Following diagnosis, uppermost amongst a
patient's thoughts will be these..."Am I going to die?", "Will I be
in much pain?". As there is no cure for mesothelioma it is important
that the patient is advised that with modern treatment they
can, for months or years, live a normal life for most of the time.
And that the modern drugs are very effective at keeping pain under
control and relieving it.
Obviously the treatment aspect is extremely important and the
patient and close relatives must ensure that they get
the consultant and doctors to explain comprehensively how it is all
going to work. It is advisable to compile a list of
questions to put to the medical staff prior to any appointments or
consultations and to get a relative or close friend to go along with
the patient.
I would advise taking a look on the internet for information about
the disease and printing out relevant bits. I did
this when my father was diagnosed with stomach cancer. When I showed
the consultant what I had been studying, I sensed a more open
discussion and perhaps a few more technical details were covered
that otherwise might not have been.
There is no harm in taking notes with you and you might even
consider taping the discussion. These are potentially highly
stressful and upsetting meetings which might mean that you don't
remember all that was said. You'll want to know where and when the
treatments will take place.
Include questions about possible side effects and the range and type
of drugs they will be taking. And how the drugs will be taken,
injection, by mouth, intravenous etc.
Difficulties arise when a question is asked about how long the
patient has got to live. It is impossible for the doctor
to predict the future exactly for an individual patient and they
would be putting unecessary pressure on themselves if they did.
This uncertainty is not good for the patient and vague answers never
satisfy anyone. I would push the doctor for an
educated guess based on his experience and the results he has at
hand. This is only my opinion. I would want to know
if I've got months (which could be two or three) or years (which
could be 12 months).
Fears can often be worse than reality. That is why it is important
to collate as much knowledge about the illness and
disease as possible. Discussing this new knowledge with friends and
relatives can help relieve the stress as the treatment progresses.
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