For the past few weeks I've been whinging about a lack of information as well as a lack of action. After having done the last tests everything descended into limbo. The hospital never made any attempt to contact me, not with test results nor with any plan to develop a plan. Easter became a bit difficult and got me down as nothing was going to happen during public holidays.
Last Tuesday I bit the bullet and rang the Cancer Council number. Had a very long discussion with the nurse which was very helpful. She was based in Adelaide but gave me a number for Cancer Council in Darwin. She also suggested I immediately get in contact with my medical 'team' at the hospital and find out what is going on. So ringing the hospital they said they'd transfer me to the respiratory nurse as they couldn't let me speak directly with the medical team. The phone rang for ages and finally getting an answer machine left a message for them to ring me urgently. Unfortunately no one rang back.
The next day, Wednesday, I had my first consultation with the new GP. There was a trainee doctor present (looked old enough to still be in high school). The GP seemed to concentrate on things other than the cancer issue. Not all the information from the hospital nor my previous GP had come through. I made a comment on the irony of never having been a smoker but still being lumbered with this. The GP almost bit my head off saying I shouldn't dwell on these thoughts, that I'd end up succumbing to the "why me" syndrome and negativity. Just told him that my mental health was still good but there were always going to be these other thoughts creeping in. Felt like saying "Listen mate, when you've been there then you can lecture me". But he did mean well. He said he was going to try and find out what's going on with the hospital. Got another appointment with him Wednesday next week.
Today was a funny sort of a day, things changed rapidly and dramatically. One of the contractors working on my house project came to check the site and talk over things. He had just come from the hospital where he'd undergone radiation therapy for neck cancer. He was in bad way, it was really scary. It's just amazing how much cancer there is out there and mostly we are unaware of it.
Later there was a phone call from a woman identifying herself as my "carer". She wanted to know if I'd like to meet with the cardiothoracic surgeons Tuesday next week. The answer was a very definite yes, anything to find out what's going on. Then came the next question, surgery the next day? That was very short notice for something so significant. It wouldn't give me any time to organise my property for my absence and there was no indication of how long I'd be away. After telling her that she said they'd go to the next person on the list but would ring me back if the surgeons still wanted to see me on Tuesday.
When I rang a friend and told her what had transpired she said I should just go for it and she would sort out something with my property. When I rang my 'carer' back she said they were waiting for a response from the next one on the list. May have missed my chance here, the surgeons are up from Adelaide and only here for a short time. But the meeting with them is still on.
There was another surprising phone call, from the respiratory nurse, only two days late. Seems like my GP had stirred them up. She waffled on with some excuses but it didn't matter as things had developed beyond that.
To top things off my GP rang so told him about the latest developments. He was pleased with that. His news was that tests had shown I didn't have diabetes.
So, from hanging for ages in limbo in one short day everything seems to have got back on track. There's still lots of questions but the opportunity to get answers has become real again.
