A Birthday Wish

My birthday this year did not happen in the way I would have wished. Some of it was spent in a hospital clinic with my parents discussing the next steps in Dad's treatment for his lung condition. The specialist told us that all the evidence so far indicates mesothelioma in the lining of his left lung, a cancer caused by asbestos dust which may have been breathed in as much as fifty years before any symptoms develop. So my dear Dad may have had a ticking time bomb inside him for most, if not all, of my life.

We are being positive in the face of this news, and there is a lot that can be done to help Dad feel as well as possible for as long as possible. After a biopsy to help confirm the diagnosis, he will have the rest of the fluid in his lung lining drained within the next couple of weeks, and a procedure to prevent it coming back, and that will make a huge difference to his breathing and therefore his levels of activity. The medical staff have remarked on what good shape Dad is otherwise in for his 90 years, which is really encouraging. The hospital team have been wonderful, and we are very grateful for that. My birthday wish is that Dad will quickly get relief from his symptoms, so that he and Mum might resume a more normal life for as long as they can. It has been very distressing for them to have their usual routine turned completely upside down in the past few weeks.

The silver lining to an otherwise very dark cloud is that I have spent the day with the four closest members of my family, whom I love most in the world, because my sister and niece were with us too. If I hadn't been staying with Mum and Dad this week, I wouldn't have seen any of them on my birthday this year. Despite the circumstances, I am very glad of that.