The “Make My Mummy Better” campaign has
been set up to fund treatment that I am receiving
in Germany for metastatic breast cancer
Registered Charity Address:
Friends Supporting Friends
Make My Mummy Better Campaign
Old Courthouse
High Street
Fairford
Gloucestershire
GL7 4AD
Registered Charity No. 1113977
First Treatment Session in Germany
Amanda (sister-in-law) and I leave Reading at 4.30am to catch our 8.05 flight from Stanstead. I could not beleive it, we nearly missed the flight. We got lost!!! Both as dippy as each other managed to get onto the M1 and head towards, and then past, Luton. Anyway to cut a long story short, we ended up parking our car at the Airport Mid-Stay car park at 7.20. Our boarding pass stated that the gate closed at 7.35. Even though we felt that we had no chance of getting on that plane, the two of us decided that we had to keep going. We didn't actually think that we had any chance of catching the flight when we rejoined the M25 at 7.00 and still had a fair way to go.
I don't know how we did it (there was a lot of running through the airport, and running up escalators involved), but we did it.
Arrived at the clinic at 12.15pm. We had a light lunch and then I went straight down to the treatment room. Met Dr Glontig who showed us the thermotherapy machine and explained the process. The first part of the treatment involved getting into a hot (as hot as I could take) bath to try and gradually get my temperature up. This meant getting completely naked infront of this man whom I had just met, and my sister-in-law. I don't know what I was expecting, but this took me by surprise a little. There are also a few other things done, that are too embarrassing to mention, which leave me with no dignity at all! It makes me really sad that I have to put myself through this, but I don't really have any choice.
The thermotherapy was very hard work. It took about an hour and a half for my temperature to reach 39°C before the machine was turned off. I was then wrapped up in the foil surrounding the machine and kept warm for another hour and a half. While I was being heated up the chemo was also administered. I decided to go with just the Cisplatin. That was a bit of a nightmare too as my PICC line was very slow. In Germany, they free flow the chemo rather than using pumps, like in the UK. So the whole ordeal didn't actually complete until about 11pm that evening. It had to be continued in my room. I was very tired and had a stinking headache after the treatment. However, I was really proud of myself for completing the thermotherapy session even thought there were times I was close to asking the Dr to turn it off and get me out. Dr. Glontig said that not everyone can tolerate it and others need sedation.
Amanda was fantastic. She kept chatting to me while I was in the machine to try and keep my mind off the heat. Then when we were back in the room, she took good care of me, making sure that I drank enough water and ate something.
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