Well its New Years Eve and I’m sat in Clatterbridge waiting for my treatment to start.  Its not so nice in the morning as I tend to see more children at this time. They are so upbeat and brave, certainly puts a few adults to shame who moan about every little cough, spot or tummy bug.

I have had a total of 8 sessions and I’m pleased to say that the major delays didn’t extend past the first two days. All my appointments have been smooth and on time which has been great.

It its really tiring going to the Wirral on a daily basis, however we were afforded some respite on Christmas day and Boxing day. Also have another day off tomorrow. Then it’s the reality of 5 days a week, Monday to Friday, a routine, which is exactly what I need at the moment.

My scar is tender at the moment. I have so many creams, oils, ointments and cooling gels. I could start my own pharmacy at this rate….

I has physio on Friday and am pleased to report that I am crutchless! I now have a lovely metal walking stick with a bright orange sticker….when I go back to physio this Friday they will arrange for me to have a wooden stick cut if I feel comfortable with it. So far so good.

Well, I am off to buy a diary to put all my appointments in because I don’t know my arse from my elbow at the minute…

Have wonderful new year wherever you may be.

Xx

Well its New Years Eve and I’m sat in Clatterbridge waiting for my treatment to start.  Its not so nice in the morning as I tend to see more children at this time. They are so upbeat and brave, certainly puts a few adults to shame who moan about every little cough, spot or tummy bug.

I have had a total of 8 sessions and I’m pleased to say that the major delays didn’t extend past the first two days. All my appointments have been smooth and on time which has been great.

It its really tiring going to the Wirral on a daily basis, however we were afforded some respite on Christmas day and Boxing day. Also have another day off tomorrow. Then it’s the reality of 5 days a week, Monday to Friday, a routine, which is exactly what I need at the moment.

My scar is tender at the moment. I have so many creams, oils, ointments and cooling gels. I could start my own pharmacy at this rate….

I has physio on Friday and am pleased to report that I am crutchless! I now have a lovely metal walking stick with a bright orange sticker….when I go back to physio this Friday they will arrange for me to have a wooden stick cut if I feel comfortable with it. So far so good.

Well, I am off to buy a diary to put all my appointments in because I don’t know my arse from my elbow at the minute…

Have wonderful new year wherever you may be.

Xx

Lay on a cold metal bed, half naked, leg strapped down, hands prodding, hands rolling me over, machine turning, taking pictures, cold room and voices instructing me from behind a screen…..

This was the reality of my ‘dummy run’ at Clatterbridge this week. The idea of the dummy run is to ensure that everything is set up for the radiotherapy to start. Practice runs aren’t done for every patient, however they wanted to do one on this occasion as radiotherapy is a complex treatment in sarcoma cases. I tested the mould and the bed positioning while a machine took ‘pictures’ of my leg. Lying there being poked and prodded by strangers, while thinking “how has my life come to this” is not a pleasant experience.

This session was an eye opener into what the next 33 appointments will be like: tiring, lonely and a great opportunity for my imagination to wander. Yes, John will be with me, but being in the room with nothing but machines for company is so cold and lonely and extremely inviting to sad and negative thoughts.

My first session is on Monday. I am so glad that it is starting now as its the first step in the final hurdle in my journey….for now. Yes, I have to have chest scans every 12 weeks for the next two years but these are precautions to ensure that the cancer doesn’t return and/or spread.

I am going to spend the next few days doing nice things with my lovely man before we are shocked back into a Monday-Friday routine. We may even start to appreciate weekends and hate Mondays again! 🙂

Haven’t posted for a while so thought I’d update you with how my initial appointment went at the Radiotherapy Centre at Clatterbridge.

This appointment was the start of the planning for my treatment. I had a POSICAST mould made – this is a mesh mould which is modelled on my leg. You need these moulds to ensure that your leg is kept in the same position for each session. The rays need to be accurately distributed along the affected area-the team are accurate to 3mm!

After the mould was made, I had a CT scan, again this will help Dr Allam with the planning stage.

This took about an hour then I had to sign consent forms agreeing to the treatment. Dr Allam said that it would take approximately 10 days for the treatment to be planned then I should start. I I’ll be having 33 sessions and due to the complexity, I am unable to complete this at the Liverpool Centre and will need to do the 90 mile round trip on a daily basis.

Here is an example of a mould:

I am there on Monday for a ‘dummy’ run to make sure everything is set up for the radiotherapy to start.

The sooner the treatment starts, the sooner it will be finished. I just want this to be over so I can get back to normal.