Page 1 - Matt Carter Story

Page 1 of 6
Matt Carter’s Storey
1 - Symptoms and Diagnosis
I was diagnosed with oesophageal cancer in
August 2014 at the age of 48. During the six
months prior to that I noticed swallowing
food had gradually become harder, which I
put down to indigestion so largely ignored it.
Steadily I ate less and less, opting for softer
foods thinking it helped to alleviate the
discomfort. Eventually I couldn't even eat
small meals, choking and coughing, bringing
food back up. That's when I went to my GP.
Six weeks later and after a change of GP I
was asked to attend an urgent endoscopy at
the Churchill hospital. The examination
revealed a lump in my lower oesophagus,
which ten days later was confirmed to be
cancer.
After the endoscopy I don't remember
leaving the hospital, both my wife and I
were completely stunned. I didn't want to
look it up on the internet knowing it
wouldn't be good for my state of mind,
preferring to talk with the experts at the
Churchill first before jumping to any
conclusions. As it turned out that was the
right thing to do for me as our first meeting
with our Consultant surgeon, although hard
and sobering, left me feeling confident I was
truly in excellent hands. It's better to know
exactly what's what than speculate or guess.
Waiting was the worst thing. It seemed to
take weeks to go through the various scans
and tests to devise the right treatment plan
for me. At each stage not knowing if the
cancer had spread or not. To help cope with
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all of the waiting we decided to spend our
valuable time doing nice things. Walking,
visiting family and friends, going to the
cinema, anything to enjoy the time rather
than worry about tests out of our control.
Yes, it felt sickening before each meeting to
discuss the results, but I went in thinking if
it's not good news I wanted to know what
could be done and then get on with it. At
first, I found talking with close family and
friends very hard but it really helped, most
importantly, to dispel what felt like a stigma
or personal failure to have this horrible
cancer. Being mindful not to be negative, we
found their response incredibly supportive.
On reflection, throughout 2014, I shouldn't
have ignored the symptoms for so long and
talked with my GP much sooner and been
more assertive. The clinical team at the
Churchill did a brilliant job. My reassigned
GP was brilliant too and still is. Facing up to
the cancer early on with my family and
friends was extremely hard but a very
important step. My wife, family and friends
have been there for me at every stage, I feel
so humbled. Nevertheless, staying positive
at every twist and turn is extremely hard but
absolutely the only way to stay focused on
beating it.
In my next account I will describe the
treatment I went through including
chemotherapy and radiotherapy, how it
made me feel and how I coped with it.