Hi, I am new here so thought I'd introduce myself.

My Dad is 82 and was diagnosed with stage 4 squamous cell carcinoma floor of mouth on 18/12/19. He was given the choice of radical surgery followed by radiotherapy with a 50/60 % chance of success but leaving him with severely impaired quality of life, or radiotherapy on it's own to possibly extend his life but with no guarantee of working, or to have no treatment but palliative care and to try to enjoy the time he has left, which they said would be "months".

It has been devastating as he was a great 82, very active and independent, doing his exercises and generally acting like he was much younger. 5 months down the road and he is a shadow of his former self, unable to eat so he survives on Fortisip drinks.

The level of care he has received has not been what I expected and I have had to fight every step of the way to get him the pain relief and medical attention he needs. It's been a constant battle and became worse due to the COVID 19 situation.

He lives alone at home and I have been allowed to visit him every day, despite the lockdown as his care team advised that terminally ill patients in his situation would be classed as extreme circumstances and I am caring for a vulnerable person.

We don't know how long he has left or even much about what is ahead for him. He has no regular visits from anyone, apart from the district nurse who has been  coming every week recently to change the dressing on a sore patch of skin he has developed.

I think I am rambling now, I could write pages and pages but this brief outline will do for now.

Thanks for reading x