"Care following a terminal cancer diagnosis"

Dad was diagnosed with terminal cancer after rapid weight loss over a few months. We were given a diagnosis of 12 months initially, which ended up being just 3.5 months in the end.

We had some follow up appointments in the North west cancer care centre in Altnagelvin hospital where we were first introduced to Yvonne. She reached out to us during the face to face appointments and over the phone to ensure we understood and were up to date with all the information we were given in a short space of time. 

I likened it to being on the starting grid of a car race, the flag had just started the race but we had no idea of the layout of the track and were just hurtling around corners blind of what was around them! Everything seemed to be moving with such pace after we got our terminal diagnosis. 

We were given some hope initially but as the cancer spread rapidly we were unfortunately left dealing with a very short time frame in the end. The chemotherapy wasn’t working the way it was anticipated so we moved to palliative care quite quickly. Those difficult conversations were had with the utmost respect and caring nature that was possible. 

Thank you for making our cancer journey easier, thank you for your kind words and the knowledge that you shared and the kindness that came with our meetings. Thanks for the support that you gave Mum and Dad when they went to the hospital and the phone calls in between. We were on a journey that we never wanted to be, but with your support and help we were able to make Dad comfortable and informed throughout.

We appreciate everything you did for us in our most difficult time, and appreciate all the knowledge and support you shared with us.