Tag: lymph nodes

9 months cancer free.

Home, 24th October 2020. I’m not sure I’ll ever really believe it It’s been almost a year since I started my penile cancer treatment, and 9 months since new disease was discovered. After taking out the sentinel nodes in my left groin, two or three cells were positive. Other than that, I’ve been cancer free. […]

Inflammation, food, diet & exercise.

Inflammation and lymphedema (or we could just call it swelling) Surgery, radiotherapy and even chemo disrupt the way that your body works. Things just get inflamed sometimes. When you have had extensive surgery on your genitals, this is more than a bit of a problem. It’s the absolute last place you ever want to be […]

Nerve damage.

Thighs like wood. I have had five operations, radiotherapy and chemotherapy. I have been admitted to hospital with Sepsis, and I’ve had plenty of scans too. That means a lot of needles for tests and thinners over the past few months. I’ve had plenty of cannulas too. Every time something is given intravenously, or for […]

Radiotherapy.

“you lay down, it takes about a minute and you won’t feel a thing” Just hold on, because that’s only really half true. I’m not sure how many radiotherapy machines they have at The Royal Marsden. It’s a lot though! Between the two sites, they will almost certainly operate the largest radiotherapy facility in the […]

Oh not this again…

24th November 2020, The Lister Hospital, Hertfordshire, England That was a rough night I woke violently at 2.30am.  My legs ache so much that I can’t find a comfortable way to sleep.  All of my skin feels red hot, and the feelings of searing heat and shivering cold coursing through my body are relentless.  At […]

Safety first..

25th November 2020. The Lister Hospital, Hertfordshire, England. Day 2 I had a really good nights sleep. My blood pressure is back to normal, pulse and temperature are fine. The bright patches of cellulitis have all but subsided now and I feel good. I even managed a quick plank. This definitely feels better than the […]

Uber luxe. NHS style.

26th November 2020, The Lister Hospital, Hertfordshire, England. I had another brilliant’s night sleep. It’s probably down to hearing the tragic news that Diego Maradona had died. *That’s tragic in the sense that it’s taken so long, and didn’t happen in 1985. I missed the morning facetime with the kids, I just slept straight through […]

Back to the prof.

28th November 2020, St Anthony’s Hospital, Surrey, England. After a rough week in hospital with the cellulitis returning, it was time to update the professor. I haven’t seen him since the robotic surgery in March. It was a gorgeous sunny morning as I made my way round the M25. It’s a journey I’ve made fifty […]

Lymphedema, the journal.

Swelling in the legs (and genitals) after groin surgery and cancer treatment is a big deal. Whilst I’ve had my fair share of swollen bollocks, I’ve been quite lucky with my legs. I have already written about general inflammation and swelling, but this is a bit different. I want to talk about compression, and how […]