Valda's story
I am 62 year old widow and have lived in the Dordogne for four years although we
have owned our house for longer. My husband developed colon cancer in November
2001 and I nursed him until in January 2003 he developed a primitive brain
cancer (griob plastoma). This was totally unconnected with the colon cancer and
is an incurable cancer. My husband died in April 2003.
My husband had colon surgery and when he came out we were told he had to have a
nurse visit every day to deal with wounds. The nurses were on strike. Nobody
could help us. As a result he got an abscess and was rushed back to Perigueux
in an ambulance.
The surgeon didn’t give us any after-surgery help. My husband was constipated
for over a fortnight and I finally called my GP who prescribed a laxative. This
apparently was absolutely the wrong thing to do. The surgeon later told me that
because of the bland diet my husband was on he was bound to be constipated. The
lack of language is a great drawback - although I do speak passable
French, you are under great stress when talking to an oncologist.
In November 2003 I was diagnosed with breast cancer. Nobody could have felt more lonely than I did last year and we had the double problem of dealing with all the bureaucracy in a foreign language. Fortunately, my experience with my husband stood me in good stead when it came to my own problem but it is terribly difficult dealing with it all on your own. My husband never had to worry about packing his bag, organising the ambulance taxi, arranging for nurses visits etc because I did it all for him. This time I had to do it on my own and when the chemo kicked in I felt very sick indeed. I have received superb treatment at the Institut de Bergonie in Bordeaux and I am responding very well to the chemotherapy although I have felt very rough.
I also have a little dog to take care of. I simply couldn’t have coped without the help of my friends who have been magnificent.
Valda