Meeting the man who saved my life.

Well that’s what I thought at the time, he is going to save my life. I now know that he has. I think he is too modest to agree, but I can’t think of it in any other terms.

The day of my appointment arrived and my wife and I sat in the waiting area ready to meet “Mr C” who was to be my consultant. His surgery was running late. I didn’t find that a problem at all.

A nurse escorted us to his consulting room where we received a warm welcome. I sat in the chair next to his desk with my wife sitting further back with the nurse.

He apologised for keeping us waiting and explained that he had needed to spend longer with a few other patients as he had information to tell them that he did not want to rush. “I hope you can understand. I hope the wait was not inconvenient.”

I thought that this was such an excellent approach to give each person the time they needed and not be constrained by the allotted appointment time. I was sure I would like this guy. He had my respect in that one sentence.

“Your results show that the polyp is cancerous” he explained.

BOLT FROM THE BLUE …Or was it? I had thought of the possibility of the polyp being cancerous. If I am honest it was in my mind when I first contemplated going to my GP. However guessing what it could be and actually knowing, is a quite a big difference. My brain worked quickly and I thought Bowel Cancer. That’s the problem! I knew what he polyp looked like as I had seen it on the TV screen during the Colonoscopy. Strange it being inside and I didn’t feel a thing, there was no pain at all.

As this was not a TV drama I didn’t feel the need to say, “ OK Doc, how long have I got?” I did think though “Well, this must be easy to treat, lets just hook it out and all is well!” I was to discover that it’s a lot more technical than that.

I am not sure how long we sat with “Mr C” but from then on it was all positive. We went though what he proposed to do. Having some knowledge of human anatomy I found it fascinating and even more so when he drew some diagrams. I later thought that if I’d have had some coloured pencils with me, I would have added colour to the diagrams just like I did when I was in school.

The outline of the treatment went something like this:

• Remove the polyp, part of the bowel and investigate if other tissues would need removing.
• Redesign the lower part of the bowel to compensate for the area removed.
• Fit a temporary ileostomy bag to give the bowel chance to rest and repair.
• Reverse the ileostomy re- connecting the large and small bowel at some point in the future.

This may sound complicated, and it is, unless you are a top class surgeon.

Then some encouraging words from “Mr C” “If we find you need chemotherapy don’t worry. You are so fit and well you can handle any anything we need to do to get you well. I will put you on the Enhanced Recovery Program.” He gave an explanation of what this meant which I shall relate in later postings. “I will see you in a couple of weeks” he said. The date for the operation was May 15^th it was now late April.

I am so glad my dear wife always made sure we ate well and healthily and I enjoyed keeping fit. My fitness developed through a love of walking in the hills, running the occasional half marathon, orienteering, cycling, ski-ing and many other outdoor adventures. Hard work yes but rewarding. I never found going to the gym attractive.

My wife and I left the room shocked of course but feeling that the future was bright and that all should be well. As my wife drove home I did think that this was something of a milestone in my life and somewhat of a challenge.

Mmmm…..‘Enhanced Recovery Program’ so I may well be on my bike by August!

Tractor Man

GBNHS

 

 

My Own Nurse or so it seems…

“Nurse H” came to into my life like a hurricane then developed into the calmest, warmest and welcoming summer breeze there could be.

Meeting “Nurse H” was the most serious of all the events up to date as it was her that delivered the results of the tests. The news was not good. The results had shown that the polyp that had been discovered would need to be removed. I can’t be certain if she actually said it was cancerous or I just assumed it was….

However, the following information gave me much more of a shock “ It will need to be removed” said “Nurse H” “and most likely also part of your bowel. You will then be fitted with a bag.” She said this in the best way she could but bad news is the same no matter how well it’s put to you. I simply replied, “ this will change my life totally” and added “I’m an active person and some of my greatest joys in life are walking on the hills, sailing, swimming and riding my bike. I guess all that will have to change” I am sorry to say that my thoughts at this point were quite selfish and I thought only of myself and what my life would be like in the future.

Then “Nurse H” said the most important words that she could ever say to me, “The only thing that will limit what you do is yourself. You can carry on with all those activities even the swimming. This procedure will not mean that you can’t live a normal life.”  This statement fitted in entirely with my philosophy of life, which was to “Look on the bright side of life”. Never give up and never give in to negative thoughts.

Like most people my knowledge of medical matters is limited however, I was aware of developments in recent years in the fight against cancer. I knew that it was a cancer that could now be treated with some success and that……. I would beat it.

“Nurse H” explained to me that an appointment with the consultant had already been arranged and that the confirmation would arrive in the post soon. She added, “Before your appointment the consultant will meet with others who have been involved in the diagnosis so far and those who maybe involved in any future procedures. They will discuss the best way forward. I will also attend.” She did add, “In the end the choice is yours, you don’t have to follow the treatment offered.” I could not think that I would ever reject the advice of doctors or consultants, no matter how upsetting the treatment may be. Why should I? This treatment could mean the difference between life and death. It appeared that she had arranged all this before meeting me. I am sure this happens with every patient but at this point I felt that I was being looked after on a personal level.

I should add that throughout the whole of my treatment I did feel that all the people I met in the NHS were looking me after on that same very personal level which is incredible when you think of the number of people that I met on this journey from discovery to recovery. More about these dedicated people later in my blog.

“Nurse H” was the one person who was easily available at the end of a telephone line when I needed help understanding what was happening with my treatment. She monitored my progress throughout, at the highest standard possible and still does. Many times giving me a boost in confidence and reassurance. Thanks should be given to all the nurses who perform this service.

Well so much for trying to make this post as funny as I can. I had some humorous thoughts but as you have read it was a time of receiving information that was extremely hard-hitting and so this post lacks humour in order to explain the gravity of the situation.

Tractor man

GBNHS

 

 

Take two.  Another scan, more pictures for the records.

As with my previous scan I arrived early for my appointment. I think it is really bad manners to be late. The NHS works hard and, although it is true that there may be times when we have to wait, so what? It may be that there is an emergency, which has taken priority over routine appointments. Thankfully, this time, that emergency was not me, although one day it may well be, so tolerance is the rule that needs to be applied.

So, having arrived early out of respect for the staff and the NHS, there are, of course, personal benefits. I find myself in a more relaxed state and this could possibly be reflected in my Blood Pressure reading. I am also able to sit and think of any questions that I would like to ask; I have thought about this at home of course but being in the actual location gives more focus to my thoughts.

As with all appointments I always take a book with me, I know I am not unusual in this and like others I always have a book “on the go” so its simple to take it with me and continue to enjoy reading it as I wait. It’s certainly better than playing the old waiting room game of  ‘Guess what he’s got’ or ‘What’s wrong with them?’ From observation this seems to be best played with two people both reading magazines. Though if I was to play I would make sure that the magazine was the right way up!

As with previous visits to this department I was asked by the nurse to accompany her to the changing rooms, again a good ten minutes before my appointment time. In some small way I like to think that I am supporting the NHS by being early, as that ten minutes would have been wasted waiting for me to turn up…. and if I was late? Well, what a waste of valuable time.

I was expecting the same experience as the first scan but I should have thought that there would be some difference and there was. I changed into my gown (It didn’t get any easier…) and was escorted to the treatment room, which looked the same as on my previous visit. We followed the procedure as previous – an injection, that same warm glow and the sensation that I had “wet myself”. The problem with this sensation is that you only know for certain that you haven’t when you climb down from the couch. Again, thankfully I hadn’t.

So where was the music and the headphones? Well there were none and the scan did not take as long. There was some amusement in the fact that there was a face, something similar to a smiley face, on the machine that lit up each time I was given an instruction. Whether this was a voice from the machine or a voice from the intercom I was not sure.

“Deep breath and hold”…the cartoon face did as he was told and so did I.

“Breath normally”… the cartoon looked as pleased as myself when we were told to do so. We both played this game for several rounds before the test was finished.

After the test I was asked to wait for a few moments in the changing room, I think this was to allow the staff to see if they had collected the images they needed. One does not need to be photogenic for this test and you are not given a picture to take home for the family album. It would however make an interesting interlude when showing the holiday photos. “And this is what I had for lunch” ….maybe not! But possibly… if it was a DVD it could accompany the family Christmas presents and shown after lunch and just before the Queen’s speech!!

When dressed I waited to meet a particular nurse who had been in contact over the phone. She arrived!

Tractor man

GBNHS

Take One! My picture as an electronic image

My first ever scan! What to expect? Well, I was quite happy in thinking that this would be a simple procedure for me. I would just lie down and look handsome; after all it was a filming session. However, for the medical staff it would be a highly skilled job to interpret the results.

I undressed then, as on my previous visit to the hospital, enjoyed the same entertainment whilst changing into the gown, I beat my own personal best time on this occasion. I was shown into a large room, which contained the “cat san.” It looked just like the pictures I had seen, a big metal doughnut. There were a number of staff helping set up for the procedure and I was invited to lie on the couch. One of the staff explained that the procedure would take about twenty minutes and during that time I was to lie as still as I could.

There would be nobody in the room with me during the scan but the staff would observe through a window and communicate through a set of headphones. Whilst the machine would be operating music of my choice would be played, and there would be interruptions from time to time with updates on the progress. “What would I like in the way of music? I was asked. How nice! I thought it was like being on Desert Island Discs. I wish I had known, as I would have prepared a play list. Thinking quickly I said I would like the Four Seasons by Vivaldi. “Sorry,” they said, “you only have a choice of classical, heavy metal or pop music.” Fearing that the heavy metal or pop music may contain such titles as “Stairway to Heaven”, “The Road to Hell’ or “Knock, Knock, Knocking on Heaven’s Door!”  I opted for classical.

I was given a small injection in my hand and told that it may give me the feeling of a warm glow and the sensation that I may have “wet” myself. I was so pleased to have had the warning, as that is precisely the effect I felt!

As it was the lower part of my body that was to be scanned I felt very comfortable with my hands folded across my chest. One of the nurses placed a simple button device in my hand saying “ If you need us for any reason just press the button.”  “What sort of situation would I need to press the button?” I asked, “There is none really but its there just in case.” As she left the room I thought “in case of what? Would I be the first ever to need to press the button?” She had such a pleasant smile and such a confident manner that I thought it amusing rather than worrying.

A voice came through the headphones to say that they were about to start the scan. The machine started to make a sound like a washing machine on a slow spin but caused me no concern. Then the classical music started….A choral piece… a choir of young women whose voices sounded like a choir of angels..! The couch moved very slowly towards the big circular metal doughnut. I knew that should there be a very bright white light on the other side I would be pressing the button in my hand and preparing to make my way in the opposite direction at great speed!

The scan did not seem to take twenty minutes, it felt more like five or ten minutes, and then it was finished. Whilst changing I thought that the staff carry out this procedure many times during a day and see many people in a week. It was a Saturday morning, not a great day to be working, yet for all that I felt as if I was special and they had looked after me as an individual. I left thinking that whatever they should discover I would know the results in a short time.

Tractor Man

GBNHS