Update on my Dad

Hello everyone,

Well the gp and Macmillan nurse came round yesterday to see Dad. It turned out to be a lot different day than we we were all expecting. The gp had spoke to the specialist on Monday and said that the 2 of them had had a long discussion regarding my Dad.

First off all, it seems that Dad doesn’t need to go to the hospital right now but if things get worse over the next few weeks then this will change. The gp told us that this is based on the results from the last blood tests. He asked dad about any pain he was getting and just now, the only pains really are twinges in his side where the stent is. As it is right now, Dads appointment to see the specialist still stands for the 26th May.

Then the talk moved on to the future and the gp started asking Dad if he had thought much about what may lie ahead. They talked about the PDT, how it had gone, what everyone had hoped for etc. Naturally, we had all hoped the tumor would have shrunk, but it hadn’t. Then I asked about possible chemo treatment as being the next stage of treatment. Well it turns out that the gp and the specialist had discussed this on the phone and from what the gp told us, the specialist seems to be of the impression that chemo at this stage wont help my Dad.

Dad didnt seem to take this in at the time and kept saying that he was willing to undergo any type of chemo or any other treatment if it would help. At this point, the tears were welling up in his eyes and he was finding it hard to talk.Well, we all talked some more about lots of stuff and now Dad seems to realise and accept that chemo may not be an option for him. It seems to me as if the gp was sort of preparing him for his meeting with the specialist in May.

So, as to what happens next I have no idea really. Guess we will just have to wait and see. Dad was referred to the local Macmillan centre to go for couselling and to meet others in the same boat as him. I think this will do him good to talk to others he seems to be up for this. His Macmillan nurse also thinks this will be good for him too and she will be coming back to see him next week. She also had a talk with my mum and will be dropping in to see us all every week now. Dads gp is new to the practice and this is only the second time he has seen dad. His last gp retired a while ago. The new gp is really nice and Dad really liked him. He is young and spent a load of time with us all yesterday and we all got the impression that nothing would be too much trouble for him. Plus, he seems like a real people person and very easy to talk to which again, Dad liked.

So yesterday turned out to be quite a different day than what we were expecting really. And to top it off, it the whole kitchen needs to be ripped out and replaced and some of the walls in the bathroom are saturated with water and need to be replastered along with the ceiling.

Not a good day really.

Hi Danielle,

Sorry to hear that your husband has had problems with his stents, I hope you are managing to get some help with them. As to my dads sweats, he seems to get them every 4 or 5 days or so and in general on those days, feels pretty rough for most of the day and stays in bed. Then the next day he seems to be fine again. Hopefully we will find out in May if the stent needs to be changed or not. Thanks for your kind words and I wish you and your husband my best wishes.

Well, many thanks to you once again for listening to me.

Best wishes to you all.

Gavin

Hi everyone,

Many thanks for your thoughts and best wishes and for replying to my post. I realised yesterday after I had posted just how much I have missed by not coming to the site as much during the last few months. It really does help to talk to others, especially those who are in the same boat as myself.

Well the gp did not come yesterday. We waited for 2 hours for him to turn up then ended up phoning the surgery to be told that the appointment was booked for Tuesday and not Monday. This was not what we were told on Friday. Then the gp himself phoned after that apologising for not turning up saying that dads Macmillan nurse was not available on Monday. Dads Macmillan nurse is very reliable and comes to see him when ever Dad needs her, so it sounds as if the gp had not confirmed with the nurse that they would both be coming round on Monday. Anyway, not too chuffed about that but not much we can do about it so they are coming round today.

The water situation is getting worse and a surveyor is coming today to assess the damage. It’s not looking good, the bathroom and the kitchen will probably need to be re-plastered at the very least so more stress and hassle all round which we could do without. The flat where the water is coming from is rented so trying to track down the owner and deal with him has not exactly been fun. Dad gets flustered on the phone dealing with this sort of stuff, so I’ve been handling it all.

Lainy, I agree that the darkening urine and the re-appeaance of the jaundice should not be ignored. This is why I pushed Dad to see the emergenvy doctor that Saturday night. I did at the time suspect that the stent may have become clogged and needed to be checked. It’s thanks to you, Marion and others warning me for what to look for as signs that the stent may be getting blocked, so many thanks to you all for that advice!

I also agree that the specialist not getting in touch to discuss the CT results is not acceptable. I told Dads Macmillan nurse my thoughts on this and she agreed and I will be mentioning this to the specialist the nect time we see him. Dad has an appt to see him on the 26th May, but the gp tried to get this brought forward and if Dad has to go into the hospital this week then he will see him there. It is good that the tumour has not grown and we were happy about that. As to another go at the PDT, we were told that it can only be done once so we will have to wait and see what treatment if any is next.

Tess, good to hear from you to. It is indeed tough battling illness and hopefully the better weather will mean that mum and dad can at least get to sit outside for a while. It’s not much, but at least it gets them out of the house, if even only for a short while and it breaks up the monotony of each day.

I agree that taking some time for myself is needed and I do try and do that. I’ve been caring for my mum, my mum and my grandad before he died and now my mum and my dad for over 5 years and sometimes it does feel like its catching up on me. But I wouldnt stop doing it for anything.

I wish you and your family all the best.

Marion, good to hear from you too. Yep the leaking water has just topped off a bad few weeks but hopefully the surveyor will get the ball rollling with the repairs etc. And hopefully the weather here this summer will be good, but this is Scotland so im not counting on it too much! We were hoping to get away for a small break this summer in July for my dads 65th birthday. It would only be to a small holiday park on the coast just south of Edinburgh with everything on the site so not much walking would be needed. But a break away from home would do my parents the world of good.

I told the emergency gp, dads gp and the Macmillan nurse my concerns over the stent possibly being blocked and they all agreed that that may be the cause of the jaundice re-appearing. I sort of think that dad being admitted to hospital this week will be the best thing for him right now. Hopefully if he does go in then it wont be for anywhere near as long as the 7 weeks that he was in for last year.

Many good wishes coming back your way also.

Sophie, many thanks for your very kind words, although I dont know about being my parents hero or anything. Maybe I’ll ask my mum that the next time she’s yelling at me! Her lungs may be badly affected with her COPD, but she sure can shout at me when she wants to!

All the best to you and your family.

Thanks to you all for your words and support. I will keep you up to date and let you know what happens today.

The best to everyone.

Gavin