My Dad
Hi Avril and Viv,
It’s amazing just how much you have given my family hope and strength to fight our battle with and for my Dad. When I first saw your site I found some many things Viv and my dad have in common. They are both dark and handsome, own there own business and are always the life of a good party!
I took your daily requirements and went and bought everything on your list. I have also invested in a juice extractor to make fresh carrot juice for my Dad. We are still in a state of shock! 3 weeks ago my Dad went to a specialist after complaining to his GP on two previous visits to see him.
They put something up through his nose and down his throat and then said to my father that there was no easy way to tell him that he had throat cancer. Yesterday my dad had a biopsy and now we found out that they haven’t done a cat scan so they are sending him within the next few days.
We are to receive the results on Jan 30th,2007. I think that the specialists bedside manner was a bit off but what can we do, the damage is done and it’s killing us all emotionally waiting to get the results.
Through your journey we will keep strong. I keep telling Dad that we have a jump start on our fight and we are very lucky to learn through Viv and what he did to keep his faith and battle the illness.
We came to Canada just the four of us (Mom, Dad and my sister) from Scotland and we are a close knitted family not to mention a bunch of stubborn buggers as well.
Our web-site for the family business is www.mcteeshirts.com and I just finished running in a local election. My site is www.winwithlynn.ca if you are interested in seeing us.
I hope you don’t mind me keeping in touch. My dad isn’t ready to tell anyone right now so I am limited to who I can talk to about this.
Take care and god bless you.
Viv’s Diary 12th Jan. 2007
Looking back, 2006 will be remembered for many reasons. Viv has had to scrap for a lot of things during his life but ‘06 presented him with the biggest fight of all and as the year faded into the past so too did the disease that had threatened to take his life.
With the office closed and the staff heading off for the festive season Viv, his Mum and Avril headed off to Austria for a weeks skiing, a holiday booked long before Viv was diagnosed and a well deserved break after a torrid 6 months. Viv was concerned about his energy levels and his ability to breathe properly due to the high altitude of the Alps. Muscles that had had little or no exercise over the past half a year were now put to the test and Viv was unsure just how much he would be able to control the ski’s although I have to say his lack of control in previous years has always been an issue.
So Viv started the first few days on the nursery slopes. Once his confidence had grown and he had beaten every 9 year old child on the slope from top to bottom he decided to hop in the cable car and head up the mountain, happy with his progress and energy levels.
Despite having to make regular water breaks for a throat drier than Ghandi’s sandal from all the exercise, Viv continued to make progress and was tackling the red runs with ease. The sunshine then decided to play it’s part by melting away the remaining thin layer of snow, leaving nothing but patchy, muddy slush. In the past Viv would have put his feet up in the hotel, glass of wine in hand and patiently waited for the next dump of snow. But now with his new found appreciation for life and just how short it can be he decided to step out of his comfort zone and strap on a pair of cross country ski’s.
This turned out to be both great fun and exercise for Viv, so much so that the next thing he decided to do was throw himself off the side of a mountain. Hang gliding was something else that he had never considered but the new Viv thought what the hell, and loved every second. Viv felt really alive again after being so close to death and he was determined to hold onto that feeling for as long as possible.
On his return from Austria Viv booked himself in for a golf lesson, one of his big passions in life that had been impossible to indulge in during his treatment. After 30 minutes of swinging his 6 iron Viv was impressing the Pro but physically his was drained and had to call it a day, a reminder that baby steps had to be taken on the road to recovery. Viv knew however that he was firmly on that road and heading in the right direction.
Slowly but surely Viv was starting to feel normal again. Small, mundane tasks such as brushing his teeth were now bearable. He could sleep for longer periods without having to wake up to relieve the dryness of his mouth. With the exception of very spicy or dry foods he could enjoy a nice meal again instead of the bland bowls of soup that he had become so accustomed to. And finally a beer became enjoyable again… a light at the end of the tunnel.
Viv started to reminisce about the symptoms he had had before he was diagnosed. A passing comment from his ski instructor Martina threw his mind back to a year earlier on the slopes and being short of breath, having to stop
regularly. Then came a serious bout of coughing and a dull pain in his left ear the textbook symptoms of throat and tongue cancer were evident. It was only after the lump on the side of his neck became irritable that anything
was done.
Unfortunately, like all of us Viv had no idea what these symptoms meant and initially he was prescribed antibiotics for an inflamed throat. Looking back Viv wishes he knew more or was more aware of this type of cancer but I guess it’s something none of us really want to confront until the unfortunate happens and we are diagnosed.
By documenting his progress throughout every stage of his cancer Viv hopes to reach whoever will listen and by doing so hopefully raising more awareness of this type of cancer so that others can realise they are not alone and it can be beat.
None of us ever really know what is around that corner, your life can change in an instant and things that were important today suddenly become irrelevant. Having the support and advice from others that have lived to tell the tale is something that Viv will be eternally grateful for and now he wants to do the same for others.