Pleural mesothelioma

Hello fellow sufferers, whether cancer victims or their families and other loved ones.

I posted on this site about a month ago having just learnt that my wonderful soul-mate husband has pleural mesothelioma, the asbestos-based terminal lung cancer. His prognosis is 12-21 months without treatment, but, with the COVID-19 emergency ongoing he's been told there won't be any treatment for 'at least a couple of months'. Not that treatment will do anything other than maybe contain the cancer long enough to grant him a few precious extra months. I was in such a state of shock, anger, disbelief and anxiety at the diagnosis that I wasn't really paying too much attention to what I was doing 'out of hours' - that being the time when my husband is asleep and I feel able to cry and rage and fret without disturbing him, so my first posts were a bit selfish and panicky. I'm sorry for that.  I'm partially disabled, and I seriously worry about my ability to care for him as he needs. We were planning our old age together, planning on accidentally using each other's false teeth; laughing at our inability to stay continent - that kind of thing. Instead, we have maybe a couple of years, then he'll be gone without me. I don't want him to leave alone. Montaigne wrote, 'If anyone asks why I loved him, it was because he was he and I am I.' I am devastated and don't know how I'm going to find the strength to help him through his death. I'm struggling now to be as 'normal' as possible, but I don't sleep, can't eat, and am so effing peed off that I can't do ANYTHING to stop this and it's not his fault. I've never felt so useless before.

  • Hi Vindelis,

    Firstly, don't apologise for how you felt and your emotions previously. I can only imagine how difficult it must have been to hear the news and how tough it is now, especially with the difficulties around delayed treatment and everything else.

    I know there's not much I can really say to help other than to say we are always here for you - this forum is a safe space to vent or ask questions or voice concerns or feelings. There will be many people here who have gone through, or are perhaps going through, something similar. I hope you continue to use the forum as some sort of outlet, or a place to connect to others who understand.

    I would encourage you - especially if you don't get many further replies to this thread - to browse other discussions, or search the forum (using the button in the blue bar above) to find other discussions you may wish to join in, or perhaps where you can find some advice or information.

    It's cliched but try to take things one day at a time, including making the most of each of those days.

    It's important too that you get support for yourself during all this. As well as us here on this forum, there are other organisations who can offer support - such as Macmillan. Do explore those options to make sure you take care of yourself too.

    WIshing you all the best at this time,

    Ben
    Cancer Chat Moderator