Maria told me this morning that she had been awake all night calling out and people walked past her and gave her no attention. I checked with the nurses and the notes and she actually slept right through till about 6:45am after being given more appropriate pain and sleeping medication.
We got Maria outside in her bed so she could experience more of where she is before it got too hot. I took some photos, but as I’m sending this message via my phone because I’m staying here overnight, I’ll do that another time.
I spoke with the oncologist late yesterday and he said that he was unable to view the MRI, but read the Radiologist’s report. He is out of town today and tomorrow, so on Thursday he will sit with the Radiologist and review them. In summary:
Brain tumour – It has grown, but not too significantly as yet.
Spinal tumour – The lesion that was irradiated is now more than 40% larger. To add to this, it appears to have enhanced up the spinal cord to the brain stem.
Furthermore, there appears to be further spots down inside the cord, also down the outside (called leptomeningeal metastasis).
While the Oncologist cannot specify how much time Maria has left, it could be days or in a best-case scenario only weeks.
The nurses had a lot of trouble showering her today as she has lost all balance. Both legs are now virtually immobile. She is in some pain and is finding nights difficult. I am making plans to have someone with her 24/7, with me taking up a significant portion of that load by choice.
We can see that she is deteriorating rapidly. There is a high likelihood that she won’t come out of the Hospice.
This afternoon Maria said that she was sick and tired of it all as she has to be moved, fed, showered and toileted (which I’ve been more than happy to do over recent days, as have the staff here), and wanted to cease treatment including her medication. I have found moments like that emotionally challenging because I see and feel her pain. The nurses and I were able to convince her that the meds she takes helps prevent pain, swelling and seizures so they are necessary. I even joked that I have enduring power of attorney and may action it if necessary. As she wants maximum comfort and pain relief she was happy to continue. They have managed her pain quite well to date.
Both Maria and my families arrived in Canberra this evening. Maria’s parents came past the Hospice to collect a key from me, so they got to spend a little time with Maria before she dozed off. It is a very emotional time for us all.
I started to coordinate brief visits for those nearby or in a position to travel to Canberra. Maria was initially keen on this but had a change of heart after a rough afternoon. We’ll see how this goes over the coming days.
I appreciate the ongoing prayer support for us all, especially for Maria to experience minimal/no pain.
