Counting down the days

Including today, it's only five days until my surgery.

I went to the Pre-admission Clinic yesterday, and as suspected, it was a largely wasted trip. Not to mention having to wait over two hours after my appointment time to see the doctor for less than 10 minutes. He got to fill in his form though, so it wasn't a complete waste of time, I guess.

I also had a chest x-ray. This could have been done last week, when I went for the Anesthetic Clinic. Oh well, ask the patient to make two 4 hour round trips and wait around for hours so the hospital can tick a few boxes. I understand that there are procedures to ensure quality care, but it really does need to be better coordinated.

I also ran into my surgeon in the corridor. He confirmed the 28th and told me it would be in the afternoon.

I'm lucky to live in a country where we have free health-care, so I'm not complaining about that. A patient's agent might be the way to go. Someone who knows all the procedures, who can plan the ticking of the boxes with minimal intrusion into the patient's time. Do all the box ticking in one visit perhaps.

Pre-admission Clinic

The pre-admission clinic is booked in for Tuesday, next week. From memory, this was pretty much a waste of time and petrol, but something you have to do so the hospital can put all the requisite ticks in their boxes.

It is supposedly for picking up any undiagnosed problems which could cause surgery to be cancelled on the day.

Well, as someone who has been in and out of hospitals and attended more than 30 doctor's appointments over the last year, I'd be surprised if they've missed anything.

D-Day, 28th Feb

I found out today that they are planning to operate on the 28th of February, which means I'll be spending my 43rd birthday in ICU.

I have mixed feelings about the surgery. Intellectually, I know it's the best hope of a cure and will give me the best chance of living a relatively normal life in the long run. The other side of that is probably fear-based, but makes me think that I feel fine now and am enjoying good health otherwise. Why spoil it all with major surgery that will take 3 months to get over to the point where I can do things like go shopping or go to work?

I know that if I do nothing, the cancer will come back, probably worse than before and would probably be fatal. So... To the operating theatre! Cut it out, get rid of it and get on with it. I have to think like that.

Gallows Humour

Am I a bad person for finding this funny?

Getting closer

Had a call from the hospital today. I'm booked in for an anesthetic clinic on Wednesday. I guess this means my op won't be too far away.

Surgery, Take 2.

Well, I got my biopsy results yesterday, and unfortunately, the radiation and chemo didn't completely kill of all of the cancer cells. If I'm honest, I always knew that was probably more likely than the 50/50 chance I gave it originally.

All hope is not lost though. I'm being booked in for another go at the Ivor-Lewis Oesopho-gastrectomy in 3 - 4 weeks. I'm not looking forward to the operation and the 3 month recovery, but it really is my best chance of a cure. I'm grateful that my doctors are still treating with curative intent. The palliative path would be a tad more depressing.