What a hectic day. Returned from holiday on 10th May to find that we had missed a revised appointment for 8th, despite the fact that I had told the hospital we would be away until then.
Had to wait until Monday 13th before I could speak to consultant's secretary. VERY long story short, that appointment, and subsequent appointments at our local hospital may no longer take place if John does decide to go ahead with Brachytherapy as it is done under a different hospital. In order to find out what was happening she asked me to follow up secretaries of the different people we had seen as she was reluctant to start making appointments that we may not need with them.
Quite a few phone calls later I had finally caught up with the secretary of the consultant who does Brachy at Royal London.
She knew nothing about John, he wasn't even on the list. I later found out that the referral letter was typed the day after we saw the oncologist and they insisted that it had gone (Goodness knows where though)
Anyway, managed to get a copy faxed across for her attention, rang her a couple of hours later. She had received it, put it in front of her consultant and he told her to make an urgent appointment within the next two weeks. She told me she would put it in the post.
Went down to catch up in the greenhouse only for John to come down an hour later and tell me he has an appointment to see Consultant on 15th (Today) at 10a.m.
So all this on Monday and after a number of phone calls, we are where we wouldn't have expected to be for weeks yet. We were initially concerned about the apparent "urgency" of it all but came to the conclusion that it probably meant the consultant felt a better result was likely the sooner it was done.
Well, we attended Royal London and got there far too early. It's a train and two tubes away so we allowed plenty of time. Seen very promptly, had everything explained very clearly. I was able to ask the consultant how many he'd done (around 150) and how many were successful (only 3 had problems) so that doesn't seem too bad.
He wants to do it fairly quickly, and I asked whether it was urgent from John's point of view or the doctor's and he said he prefers not to wait. He confirmed that John had been downgraded from T2a to T2 after a MTD meeting. Apparently the seminal vesicles are not affected. Very efficient too. Gave us forms to take to ultrasound to see if they could fit us in today (They could and did bless them, if we could wait so we sat there for an hour and three quarters)
Consultant said take this package of papers to pre-assessment ward and ask when they can fit you in. If we are prepared to wait they'll do it today and following an hour and half wait they did. John had swabs, ECG, blood tests, flow, well everything necessary it seems.
Find it hard to believe what this hospital was like compared to our local. Light, bright, airy and not the least bit crowded. (However, their breadpudding is complete rubbish!)
The Operation is being done at Bart's and not where we were this morning and as I shall be making my own way there to collect John we took ourselves off on another tube to suss it out.
So left home at 8 a.m arrived back at 4.45 and my feet are killing me but we are sorted out (barring accidents or anything to prevent it).
John is pretty confident having spoken to this Consultant, more so than the surgical oncologist who only seemed to want to get his knives out.
I have checked with the Brachytherapy Doctor that he is the one who actually does it and not a "trainee" ! He says there's only him!
Fingers crossed for 3rd June that all goes well.
Edited by member 15 May 2014 at 19:38
| Reason: Not specified
We can't control the winds - but we can adjust our sails |
User
What a hectic day. Returned from holiday on 10th May to find that we had missed a revised appointment for 8th, despite the fact that I had told the hospital we would be away until then.
Had to wait until Monday 13th before I could speak to consultant's secretary. VERY long story short, that appointment, and subsequent appointments at our local hospital may no longer take place if John does decide to go ahead with Brachytherapy as it is done under a different hospital. In order to find out what was happening she asked me to follow up secretaries of the different people we had seen as she was reluctant to start making appointments that we may not need with them.
Quite a few phone calls later I had finally caught up with the secretary of the consultant who does Brachy at Royal London.
She knew nothing about John, he wasn't even on the list. I later found out that the referral letter was typed the day after we saw the oncologist and they insisted that it had gone (Goodness knows where though)
Anyway, managed to get a copy faxed across for her attention, rang her a couple of hours later. She had received it, put it in front of her consultant and he told her to make an urgent appointment within the next two weeks. She told me she would put it in the post.
Went down to catch up in the greenhouse only for John to come down an hour later and tell me he has an appointment to see Consultant on 15th (Today) at 10a.m.
So all this on Monday and after a number of phone calls, we are where we wouldn't have expected to be for weeks yet. We were initially concerned about the apparent "urgency" of it all but came to the conclusion that it probably meant the consultant felt a better result was likely the sooner it was done.
Well, we attended Royal London and got there far too early. It's a train and two tubes away so we allowed plenty of time. Seen very promptly, had everything explained very clearly. I was able to ask the consultant how many he'd done (around 150) and how many were successful (only 3 had problems) so that doesn't seem too bad.
He wants to do it fairly quickly, and I asked whether it was urgent from John's point of view or the doctor's and he said he prefers not to wait. He confirmed that John had been downgraded from T2a to T2 after a MTD meeting. Apparently the seminal vesicles are not affected. Very efficient too. Gave us forms to take to ultrasound to see if they could fit us in today (They could and did bless them, if we could wait so we sat there for an hour and three quarters)
Consultant said take this package of papers to pre-assessment ward and ask when they can fit you in. If we are prepared to wait they'll do it today and following an hour and half wait they did. John had swabs, ECG, blood tests, flow, well everything necessary it seems.
Find it hard to believe what this hospital was like compared to our local. Light, bright, airy and not the least bit crowded. (However, their breadpudding is complete rubbish!)
The Operation is being done at Bart's and not where we were this morning and as I shall be making my own way there to collect John we took ourselves off on another tube to suss it out.
So left home at 8 a.m arrived back at 4.45 and my feet are killing me but we are sorted out (barring accidents or anything to prevent it).
John is pretty confident having spoken to this Consultant, more so than the surgical oncologist who only seemed to want to get his knives out.
I have checked with the Brachytherapy Doctor that he is the one who actually does it and not a "trainee" ! He says there's only him!
Fingers crossed for 3rd June that all goes well.
Edited by member 15 May 2014 at 19:38
| Reason: Not specified
We can't control the winds - but we can adjust our sails |
User
That's fantastic news! What a relief for you both, now try to get a few days away if you can 😍
"Life can only be understood backwards; but it must be lived forwards." Soren Kierkegaard
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User
Well done. It can be worth persevering and going out of your way to get what you believe is the right option in a good place for yourself.
Barry |
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That's fantastic news! What a relief for you both, now try to get a few days away if you can 😍
"Life can only be understood backwards; but it must be lived forwards." Soren Kierkegaard
|
User
Well done. It can be worth persevering and going out of your way to get what you believe is the right option in a good place for yourself.
Barry |
User
Thanks Lynne and Barry. Only back a week from previous break so another not likely now until after the event. (I haven't fully unpacked from that one yet what with all that's gone on!), and John being fit enough afterwards of course..
Barry, the worrying thing is that if the original hospital hadn't mucked it up we would have just carried on as we were. Maybe nothing much would have changed, we were after all already referred to the Brachy consultant, but as he told us, his normal appointments (urology) are running at least 4 months behind.
I don't know how many members on here are under the Royal London but what a hospital. It wasn't just about the building. The staff, without exception, were pleasant, helpful and what's more articulate. A good number were foreign but we didn't have any trouble understanding any of them. During the pre-assessment interview John was advised to go and get me so that I was involved. The nurse doing the assessment had a strong but understandable accent and spoke slowly and repeated anything we didn't appear to understand straight off.
The assessment was comprehensive, even down to how many pillows John sleeps with and does he snore!! Did anyone else have those questions? I supposed it must be relevant.
He gave us his direct line number and name and when he realised he wouldn't actually be around before John went in he gave us the name of his replacement.
THIS is what the NHS should be all about and not like a number of us have already experienced.
I just hope the standard we had on Thursday is their normal one.!!
Edited by member 17 May 2014 at 10:21
| Reason: Not specified
We can't control the winds - but we can adjust our sails |
User
Well, today's the big day. Brachytherapy seed insertion day.
John was up at 04.30 and out of the door by 05.30 as he has to be in Bart's at 7a.m
He's gone off very cheerfully, still driving me mad singing "Always look on the bright side of life" and cracking jokes as he left the house.
It seems very strange to let him go off by himself but he was insistent that it was too early a start and I would only be hanging around at the hospital. He fully expects to be home today.
Now just a question of sitting and waiting for the phone call to say it's done and dusted come and get him, his singing is driving us mad. !
We can't control the winds - but we can adjust our sails |
User
Good luck to John. I am sure it will be a relief to you both when you're back home together. And be honest, I bet you're missing his warbling even now!
Paul
Stay Calm And Carry On. |
User
How true Paul!! Have already done so much housework, siphoned off the new wine, made him his favourite chicken soup, changed the bed and washed and ironed it all. I HATE ironing but it's all done so some good's come of it. I'm knackered!! But it is all distracting me.
We can't control the winds - but we can adjust our sails |