My mum was diagnosed with a glioblastoma on 29th November 2023. My sister and I took her to A&E on the 18th November because she had been suffering with severe headaches for a week and was acting and saying things out of character. Prior to that she had no symptoms at all and was acting completely normal. Initially we thought she was having a breakdown - my sister was diagnosed with cervical cancer for the 3rd time in October 2023 and we were told it was incurable and my mum was really struggling to deal with it. But the CT scan showed a mass on my mums brain with swelling and bleeding and she was put on steroids to help with the symptoms. We expected to be told that she would need an operation and recovery time. Instead we were told that it was a massive malignant brain tumour that was inoperable and untreatable due to the size it, and she had a short prognosis; 'months, not even a year' are the words the consultant said. It was a massive shock to us, 3 weeks prior she had been completely normal with no symptoms at all! My mum is only 61 years old and has never smoked or took drugs. She does like a drink, the odd bottle of lager or glass of wine - nothing too excessive. It's been 2 months now since diagnosis, and I'm honestly confused with what is happening. My mum was moved out of the hospital into a hospice, however the hospice wanted to move her out as she wasn't at end of life stage. She is now in a care home. However what confuses me is the changes in my mums mental and physical state - at one point I didn't think she would make it to christmas as she was so poorly, complaining of headaches, being sick, fatigue, confusion, sleepiness. The steroids seemed to work and she improved slightly at the hospice, although she still suffered from incontinence, confusion and fatigue. A couple of week ago she also started becoming quite unsteady while standing up, and losing coordination in her legs. She had a few falls and ended up injuring her back. She's now been provided with a walking aid.
However in the past week, myself and the rest of our family have noticed a massive change - her mental state seems to have improved massively. She still comes out with the odd strange comment but she is aware of it and laughs at herself, but the confusion and lack of comprehension she was displaying before has stopped. Her coordination has improved. She is now going to the toilet and is getting herself up, showered and changed - a couple of weeks ago she was that confused she wouldn't even be aware she'd wee'd herself and needed a shower and to get changed!
Has anyone else been in a similar situation where someone has shown signs of improvement? My sister and I are both very level headed and we have agreed that this is probably a false positive and we are expecting our mum to deteriorate at any time, we do not believe that our mum is miraculously getting better and we are just determined to make the most of our time with her while we can. But we are also both completely confused by this turnaround in her symptoms.
Is there anyone that has been in a similar situation that can offer some guidance or support?
