Rich's Cancer Journey
Donation protected
Rich was first diagnosed with bowel cancer two years ago. We had two year old twin girls and were living 3,000 kms away from most of our family. As Rich was only 49 at the time, it was suspected that he had Lynch syndrome, a rare genetic condition that carries a very high risk of developing certain types of cancer. Whilst tests confirmed that he did carry the genetic mutation, we felt lucky that the tumour could be removed through surgery and we thought that with careful monitoring he would avoid getting cancer again.
Two years later, another tumour was picked up at his annual bowel screening. We were stunned at the return of the cancer, and whilst losing his whole large intestine was sure to negatively impact his lifestyle, we were confident that it had been caught in time.
The girls were four, but we felt lucky that now there was no colon left for the cancer to invade. Except it had made its way into three lymph nodes on the colon. Rich was put on an aggressive chemo regime to ensure it wouldn’t spread. We made it through the chemo with the incredible support from family and friends, colleagues and our amazing community. The side effects were debilitating and yet for five months Rich worked through the nausea, exhaustion and nerve damage in his hands and feet to produce a new body of work for an upcoming exhibition in Perth.
With a week left before the show was to open, Rich presented at emergency with intense abdominal pain and extreme bloating. The doctors couldn't find what was wrong, and sent us home. It would be another two weeks before Rich was relieved of this agony. Sitting in a cubicle in Emergency with litres of liquid draining from his abdomen, we were told that the chemo had not worked and the cancer had spread to his abdominal cavity and was now incurable. The cancer causes ascites, filling his abdomen with fluid which compresses his stomach and organs, and makes sitting or standing unbearable.
Hearing this news after persisting with chemo and suffering the lasting side effects, including permanent nerve damage, has been devastating. Even more devastating is the rapid deterioration of his health over the last five weeks since this diagnosis. He has been extremely sick, has been in and out of hospital, and has lost almost 20kg. The build up of the fluid is so acute that it must be drained weekly which also takes a toll on his body.
During this time we have been meeting with oncologists and the Pain and Palliative Care team at Peter Mac in the hope that Rich could undergo immunotherapy to potentially extend his life by up to two years. Studies have shown that those with bowel cancer and Lynch syndrome responded positively with an average of five months of treatment. We were told last week that these studies were only done on patients that were in otherwise good health and that due to the aggressive nature of Rich's cancer and the speed at which it is progressing that we simply don't have the time or the physical resilience to undertake this treatment.
We are now talking about quality of life in the little time we may have left and making it as pain free and comfortable as we can for him. Rich will have home based care until he needs to go into palliative care in a hospice. While community based care provides an hour of nursing a day, we would like more than that, for continuity and comfort so he can spend time with family and friends and we are needing support for when things get worse.
With our family going down to one income since Rich’s diagnosis a year ago, and needing to take time off work to care for Rich, we are asking for help to assist with the additional costs during this time including home-based nursing support and equipment; medications to reduce the effects of cancer, such as nausea and pain; holistic therapies to improve his wellbeing and quality of life; and help with caring for Matilda and Odessa.
The support that we've received so far from our community has been incredible. When people have asked how they can help, up until now we haven't really known how to respond. Your contribution now - no matter how big or small - will help relieve the immense financial stress and give Rich the gift of quality time with our family.
Please spread the word and share this across your networks.
Thank you.
Love Rich and Jac xxx
Two years later, another tumour was picked up at his annual bowel screening. We were stunned at the return of the cancer, and whilst losing his whole large intestine was sure to negatively impact his lifestyle, we were confident that it had been caught in time.
The girls were four, but we felt lucky that now there was no colon left for the cancer to invade. Except it had made its way into three lymph nodes on the colon. Rich was put on an aggressive chemo regime to ensure it wouldn’t spread. We made it through the chemo with the incredible support from family and friends, colleagues and our amazing community. The side effects were debilitating and yet for five months Rich worked through the nausea, exhaustion and nerve damage in his hands and feet to produce a new body of work for an upcoming exhibition in Perth.
With a week left before the show was to open, Rich presented at emergency with intense abdominal pain and extreme bloating. The doctors couldn't find what was wrong, and sent us home. It would be another two weeks before Rich was relieved of this agony. Sitting in a cubicle in Emergency with litres of liquid draining from his abdomen, we were told that the chemo had not worked and the cancer had spread to his abdominal cavity and was now incurable. The cancer causes ascites, filling his abdomen with fluid which compresses his stomach and organs, and makes sitting or standing unbearable.
Hearing this news after persisting with chemo and suffering the lasting side effects, including permanent nerve damage, has been devastating. Even more devastating is the rapid deterioration of his health over the last five weeks since this diagnosis. He has been extremely sick, has been in and out of hospital, and has lost almost 20kg. The build up of the fluid is so acute that it must be drained weekly which also takes a toll on his body.
During this time we have been meeting with oncologists and the Pain and Palliative Care team at Peter Mac in the hope that Rich could undergo immunotherapy to potentially extend his life by up to two years. Studies have shown that those with bowel cancer and Lynch syndrome responded positively with an average of five months of treatment. We were told last week that these studies were only done on patients that were in otherwise good health and that due to the aggressive nature of Rich's cancer and the speed at which it is progressing that we simply don't have the time or the physical resilience to undertake this treatment.
We are now talking about quality of life in the little time we may have left and making it as pain free and comfortable as we can for him. Rich will have home based care until he needs to go into palliative care in a hospice. While community based care provides an hour of nursing a day, we would like more than that, for continuity and comfort so he can spend time with family and friends and we are needing support for when things get worse.
With our family going down to one income since Rich’s diagnosis a year ago, and needing to take time off work to care for Rich, we are asking for help to assist with the additional costs during this time including home-based nursing support and equipment; medications to reduce the effects of cancer, such as nausea and pain; holistic therapies to improve his wellbeing and quality of life; and help with caring for Matilda and Odessa.
The support that we've received so far from our community has been incredible. When people have asked how they can help, up until now we haven't really known how to respond. Your contribution now - no matter how big or small - will help relieve the immense financial stress and give Rich the gift of quality time with our family.
Please spread the word and share this across your networks.
Thank you.
Love Rich and Jac xxx
Organizer
Jacquelin Low
Organizer
Seddon VIC
