Let me tell you about this week which has been like no other I have known.
Thursday 23 April
Having had a fabulous game of golf the day before, in beautiful spring sunshine with my good buddies Peter and Malcolm, I entered the consultant’s office in a buoyant mood. Why not, I felt great!
I had been referred by my GP who I had visited 2 weeks earlier as my stools had got darker and smellier, if that's possible. She carried out blood tests and stool tests which were clear but she thought it a good idea to see a consultant as a precaution. The consultant literally put his finger on the problem straight away and told me I had a tumour which he was sure was cancer. It was surreal and I asked a few trivial questions and left. Arriving home the bombshell hit and I was certain I was finished. What a strange realisation that is. With me, my thoughts were not for me at all, they were for Marilyn, Oli and Jen.
Friday
The consultant's secretary rang and a colonoscopy had been arranged for Tuesday. Thank god for private insurance. We then set off for a weekend walking in the Peak District with our good friends Nic and Lindsay. That night we stayed at a hotel that was having a Fawlty Towers evening with Basil, Sybil and Manuel entertaining us over dinner in a very manic show. My head was still reeling trying to come to terms with it all and there was Basil charging around our table shooting Manuel’s hamster whilst Sybil was blind drunk sprawled all over Lindsay. We hadn’t told Nic and Lindsay as we decided to wait until after the colonoscopy. A mistake.
Saturday
I awoke very distressed and after several abortive attempts to go down for breakfast we realised there was no option but to reveal all as they were all ready suspicious. Their reaction was fabulous and they were very supportive to us both, saying just the right things. We swore them to secrecy.
We then headed off to a beautiful apartment half and hour away in an old converted mill in the beautiful Dales hill side. We had a beautiful day with a gorgeous circular walk along a river bank and back over a high narrow hillside path. A memorable day.
Sunday
Another very wobbly start, a Lindsay fry up breakfast and another lovely walk. At 2pm I had to start a 2 day fast in preparation for the test. Nic and I then drove back home in the afternoon as he had to work and I had to prepare for the colonoscopy. Bless him, a 4 hour journey with me could not have been easy. Marilyn stayed behind for 2 more days with Lindsay which was great as the penny had not really dropped for her and this gave her breathing space. What a blessing she was with such a good friend.
Monday
A day of fasting and purging. Not pleasant.
Tuesday
I had the colonoscopy in a local private hospital under a mild anaesthetic. My consultant came up to the room afterwards and confirmed to me and Marilyn that there was only one tumour about 10cm up and it was definitely cancer. He explained that scans were needed to establish if there was a breakout to other organs or through the bowel wall. These were miraculously arranged for the next day. It was time to tell Oli and Jen. I will leave this to your imagination how unbearably painful this was for us all. Oli and Jen came down to Pembroke Lodge that night and are still with us.
Wednesday
I had a CT scan in the morning to check the organs. In the afternoon I had a MRI scan to check the soft tissue around the bowel. Whilst I was having the second scan my consultant popped into the waiting room and gave Marilyn the brilliant news that the other organs were clear. More tears in a crowded waiting room. Surgery is provisionally booked for Wednesday depending on the second scan. I had to cancel my ticket to Sydney which was booked for the same day but, as Marilyn rightfully said, it is mereley postponed until I am better.
Today
It is my little boy's 30th birthday today and we have had a lovely family roast.
The consultant has rung and said the preliminary results from the second scan were encouraging and surgery is looking promising but it depends on a group consultants meeting on Tuesday morning. I have to start another bloody fast on Monday just in case. I will be in for up to 2 weeks and then a couple of months convalescence. Thank God for great staff who will look after the business in my absence. We were the civil engineers for the new £14m roller coaster, Saw, which has just opened at Thorpe Park. Trust me that ride is a doddle compared to the emotional coaster we have all been on.
We all remain in good spirits with high but realistic optimism. I am naturally nervous but not frightened. The warmth and support of you all is heart warming.
Please post comments in reply and we will keep you regularly informed of progress.
Much love to you all, Jon x
