Hi guys. Sending love to you all. We have just lost my mum to this cancer after only 6 months post surgery. My advice push for the chemo after and push for all the scans you can get after too. If this had been possible for mum then she might still be here. Xx

Hi

I too would advise, push push push.  My brother had been visiting his GP since March with fears of this dreadful cancer and was pooh poohed and told it was acid reflux.  Eventually at the end of August he had an endoscopy and a biopsy.  By this time he had lost 1 and half stones in 6 weeks.  He was rushed into hospital on 20th September, and passed away on 25th October without having had any treatment.  I could go into far more detail but would not wish to distress anyone on this forum.  It was obviously too late for him and I find it extremely upsetting that in spite of him doing the right thing and going to his doctor, (and advising the doctor that his paternal grandfather had died of the same disease) he was sent away and not seen to in sufficient time to give him a few months quality of life.  

Make a nuisance of yourself, push and push for scans and tests and treasure every moment you have xx

Cheers bfg... and everyone else.

I am at the hospital right now...my Dad is inside having his second covid jab. The roll out is a bit slower here but nicely catching up.  For a while no one seemed to know whether a cancer patient could have the vaccine but then we got a call and said my Dad was fine to have one particular vaccine- I think it's the maderna one! (Not sure if that's spelt correctly). 

Lee

Hi Bfg and everyone,

Love the bubbles! Perfect and very true! 
 

Hope all that are able to are enjoying this lovely weather over the bank holiday.

Keeping the faith

Milly 

Hi Redski

When i was on flot i drank 2 litres of milkshakes every day and more or less maintained my body weight pre op , as my appetite for other foods was very poor ,i know others who have done much the same , above all get plenty rest on the home days i know it's boring but it's a must do and pays dividends in the long run , take it easy

Regards

Douglas

Thank you Douglas, that sounds like a good tip too. Do you mean the thick American style ice cream milkshakes like you'd get at McDonalds, but ASDA's version ... or the flavoured milk you get at ASDA ? I had a quick look online, but there's a lot of choice ! Thank you.

Digital Thermometer from well known, online retailer purchased - thank you for that tip too.

All set to start tomorrow.

Lastly, how long does each FLOT session take ? I forgot to ask when I was there for the blood checks, today.

Thank you.

Hi Redski

A bit longer than usual for the 1st one as they will take you through the side effects and the do's and donots.

Then about 4 hours max for the main ones (1hr and 2hr, with flushes in between).

Then they hook you up to the pump and send you home. 

My next is Thursday. 

Hi Redski

I  am a cheapskate and just bought the asda or tesco flavoured milk which i liked and still do , the flot is a long day as you are taking in around 3.5 litres of fluids my visits were usually around 36 hoiurs but the process itself was pretty straightforward and not uncomfortable , i am sure you will find it the same , nothing really kicks in until the following days and by day 12 you feel almost back to normal just in time for round two , the four cycles then become quite routine and pass by in quick succession , it's not that bad , take care and keep us posted on your progress.

Regards 

Douglas

Morning Douglas !

Not cheapskate at all, I'll be doing the same thing ... just wanted to make sure I was buying the right thing, so thank you.

Excited to start today as just want to begin nuking it !

Thank you for your help and insight on it all so far all.

Hi Redski

i used to start my flot on a wednesday and it was usually anyrhing up to eleven thirty pm on the thursday before i left the hospital , trust me at that point you will be feeling fine , the steroids they get you to take prior to admission made me ravenous and i ate everything that they offered me , another tip i found to combat the affect on your taste was sugar free sweets i bought bags off them and took them in with me along with the flavoured milk , you don't need luck just a bit patience , take care and keep us posted

Regards

Douglas

Hi all, 

I'm still on the diagnosis path but thought I'm far enough along the journey to pop my head up and say hi. 

Firstly, reading this thread has been really helpful in my understanding of the possible (and various!) next steps I can expect. Thank you.

I'm Jae, a 37yo man from Kent. A few weeks ago I began having issues swallowing foods. Two weeks ago I contacted my doctor who immediately put me on the "cancer path" as she so unreassuringly put it (I'm very grateful she did though!). Last Thursday I had my gastroscopy where the doctor was rather surprised, given my age and lack of other symptoms, to find a large tumour taking up 3/4 of my oesophagus and many biopsies were taken. Had a CT scan yesterday and now I'm awaiting my Multi-Disciplinary Meeting on this coming Monday in order to find out the firm diagnosis and next steps.

I feel like I'm handling it a lot better than my husband who is extremely stressed about everything (especially what he considers a lack of information whereas I think everything has happened very quickly and I'm being as well-informed as possible by the NHS). 

As far as I see it right now, I've got 5 more days of blissful ignorance (except for the ever-present liquid diet I've put myself on) until the real rollercoaster gets going. 

Thanks again for this thread, it really has helped me know what questions to ask and what sort of treatments are likely.

Hi Jae and welcome to the forum-a place where none of us want to be!

We are based in Spain so our experiences may differ slightly to everyone else on here who is experiencing treatment in the UK but if we can help you in any way just ask and good luck. 

Lee

Hi Jae and welcome to the forum-a place where none of us want to be!

We are based in Spain so our experiences may differ slightly to everyone else on here who is experiencing treatment in the UK but if we can help you in any way just ask and good luck. 

Lee