STAYING ALIVE (PART 3)

MY CHEMOTHERAPY EXPERIENCE

LONG JOURNEY

The first day in Cancer Hospital was a new experience. I was in the best Cancer hospital in Europe. It has very high survival rates and statistics. That was a good morale-boosting piece of information. The general waiting room is very large and no TV this time. I waited for the consultant for over an hour. Patients look very miserable. Usually, they are with a family member. It was very confusing, not being able to recognise the real patient unless they are wearing a hat or scarf. Suddenly my name called and had my first meeting with an oncologist consultant. It was again another tiny consultation room. The gentleman was middle-aged, medium height, sort of skinny and dark skin but had a very serious face. As usual, We introduced each other and when normal formalities are completed, he said, I quote

“You are in the third stage of oesophagus cancer. The only solution is to have an operation if you want to live longer which is five years. Otherwise expected life is two years,”

In my mind, I said “ I heard it before it is not news to me. One thing he did not mention plus/minus years, was disappointing,” He started giving information on chemotherapy how medications were used and what side effects I could have such as hair loss, vomiting, nausea, weakness, tiredness, fatigue and weight loss. Apparently, oesophagus cancer was the worst cancer (10% live rate)after the pancreas (5%) and the brain cancer (2%). Treatment was going the shrink the present cancerous cells before the operation. After the operation will continue to get rid of them altogether. I was just listening and trying to digest the information given to me. Treatment was scheduled to start beginning of Feb.2011. Before I left the office I told him, I had private health insurance. The first time I saw a big smile on his face. Suddenly, I had a very friendly voice given me a new Out-Patient address to attend.

The impression I had after these meetings, both consultants were very bold with their remarks. In a way, it was frightening. I had to go along with the process. All this, medical information was not making any sense to me. I was an ignorant citizen of medical science. It was similar to taking my car to the garage to be repaired. The mechanics tell you the problem and how it is going to be repaired and the cost of it. One can only accept what had been told unless a person is a mechanic himself. One is lucky if the mechanic is honest and has good technical knowledge. That person will put the car on the road again. The reliability of the car will be remaining to be seen. This was the case for me.

Mentally, I keep telling myself I am in good hands. I had chosen the right hospital by chance with that I had the best surgeon for the operation. I had a Private Health Plan, subscribed to it without knowing what it was going to be used for? Now, I was going to be treated by the well know cancer hospital. My “Staying Alive “ motto was in hands of these professionals. Good omens.

I can summarise my last month experience with different medical professions. I had five years of living with stage three cancer. I never knew cancer had four stages and that one was fatal. The programmed future activities were briefly, Chemotherapy/ Operation/ more Chemotherapy. In the meantime, I was going to take care of my health, eat well and put weight on. Once treatment started I was told to isolate myself. Crowded places were banned (Metro. Buses, Cinemas, Gym etc.,). Chemotherapy was going to weaken the body immune system. I needed to be cautious with everything.(people,places etc). This was a lockdown for me at that time.

The first chemo day was another miserable, cold and rainy day in Manchester. I attended my appointment promptly at seven o’clock in the morning. A nurse came with few papers and introduced herself. I had to sign few papers not knowing what it was for. She started briefing me about the procedures. It was a routine I needed to follow: Once a month I was coming to the hospital first to be weighed, blood tested and connected to the intravenous (IV) machine for the liquid chemicals to be pumped into my body. An appointment for the CT or MRI will follow in the third week of each month. Then my monthly consultation will take place with my doctor. In the meantime, I have prescribed twenty-four tablets a day to take for the rest of the month. This was going to be repeated for the foreseeable future.

On the first date, I had weighed, blood tested and wired to the mobile pumping machine ( which controls the speed of the drips of the IV ) and was left alone.

Being a private patient, the reception was perfect. The room, I had the treatment had large windows, bright and spacious. I had my own leather chair and the TV to watch. Tea/Coffee service is regularly provided. Lunch, afternoon tea and supper were also available. The menu was given to me to choose what I wanted. Everything was fine except the whole treatment was taking at least fourteen hours. I was leaving the hospital at 21.00 hours. It was a hell of a long day. I was getting at least eight pouches of dripping drugs all different clours). At the end of the day, a catheter on my arm to connect me to the IV machine was badly hurting. I had to live with this experience once a month. My patience is needed.

Nurses advice was after IV treatment my feet were going to feel hot. I needed to put cream on them to stop them from drying. Second, I was not allowed the eat grapefruit as it weakened the chemo. Lastly no crowded places proper lockdown. Yes, I did have swollen and hot feet each month and had a lockdown during chemo sessions.

Experience with CT machines is necessary to mention. At CT/MRI dept., I was in the waiting room. I had to drink two litres of white substance. This had a fluorescent effect on the organs to give a good picture. I had to wait for an hour after drinking the mixture. I had to change to a hospital gown before the session. Once in the CT room, I was wired to another IV substance and told by the nurse it will heat the body and if I can’t bear it to let her know. It is twenty minutes procedure. I had felt the heat, especially around my genitals area. It is the same for the MRI machines except the liquid is different. I had used MRI as well.

Being a Private Patient made all the difference. Everything organised. No waiting, no time-wasting and they try to make your life comfortable.

Before the operation, I had this treatment for five months. I did not suffer from any side effects. The consultant kept saying:

“ I was his best patient, never complained any side effects of whatever the chemicals pumped into my body and the tablets I was taking,”.

During this process, I found my life did not change at all. It was piece of cake.

After, my operation took place I had four months break. The second stage of Chemotherapy took place in Oct.2011. The same procedures were applied to my body for another four years. Of course at the end when the consultant said:

“ I am glad to inform you that now your cancer is in remission,“

It made me happy to hear that. He did not say I was cleared of it. He was going to see me first six months, regularly every month. Afterwards, respectively every three and six months.

The most important thing in this process was the cost of paying private health insurance premiums. What is started which I could afford became four hundred times more. I could not afford it. I informed the hospital before they stopped the treatment ( end of three and a half years). Today, I am still wondering if treatment stopped because I finished the insurance with a private care company or it was carried out all those years because of more income for the hospital?

The present state of my body will be analysed in the next chapter.