When we leave on the 30th our journey will be northbound but owing to a bridge being re-built in Milton Keynes our route past is blocked until March 13th. Six weeks is nothing and a slow journey with stops along the way will be a good way of easing myself gently back into boating.
I have of late been reading quite a few blogs some of which tell a similar Mr. C story to the one that has unfolded aboard Nb Valerie. A lot of different stories, none of which I wish to refer to, some still ongoing and some like mine that.... Now here`s the difficult part, how do you describe the stage I`m at? In remission, cured, all clear.
Understanding the Difference Between Cure and Remission
Cure means that there are no traces of your cancer after treatment and the cancer will never come back.Remission means that the signs and symptoms of your cancer are reduced. Remission can be partial or complete. In a complete remission, all signs and symptoms of cancer have disappeared.
If you remain in complete remission for 5 years or more, some doctors may say that you are cured. Still, some cancer cells can remain in your body for many years after treatment. These cells may cause the cancer to come back one day. Most types of cancer usually return within the first 5 years after treatment. But, there is a chance that cancer will come back later. For this reason, doctors cannot say for sure that you are cured. The most they can say is that there are no signs of cancer at this time.
Because of the chance that cancer can come back, your doctor will monitor you for many years and do tests to look for signs of cancer’s return. They will also look for signs of late side effects from the cancer treatments you received.
My choice is remission or at least on the way to it. Use this LINK and read the terms doctors use. I don`t think I would ever use the word cured unless in twenty + years time perhaps if I`m lucky enough to fall asleep never to wake and still no sign of cancer then my family can use that word.
In the meantime fellow fighters live each day and hope or pray, depending how you live your life, that the scans keep coming up clear.
I did intend to blog about the left and right hands of the NHS but the sentences were like gates blocking my thoughts and leading me along a different route until by the third paragraph there was no turning back.
Flesh eating fish and boat horses were believe it or not also to feature in a blog post. These two subjects would at least keep the blog along a boating route.