Page 2 - Matt Carter Story

Page 2 of 6
Matt Carter’s Storey
2 - Matt Carter's Journey Continues
This is the second of a four-part series
sharing my experiences of coping with
oesophageal cancer. In the first part I
described events leading up to diagnosis and
in this summary, I outline my treatment plan
and how it worked out.
It was a tough time meeting with the
oncologist to discuss options which seemed
limited and simply daunting. A few weeks
after diagnosis, as tests and various meetings
unravelled, I was eventually offered a place
on a national trial funded by Cancer
Research UK called 'NeoScope'. Again, the
waiting was the hardest thing, but for me the
decision to go on the trial was an easy one.
When the chips are down it's time to do
whatever it takes. The trial involved
prolonged chemotherapy for eleven weeks
instead of six on the highest dose I could
physically cope with. This was coupled with
high dose radiotherapy overlapping the last
five weeks of chemotherapy. With modern
drugs and targeted radiotherapy being much
safer these days I signed on the bottom line.
We all know that chemotherapy is not a
summer picnic but I found the first few
weeks surprisingly bearable. Listening
carefully to the advice of nurses helped an
awful lot, with the do's and don'ts of it all
and knowing I could call my specialist nurse
(ANP) for advice and support.
At first the weekly infusions and daily
tablets felt intense but soon became a
routine. I made great friends with a cheerful
character in the chemotherapy suite who has
a worse cancer than me. That was really
sobering, and he's still here today fighting
his corner.
The key to it all is REST, not doing too
much, keeping warm if it's cold, cool if it's
hot, relaxing as much as possible, being
distracted with family, friends, TV, films,
books, puzzles, painting, music, anything to
be preoccupied. Carefully follow the pill
plan, always seek advice if unsure and avoid
people with colds! My wife looked after me
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throughout, making sure I didn't miss any
tablets and keeping my spirits afloat. I found
the worst of the side effects to be nausea and
fatigue, both manageable with medication
and sleep. For a day or two after infusions I
had subtle tingling sensations in my feet,
hands, lips and tongue, with bizarre hot
sensations when touching cold surfaces,
although these faded away. Side effects are
inevitable but nothing to be afraid of. The
radiotherapy wasn't too bad either, being
more of a trial having to get there five days a
week. However, after four weeks of
radiotherapy and ten weeks of high-dose
chemotherapy I was on another planet. It
was the toughest time but the end was in
sight and I kept telling myself 'I'm beating
it'. Another survival tactic was to get washed
and dressed every morning telling myself
'look-good-feel-good', which really helped.
I lost my sense of taste and appetite but,
positively, I found eating physically easier
as the weeks passed by. Sipping cool water
felt good. At the end it took 4-6 weeks to
recover, including my various senses, and
clearly the tumour had shrunk. In fact, I
enjoyed a small roast turkey lunch with
family on Christmas day which I hoped
might happen. That was truly amazing.
Further tests were scheduled to see if the
cancer had shrunk or spread, determining
whether surgery to remove the tumour was
possible or not. Again, a totally nerve-
wracking time. After rigorous testing I was
told I could elect for surgery if I wanted it.
Although exhausted I was determined to do
whatever it took so gladly accepted the offer.
In the next part of this series I describe the
operation and my time in hospital.