Effective communication with health professionals encourages patients.

By N.L., Woman Caregiver

In November 2020, my father was diagnosed with lung cancer, after a persistent chest pain, initially attributed to the bypass operation he had undergone some years earlier. Quite by chance, a pulmonologist recommended a CT scan, which showed the tumor. Then a PET SCAN was performed, the primary mediastinal tumor was confirmed and found to be metastatic to bones.  My father’s lung cancer journey had just begun. The chemo treatments were quite aggressive. They were followed by immunotherapy, which caused an outbreak of an autoimmune disease, which took him to the hospital for some time. Overwhelmed by his hospitalization, my father decided not to undergo any further treatment.  A year went by. I would like to point out that during this time, we changed oncologists because there was no real communication and information whatsoever about the treatment options we had, their duration, their effects, the correct diet, etc., There was also no  sensitive approach to issues arising from treatments, so we were left with our questions.  Doctors’ role is so important because on top of their scientific knowledge, they are also a source of comfort for patients, providing them with emotional support. Mental wellbeing has been proven to benefit every lung cancer patient and their caregivers, so I believe we should focus on that. The second oncologist treated my father’s case with empathy. He recommended a mild chemotherapy course, however, this alone did not work, as cancer metastasized to the liver and peritoneum.  My father, already frail, passed away in November 2022. Caring for our loved one suffering from lung cancer is very demanding, both physically and mentally. It takes a great deal of resilience, as well as patience to remain emotionally balanced, especially when we are watching our beloved suffering. While living with cancer and its impact, my father would worry about us. He was distressed, because he felt to be a burden on us. It was a vicious cycle of negative emotions, which I personally hope never to experience again. At this point, I would like to congratulate FairLife L.C.C. on the excellent conference they held, which I watched with great attention. I would also like to congratulate them on the “14 Minutes of Life” mini broadcast series, from which I have learned a great deal. My father was an ex- smoker. Eight years after he quit smoking, he was diagnosed with cancer.  Truth is, he never shared with us any feelings of guilt about smoking. The message I would like to send: anyone who wants to smoke should think it twice. Allow me to close by wishing for a world free of smoking and full of life breaths.

January 23, 2023