Talk Morgan Forums Community The Malvern Arms Boshly update

Thanks Jay, great indicative tale though I am sorry to hear about your wife, my sincere condolences of course.

As mentioned, I've always had a bee in my bonnet about the phrase "The big C" and naturally more so now. Cancer affects nearly all of us in one way or another, and treatments are improving year upon year. A TM'er gave me a quote that says so much:
"what you know about chemotherapy now, is probably 10 years out of date" (apologies for possible misquote).

Cancer is also very personal, yet can cause terror. My MiL is psychologically scarred (IMHO) from having a cancerous mole removed about 15 years ago. She still gets tearful and scared when talking about it, yet has been totally in remission for years, she didn't even need chemotherapy.

I mean, we don't say "The big H" for heart attacks or "the big S" for strokes so let's call it for what it is, a nasty disease (appreciate that might not be the correct description) that is treatable and beatable. It's not the automatic death sentence it once was! There are many many incredible geniuses (I can think of no other word) working hard to combat cancer and they are making huge advances year upon year.

Saying all of that, I still approve of using "the big L" - for Dyslexia

From one Neil to another - bonne chance!

It does remind me of an excellent one-liner I was told a few years ago... I feel able to tell it, despite my own (like everyone's) personal losses in this area.


"my grandad died at the weekend.... The big C"
"what, cancer?"
"Er no, he drowned"

Hope all goes well next week Andy.

I agree with the "caught early enough" statement, however, sometimes people don't even realise there is something wrong until the cancer is at a more advanced state (I've just lost one of my best mates to cancer this morning - non Hodgkins Lymphoma or something, but it had spread).
Similarly, it's not always diagnosed correctly in the early stages, as happened to my Sister, but apparently duodenal cancer is quite rare.

Good luck Neil. Hope your results were OK J?

Sitting here in a very introspective mood, attempting to write some notes for a eulogy(?) and getting absolutely no-where!

(Edit: 2 posts since I started this - I'm slowing down )

Excellent!

My mate was an ex-marine Radio Officer, like me...

Best of luck Neil. Fingers and toes crossed for you.

Perhaps a eulogy in morse code would be the answer then.

Yes, but only he and I would understand it!

Edit - thinking about it, maybe that's not such a bad idea!

my intent this morning was to open TM, post a PM to Boshers requesting his authority to open a new thread titled CANCER.

It seems this as already been done here and a place where i feel we should all join in, we are :-

All Men
All afraid of it
not willing to be open about it

if the likes fo Boshers can prevent me from getting it, or coping well if i ever get it, bring it on, i look forward to this thread continuing and helping those in need to express themselves.

Yours the big "L"

My sympathies for your loss Graham.

You make a great couple of points above, and if I may say that's exactly it. If breaking the taboo and unspeakability (I made that word up ) of it all means someone can possibly identity or suspect early onset, it's all been worthwhile. If I'd have known 2 years ago what I know now, I would have insisted my doctor send me for a colonoscopy instead of accepting the "it's probably haemorrhoids" line she gave me, when I first found blood in my stools. Would it have made any difference? No idea and until they invent the Tardis I don't really care in my case, we are where we are

But moving forward, for any one of you guys, you know the questions to ask and to push for. If it turns out to be haemorrhoids, then great; if not you're a little bit ahead

And whilst there are always tremendously sad stories such as that of your friend, there are also plenty of success stories; my ex-wife's step brother has just been given the all clear after contracting Non-Hodgkinsons Lymphoma a few years ago. I've no idea how it was picked up nor how debilitating or far gone it was, but a success story is a success story.

I hope no-one feels that I'm in anyway belittling or ignoring those who have suffered or are suffering from terminal versions of cancer and I'm in no way saying its all plain sailing, just that it isn't the death sentence it once was.

NGUNS!!