Today at 11.15am Barbara and I met with Dr Sue Carroll, Radiation
Oncologist at the Chris O’Brien Lifehouse.
I was referred to Sue by Dr Chris Young, who has shown great compassion
and care. Sue provided Barbara and I
with clear information and answered all our questions.
There is a choice between five days of radiation versus five
days a week for five weeks plus a form of chemotherapy. The longer treatment is more comprehensive
and should result in the two tumours being significantly reduced by the
radiation. Chris and Sue’s view is that
with my overall good health and dormant liver cancer this is the right
option. The short treatment tends to be
used with patients that have short life expectancies but need some relief.
Tomorrow morning at 9.00am I return to the Radiology section of
the Chris O’Brien Lifehouse for the planning session. It will be a simulation of setting me up for
radiation treatment. They will work out
the best way to comfortably position me for the treatment. I will need to stay in that position for up
to 15 minutes each day, five days a week, for five weeks. Sue is hoping that I will be comfortable
lying on my stomach. They have a bench
with a hole that allows the stomach to sag.
The benefit of this is that it better separates my rectum area from
other areas such the bladder. This means
they can set the radiation beams to focus on the rectum with only minimal risk
of radiation touching other areas.
Benefits of the treatment will be significant reduction in the
two tumours, stopping the tumour near the bottom of the rectum growing into
sensitive nerve areas, much less passing of debris, possibly a reduction of new
cancer in the liver and giving me a more comfortable life.
The chemotherapy will be in the form of a bottle attached to my
portacath for five days (Monday to Friday) in each of the five weeks. The concurrent chemotherapy treatment doubles
the effectiveness of the radiation.
My apologies to my American relatives as I am no longer able to
come to the US in May/June. While I
expect to start the treatment on Monday 13 April, I will need some recovery
time after those five weeks. Barbara
will still be coming. The reason I am
having treatment now is so that I can be in Uganda in July with Barbara.
The quality of health service I have received this week has
been outstanding. During last weekend I
decided that I needed to do something as the debris from my back passage was
not abating. I started the ball rolling with
a phone call on Monday and the healthcare service responded unbelievably fast:
- Monday, Registrar Tharani and oncologist Dr Kate Mahon agreed that I should have a flexible sigmoidoscopy and that Dr Chris Young should perform it. Chris’s secretary Jess said first date was 22 April. I asked if there was anything earlier and was offered 8.30am Wednesday, which I took. The Chris O’Brien Lifehouse emailed me the forms, which I printed, completed, scanned and emailed back.
- Tuesday the Lifehouse emailed another form and Gerald the anaesthestist rang.
- Wednesday 7.00am Barbara and I arrived at the Lifehouse. Dr Chris spoke to me before and after the procedure when he said I needed radiation. We left at 11.00am. Chris’s secretary Jess provided me with Dr Sue’s phone number. Sue’s secretary, Jean, gave me a Thursday 11.00 am appointment.
- Thursday Barbara and I met with Sue who arranged for me to complete a health questionnaire with a nurse then and for a planning session at 9.00am on Friday. I hope to start radiation and chemo by Monday 13 April. Emma was the nurse who interviewed me for the questionnaire. Emma was one of the nurses at the chemotherapy treatment centre at Gloucester House back in 2011 – small world!
- Friday at 9.00am I will be at the planning meeting at the radiology section of the Chris O’Brien Lifehouse.
I find it hard to imagine finding better healthcare and speed of service anywhere in the world!
So, a new part of my
living with cancer journey commences.
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