Sunday 29 March 2015

The Ripple Effect...........One small change can have an ENOURMOUS effect

As many of you will know I have spent the last few years doing what I can to raise awareness for bowel cancer and IBD's. But whilst talking to someone at a recent charity event I realised I've referred to BBC a lot but have never really highlighted all the hard work that they do. Time to fix that....

As April is Bowel Cancer awareness month it seems appropriate :)

Their vision is a world where bowel cancer is beaten. Beating Bowel Cancer is the support and campaigning charity for everyone affected by bowel cancer.

They bring people with bowel cancer together to share experiences and create a powerful voice for change.

• promoting early diagnosis of bowel cancer
• campaigning for the highest quality treatment and care for bowel cancer patients
• raising money to fund our vital work

Each year Beating Bowel Cancer
-          distributes over 120,000 information booklets to help patients and their families understand more about bowel cancer and to support them in making vital decisions

-          Their nurse helpline receives over 3,300 contacts from people needing support

-          780,000 people visit the Beating Bowel Cancer website to find out about symptoms and get vital information about the condition

Key facts and statistics about bowel cancer
• Every half an hour someone dies of the disease
• Each year around 16,000 people die of bowel cancer
• Bowel cancer is the fourth most common cancer in the UK
• Around 110 people are diagnosed with bowel cancer every day, that’s someone every 15 minutes
• Bowel cancer affects both men and women
 
• Your lifetime risk of developing bowel cancer is 1 in 16.

Reading the statistics above hopefully now you can see why I never feel like I can do enough.

My hope is my humble ramblings create a small ripple of awareness which may in turn create someone else to create a ripple.

I hope they do......so Ill keep rambling ;)

Tuesday 17 March 2015

March 16th

March 16th will always be a very memorable date in my calendar.

This was the date of my operation to remove the cancerous tumour and create my Stoma.  People have referred to this a lifesaving operation.  In some ways I suppose it was (although to be honest referring to this as 'life saving' does seem a bit dramatic!)  Either way it was the date that my life changed.

I’m not sure I have written a post with some additional details from this day.  On reflection it wasn't the most  straight forward of procedures.  If you know me, or have read these blogs that shouldn’t be a surprise :)

As I write this blog a strange visual flashback has popped up!  Just before I was wheeled down for my op the stoma nurses came by to 'draw' on where my stoma was to be located.  Strangely when this was drawn on my right side it came as a bit of a shock.  I’d gotten it into my head it would be on my left side.  Weird now how this insignificant detail bothered me?

The time came and I was wheeled into the theatre.  Due to the nature of the operations I was due to have an epidural.  This didnt quite go according to plan.  After multiple attempts they decided to sedate me and deal with this later.

My operation was due to last 3-4 hours.  Obviously at the time I wasn’t aware but due to some complications (fiscals in my bowel) the op took ALOT longer. Nearer 8 I believe!  I can only imagine how distressing this must’ve been for my wife and family.  Expecting me to return to the ward but each time they check being told I hadn’t been brought back yet and with no update!

Due to these complications an unscheduled incision was required.  Simple enough in itself, however, this additional incision was made above the point of the epidural pain relief. Meaning that all I recall when I awake was searing pain!

After some unexpected time in the recovery room and some drugs ;) I returned to my ward.  I don’t recall much as the morphine I was on really made you slip in and out of consciousness.  I do recall my step dad wanting to take a picture?  Memories are wierd things.

Unfortunatley this wasn’t the end of the challenges.  A day later during the numerous test as and checks they found my blood count was too low.  Now apparently they normally don’t like to do blood transfusions over night, in true smith style my transfer was an emergency they need to get the blood in quick.  

I recall about 3 pints being required.  As they were trying to get this into me fairly quickly I also recall my arm swelled fairly substantially.  A very bizarre sensation!
I finally started to recover from the op and my real recovery began!

Now if you read all of the above, you could assume that I look back at March 16th with a heavy heart. Focusing on the negative aspects of my operation. What it ’took’ away from me.

March 16th has become a day where I reflect on what my operation has given me..........
strange right ;)