OUR PROFESSIONAL FRIENDS

Jan 30/10

The past week has been a pleasant one with walks to and from my treatments every weekday.  We were able do those walks in the middle of the day, as all the appointments were at “decent” hours.  Not so much for next week with a couple of them late in the day.

We meet with my doctor every Monday to evaluate my symptoms and talk about some of the things to expect over the next few weeks and months.  His first name is Francois, he is from Montreal and he has a heavy French accent that is challenging to understand.  He is a very nice man, very direct in his approach and is well-respected by the staff.  He will be on vacation for the next two weeks so we will be meeting with one of his colleagues and it will be interesting to get another opinion on my progress.

I am getting to know the 8 radiation therapists quite well after 19 treatments.  The routine is for at least 2 and sometimes 3 therapists to get me positioned correctly on the table and they are very careful to check and confirm all the measurements.  They put marks on me with felt pens and line them up with the laser beams.  We’ve had lots of jokes about connecting the dots on my skin and prodding me like a turkey that is going into the oven.

A picture of "my" machine and the bed I lay on

The patients that we’ve met in the waiting room this past week have mostly been men who are getting head and throat radiation as well as chemotherapy.  They really suffer from side effects of extreme fatigue, confusion and disorientation and rely heavily on their caregivers who are usually family members.  We are all very thankful that the staff at the Interior Cancer Centre are such kind, compassionate and competent professionals.