End of Life

Devil82 1 month ago

3 replies

Hello

I’ve been told 7 days ago that the hospital can not offer anymore chemotherapy for my stage 4 small cell lung cancer in my left lung. This has spread to my liver.

Im a single parent to a 16 year old son and struggling to come to terms with. * Leaving my son at a young age. * With the news of now end of life means end of life. How to process it. * How end of life care is from home , I don’t want to be left alone in bed.

Has anyone dealt with this cancer and how quick was the deterioration?

Devil82 1 month ago

Any help is good.

Daffodil 1 month ago

Hello Devil82,

Thank you very much for posting here. We are so sorry to hear that you are living with lung cancer and have had the news that no further chemotherapy can be offered. It sounds like this is quite a lot to process, both for you as a person and as a parent to a teenage son.

Have you been able to discuss the next steps or care with your doctor? The  Marie Curie website has some information about palliative and end of life care that may be useful to read: https://www.mariecurie.org.uk/information/getting-care.

We hope that other community members will see this thread and feel comfortable sharing their experiences with you. If you would like to chat or talk to someone directly about care, or about how you are doing, the Marie Curie online chat (www.mariecurie.org.uk) and telephone helpline (0800 090 2309) are open 8am to 6pm Monday to Friday, and 10am to 4pm Saturday to Sunday.

💛 Anke, a member of the Marie Curie Online Community Team

Marla 1 month ago

Hi Devil82

Thank you for reaching out to us. My name is Marla, I am a nurse with the Information and Support Line and whilst I am not permitted to give you advice my background is a ward-based nurse within the hospice so can pull on my knowledge and experience to try and support/sign post you. I am so sorry you have had such difficult news. It must feel incredibly overwhelming trying to process everything as well as thinking about what lays ahead for both you and your son, and how you will cope. You have said you are a single parent; do you have any family or friends who you are close to or support you? Have you had a conversation with your oncologist about end of life and prognosis? Talking about your worries and concerns to them may be helpful, also reaching out to your GP for support and guidance will be an important step to ensure you put things in place in preparation for when you become less well.

Whilst these conversations are difficult and challenging, they will support you in planning and making important decisions about what you would and would not like to happen and where you would want to be for end-of-life care, it’s called Advance Care Planning.

Have you been referred to a palliative care team? If not, you can speak to your GP and ask when it may be appropriate to refer you to the palliative care team. End of life care can be managed at home in many areas with the right care and support in place, this will generally include support from a specialist palliative care team, district nursing team and the GP. They can also help support both you and your son and refer you on for additional support where needed. Being open and honest about how you are feeling and what your worries are should help guide the right conversations and support from the appropriate teams. Below I have added in some links from the Marie Curie website that may be of help to you. You could also contact our Information and Support Line on 0800 090 2309 to speak to someone directly about your concerns or through webchat or email, this is a safe space for you to talk. Please come back to us at any point should you want or need to. Take care.

Marla

https://www.mariecurie.org.uk/information/getting-care/paying-for-social-care

https://www.mariecurie.org.uk/information/getting-care/nursing-and-personal-care

https://www.mariecurie.org.uk/information/getting-care/living-alone

https://www.mariecurie.org.uk/information/planning-ahead/advance-care-planning