Thanks for tuning in again. This week started with more medical related issues, which then flowed through to Friday and beyond. I had a blood test on Monday morning which was to give Dr Rahman a fresh update for the phone call on Friday. In between those days, I had a very variable week, with regards to the side effects. Still there, but definitely become more defined. The tiredness is there and appears to be hitting in the evenings, with some early nights necessary this week. The groin pain is there and is throbbing from time to time - unsure what that means. Next to these is the fuzzy head and on Friday, I had a whole day of light headedness, which also impacted my daily routine. I forgot some key aspects during that day, which is not something I do. I had commitments in the diary, so had to get out and about, but in hindsight, should have stayed at home.

We had our call on Friday afternoon, with Dr Rahman and during that, he confirmed my PSA is now at 36, which he considered stable. I reminded him that it was 32 just two weeks ago. I went through the list of side effects and he confirmed what was Zometa related versus what was radiotherapy related; none of what we told him was a surprise. We asked him about the Zometa and whether it will be done until the end. We were specific around the intense side effects to date. He did state that it is usually around 2 years, at least. However, he also stated that the impact may lessen with each infusion. His advice was to see how the next one went, then decide from there; any choice as to stop them, would be mine alone. What he summarised with was a blood test for the second week of June (6-weeks after the end of the radiotherapy), from which he can determine the PSA level then. Depending on those results, he will then decide whether to conduct new scans.

The last three weeks of intense medical focus is not over, despite us hoping it would. We now have the cloud of the complete unknown hanging over us for the next few weeks, until we get the next blood test. Since Friday, I have gone through the full range of thoughts and potential outcomes, which is hard and every time this disease takes a new turn, the capacity to handle the psychological impact becomes more difficult. We do remind ourselves that we are three-and-a-half years into this and we hope the end is far off. However, no-one can accurately tell us when that is and the latest phone call with Dr Rahman added to the difficulties. We do not know if any of the planned treatment works, it may be too early to say, but lets see what June’s blood tests bring.

The weekend finished off the medical aspects with two very variable days. Saturday was much better than Friday, but then Sunday morning seen me wake up but definitely not fully awake. It took me around three hours to get to a point of normality, after which we had a reasonable rest of the day. Later on Sunday afternoon I decided to undertake one of my usual walks, as I felt better. The first 75% of that was okay, but like the last one, the final bend on the steep hill proved the turning point. It is the third steepest part of the overall walk route and I felt it! The remaining sector of the walk became more and more challenging, but I did keep going, feeling very slow though. When I got to the end, my legs were heavy, but pleased to say I got a time of 13:51, so under 14:00 minutes. Sandra was kind enough to meet me at the top and drive me back home. I will try at least one more this coming week, weather dependent.

Due to the variable impact of the side effects, I did not have too much planned in and the focus shifted to more work on the 117 project, with a specific focus on the ‘big’ guys, which means the more detailed soldiers, who require more time to research in depth. There was a heavy focus on fulfilling the book orders and thanks to those of you who have added the new book to your collections - appreciated. In the second half of the week, I shifted emphasis to the Münkemer book project, where I have begun the process of captioning the photos.

The week ended on my birthday, with me now reaching the grand old age of 57. I know a lot of you do not like getting old, but I changed my views many years back and think we should all embrace every birthday that we get to celebrate; many people die way too young, or much sooner than what they would like. As touched on many times in these Blogs, the key dates within our close family, take on a much greater significance that they did in the BC world. Birthdays, anniversaries, Christmas and the like; my birthday weekend was variable, due to the side effects. Saturday was better than Friday, so we took a journey to a 1940s railway event taking place in our county. Unfortunately the event severely lacked the substance we have come to expect from WW2 / 1940s events, over many years. We did not stay there long and on our way back to the car, I gave our tickets to an elderly couple for them to make use of. We did have a nice drive out and back, but then chose to relax for the rest of that day, as Sandra was very tired. As touched on above, Sunday morning was challenging, with me waking to a deep lethargic and sluggish feeling, which lasted around 3 hours. I managed to rally mid-morning, finished getting ready, then we drove to Alanna’s for lunch (Karl and Rachel are in Cornwall celebrating Rachel’s birthday a few days back). We had a nice couple of hours there, then went back home and had a nice relaxing rest of my birthday.

This week’s photo shows Sandra and I just after we arrived at Alanna’s. Sandra has been by my side for 40+ years now, through all of our lows and highs. I am honoured to have met her and have her by my side every day of those decades of life together; her presence eases all of my struggles.

I will take this opportunity to thank everyone who took the time to send me birthday wishes on social media, texts or other comms channels. I appreciate every one of them and nice to hear from all of you across the globe.

Remember what we say to that pesky God of Death, “Not today!”.

Thanks for your continued tuning into these weekly Blogs - my family appreciates your time.

Regards, Peter