Hi Katie and other readers

i know exactly what you are feeling and going through, my dad has terminal esophageal cancer which has now spread to his liver and stomach amongst other places, he initially underwent breakthrough keyhole surgery however discovering this secondary cancer has made him become terminal. I spent the first few days living in a haze of crying and drifting along in existence before i managed to buck my ideas up and get a grip on reality again. He is now in a lot of constant pain living on morphine (both patches and orally) and they are already mentioning changing medication as it just isnt 'cutting it'. Unfortunately this sort of cancer (although i have no experience of other types really) is very painful. I too am unaware of the true timescale and have no idea just how little time i have left with him - it chokes me up just trying to think of my life ahead without him there. If anyone does have information on the timescaling i would be very interested to hear what they have to say.....i am very pragmatic and prefer to be aware of realistic aims rather than just "hoping for the best", i just wish i knew if it were days, or weeks - i no longer expect it to be months as he is deteriorating at what seems to me like an expenential rate.

Hello butterfly-baby, I know what you mean. My grandad had been in constant pain too, it's horrible to watch and especially when he's upset/depressed.

I am like you, I'd rather know than wish for the best because it allows you to actually know how long you have left.

Looking through the forum and on the Internet on this subject I have found out that apparently every single case is different time wise so it's hard to know! A bit annoying I know! Hope you and your dad are keeping well, thanks for the reply and good luck for the future x

Hello butterfly-baby, I know what you mean. My grandad had been in constant pain too, it's horrible to watch and especially when he's upset/depressed.

I am like you, I'd rather know than wish for the best because it allows you to actually know how long you have left.

Looking through the forum and on the Internet on this subject I have found out that apparently every single case is different time wise so it's hard to know! A bit annoying I know! Hope you and your dad are keeping well, thanks for the reply and good luck for the future x