Interview LC24

Age at interview: 75

Age at diagnosis: 69

Brief Outline: Diagnosed with non-small cell lung cancer in 1997, followed by lobectomy (removal of lower and middle lobes of right lung). In 1999 recurrence in right upper lobe, treated with radiotherapy.

Background: Publican (retired), married, no children.

He believes that smoking and later passive smoking caused his lung cancer.

Well I don't think there's any doubt that my lung cancer was caused through smoking. I was like many other people, I didn't smoke as a young lad and I was called up into the services and we were given by the government then one hundred and fifty, we had fifty free issue cigarettes every week and we were given one hundred and fifty at a very cheap price when we were serving abroad. And of course boredom sets in with nothing much to do in the evenings and you just sit and smoke one after the other. That continued of course after I left the service, you get the habit, you carry on smoking.  

It was the in thing in those days all through the fifties and sixties for people to smoke, and of course I was one of the people caught up in it. In 1967 I took a public house and of course the atmosphere in a public house didn't help matters. I did in fact give up smoking in the, in the late seventies, completely myself, and although I gave up smoking because I had read so much about problems, it was obviously too late. And another thing was that my occupation at the time meant that I was taking, although I wasn't smoking I was taking in other people's smoke anyway.

Says he was fully informed at every stage and received leaflets or booklets on all procedures.

Were you ever given any sort of booklets or any information?

I was given information on the treatment of radiotherapy, I was given information on, from the hospital I was given an information sheet on a bronchoscopy, I was given an information sheet on a CT scan, I was given information sheets on radiotherapy, and what it can do, and any reactions you have and everything else. All given so I have been fully informed of what things are, right the way, every process, I've been given documentation. Even to the lung operation I was given a booklet on the after effects and how this works and that works and everything else. Nothing has been kept from me at all.

Describes radical radiotherapy that aimed to cure his cancer.

A few months later I found that I was coughing up blood again. I went back to the consultant whereby I went through virtually the same process of standard chest x-rays, CT scans and it was diagnosed that the lung cancer had spread to the upper lobe as well. Unfortunately this was not operable and I was then sent to the cancer centre whereby I saw a consultant oncologist and further CT scans and it was decided that he would carry out a process of radical radiotherapy. Now this consisted of radiotherapy every day for one month, except Saturdays and Sundays and some days I had radiotherapy applied at 9 o clock in the morning and went back again at 4 o clock in the afternoon for a further dose. Following the month of radiotherapy I have since visited the oncologist every three months for the past four years and I have x-rays and tests done and at the moment the cancer is at bay. At present he has just promoted my visits to once in six months and I do not return again until later this year.  

After his lobectomy he found that inhalers and a nebulizer helped him to breathe more easily.

So how long was it before you could get outside again after the operation and walk around a little bit?

Oh only, I started going out after about a week and walking; first twenty yards, then forty and so on until I could, I could walk quite a fair distance. But immediately I felt the chest was tight for lack of breath I would stop and then return.

You said you feel breathless, what sort of advice had you been given in order to help you cope with the breathlessness?

Well I have inhalers and unfortunately of course I, since having had the operation and the radiotherapy I have become very prone to chest infections when I get a cold. So I do, over the last two winters I have had to have a nebulizer for a brief period of a week sometimes when it's got really bad.

Can you explain what that is?

Well that's just a machine that vaporises a drug that you can put a mask on and breathe into the lungs to help the tubes of the lung open up a bit.

Can you remember what the inhalers are called?

The inhalers I have Becotide which is a steroid inhaler that I take twice in a morning and twice at night and I have salbutamol which is for an immediate pick up if you find you're breathless when you're doing something and that can be used up to four times a day.

And were you told to do any particular breathing exercises?

Only deep breathing, deep breathing exercises. But like everything else as the years go by one does tend to become a bit lazy and forget these sort of things.