h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

It feels like I'm right underneath it at the moment, and there's no voice telling me it's time for something completely different.

My Uncle Fred died on Friday, not unexpectedly, he's been ill for some time with Alzheimers disease and the same day my mom went for a chest X-ray as she's had a niggly cough for a couple of months that's not responded to antibiotics.

There's a shadow on her lungs and it's 99.9% certain that it's cancer again. She's having a bronchioscopy next Wednesday to confirm the diagnosis & to find out which type. She's already beaten cancer of the cervix over 20 years ago and had a radical mastectomy 8 years ago.

Sorry to hear about your Uncle

Good luck to your mom

Hope she can beat the big C a second time

Thanks all, we're a bit in limbo at the moment, we won't get the results of all the tests & scans until early September.

Mom says it's like waiting for 'the other shoe to drop' not knowing just what she's contending with but she's keeping her spirits up. I'm just waiting for the trip to Dublin and then I'll be keeping them down I really need the break.

Best of luck to your mum. for you all.

Looking forward to Dublin

Mom starts her chemo on Wednesday so I'm going down to see her on Sunday. I actually managed to speak to Pa this morning while she was in the shower, it's the first chance we've had for a quiet chat. He told me Mom's looking on the dark side, apparently the 'few months' she's talking about is if she doesn't respond to chemo or has a very bad reaction to it. We'll see.

thanks GB

Well, Mom's started her chemo & so far the only side-effect she's had is constipation . She's feeling & sounding fine if a little hoarse which is only to be expected.

She's well enough to give me a right ing because I didn't tell her I was going to have 2 moles removed so I guess everything's normal there.

The is talking about sending her for radiotherapy after her chemo and Pa has said he wants her to have it before Xmas so he can save on the fairy lights . It's a good job we all share the same sense of humour otherwise she'd have chased him round the house.