’t think that she has the reserves of energy required to heal herself as well as fight the cancer.
I don’t know how my brother, Mick is feeling because he is being very stoic and he doesn’t ask questions when the Doctor is in the room. I think that Mick and Fee are a bit shocked by Mum and my open conversations about death. But as I have said before when you have been living with a terminal illness for twelve months your perspectives do change and conversations about death become quite ordinary.
Doctor D gazed into his crystal ball and told Mum that she has weeks possibly months left. I will need to organize some portable oxygen and a wheelchair so that Mum and I can get out for day trips. Or so her friends can kidnap her as well. St John’s isn’t exactly Alcatraz, so organizing a break-out shouldn’t be too hard.
Mum is also contactable via her email or her mobile phone. So dont be afraid to ring her.
I think that is all for now. Please ask me any questions you like because I am flying blind here and I don’t know what you want to know.
Now back to the screaming Grandson, Isaac is normally a sunny, placid baby so we just assumed that he was reacting to the stress in the air. Strange room, Strange people, blahdeblahblah.
Vonnie thought that Isaac might have an ear infection so they left Amy with me and took Isaac to the after hours doctor,who took one look at his hydrocele (enlarged testicle) and immediately sent them to hospital for an ultrasound to check for a strangulating hernia. Veronica and Isaac were admitted to hospital last night as a precaution and that is as much as I know so far.
I do know that Veronica had previously taken Isaac to our GP who had told her that Isaac was too young to have anything done about his hydrocele and to not worry about it until he was a bit older.*sigh*
So that is what’s happening here. What’s happening with you?
June 18th, 2009 at 9:14 pm e
You can run, but you cant hide,I now have wireless broadband, so I can find you any time.
Thank you everyone for your prayers and best thoughts I really do appreciate them all