Jeanne has been a patient of mine for about eight months now. Originally I started visiting her twice a day after she was discharged on a Friday evening at 19.00 hrs. without any discharge arrangement having been made for her. She had been in hospital for a fall, but no diagnosis had been made as to the cause of her fall.

When I first met Jeanne she was, to put it midly, bewildered. She did not understand why I was there (her family had telephoned to hire me) and she clearly did not want me to be there. After a while of talking with her, it became clear that in fact she was very confused. In a woman of 77, who suddenly becomes confused, the first thing that springs to mind is an infection, usually of the urinary tract, sometimes a chest infection. My inital thought of urinary tract infection was correct, and a course of antibiotics sorted her out in no time at all.

The one thing that struck me about Jeanne was that she had a very hoarse voice and that she seemed short of breath. Since I did my Asthma Diploma in UK, I decided to perform a spirometry and reversibility test, but she did not respond to inhaled medication in the way that I had hoped. I therefore persuaded her to see her doctor and he requested a chest X-ray. This was followed by a scan, then a lung biopsy, and the upshot of all the tests was that she has a pulmonary mesothelioma.

Apparently her late husband died of the same condition, having worked in the building trade during the years of construction following the Second World War, when asbestos was widely used in the construction industry.

I had the privilege of going with Jeanne to the hospital last week to be with her whilst she was having her chemotherapy. We were in the hospital from 8.00 in the morning until 16.00 hrs. and I was exhausted. Jeanne was still going strong, but since her treatment she has not eaten more than a bit of yoghurt and some soup. She states the treatment is making her feel worse than she did before she knew she was ill. I have to say, I almost wish I had not forced her into seeing her doctor and having investigations now, as seeing her getting thinner and so tired is making me wonder whether the cure is not worse than the disease. There is no chance of alternative treatments here either, as she is not insured in any way, so the normal mainstream treatment is all she will be able to have. I wonder if Jeanne knew what was wrong with her all along, since her late husband died of the same disease, and did not want to have investigations to have confirmation of something she dreaded. Because her husband died, I believe Jeanne has a deeply held conviction that this disease is ‘incurable’ and therefore ‘hopeless’.

All I can do now is make her as comfortable as I can and be there for her when times are not so good. Just wish that she would take legal advice, because there are good lawyers that would be able to prove that the employers of her husband are legally liable and therefore she might be able to have better treatment. However, knowing the speed with which lawyers work, she might be very ill  before they even present the case.

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