Hi

I'm new to the forum so hello  

In October my Dad lost a lot of weight and became very frail, he was going to the toilet frequently too.  A trip to the GP found nothing obvious and on 2nd November 2020 Dad was booked in for a chest X-ray.  After a few days we were told to ring the GP for the results.

A week passed before any result as the GP had been on leave, surprisingly Dad was diagnosed with a chest infection. (I am no medic but was surprised at the diagnosis as he displayed no expected symptoms of a chest infection).

Dad was given a weeks course of antibiotics.  On the sixth day Mum found Dad unconscious on the bedroom floor.  An ambulance was called and Dad was taken into hospital.

Dad was kept in hospital for a week, seemingly no investigation was carried out re his weight loss (despite daily telephone calls to nurses explaining our concerns) instead they removed some of his diabetes medication and sent him home.  He was told that he would be booked in for a CT scan.

A month after being admitted to hospital (three weeks after leaving hospital) an appointment came through for him to have a ct scan, a week after this scan (24th December) Dad had an appointment to discuss the scan results, a nurse explained that Dads stomach wall was suspiciously thick, and that there were leisons on his liver. Worryingly he had become so dehydrated he was told to go home for Christmas Day, and then return Boxing Day to be admitted to hospital.  The dr explained on being admitted that they would book dad in for an endoscopy biopsy in two weeks time as an outpatient.

Thankfully after much protest the endoscopy took place whilst he was already in hospital so that saved us a couple of weeks further waiting.

Dad is now home, clearly though still very unwell.  We are no waiting for the biopsy results, if these are inconclusive he is to be admitted for a liver biopsy.

His hospital notes suspect that he has a rare stomach cancer (linitus plasticus) that may have metastasised to his liver.

The whole process feels unnecessarily elongated.  I don't understand why tests cannot be conducted in parrelel.  Time I fear is not on Dads side and from the initial incorrect diagnosis of a chest infection to now is over two months, during which he has spent two weeks of that in hospital, and we still don't have a formal diagnosis, and therefore no treatment plan.

I understand that everyone wants quick results, every day seems like a week, but are these waits for tests and results normal? 
 

If cancer is confirmed, how long should we expect to wait for any treatment to start?
 

Your experiences would be most helpful

Thanks