Getting there with cancer - Blog 12

‘Getting there with cancer’ a

by

Roy Fisher Week 12 Sunday February 21st, 2021

Foreword Foreword I was diagnosed with Prostate Cancer in late 2005. After initial radiotherapy and hormone therapy treatments I was put on a watching brief following the ups and downs of my PSA rating. The steady rise in my PSA lasted diagnosed Prostate late 2005. initial radiotherapy and hormone until 2017I was when it startedwith to fall steadilyCancer for twoinyears.

In theAfter Christmas period of 2019 severe pain caused me therapy wasthing put on watchingIbrief following and downs of my PSA to undergo a raft treatments of tests for Ione anda another. had to stop allthe theups sport I was doing - swimming a mile rating. The steady rise70inmiles my PSA lasted until 2017 whenmany it started steadily for two of Pensby most mornings, cycling up to most weeks and running timestoafall week as Chairman years.

In the Christmas period of 2019 severe pain caused me to undergo a raft of tests for and spine.

Runners. Finally a scan confirmed that my cancer had started to spread to my lower ribs, pelvis one thing and eventually another. Finally mytransferred cancer hadtostarted to spread to Here they Treatment started after aa scan spell confirmed in hospitalthat I was St. John’s Hospice. my lower pelvisof and spine.

Treatment started afterof a spell in hospital experimented untilribs, a balance drug treatments could allowand me eventually to live as much a pain-free life as possible.

I was transferred to St. John’s Hospice.

Here they experimented until a balance of drug My prognosis was two to five years on average but I’m not accepting that. treatments could allow me to live as much of a pain-free life as possible.

In November 2020 Alison, my wife, discovered that a charity team was seeking a final member to set their own In November 2020 Alison discovered thatteams a charity was seeking a final member to walking challenge within a calendar month. All the wereteam composed of people handicapped in some way their own by walking a calendar month.

All the teams were but were set made mobile somechallenge means of within wheeled implement.

My four wheel walker or composed Rollator qualified me of set. people in some way were mobile by somethree-wheeled means of wheeled and off we The handicapped others in my team were allbut under 21made and used Racerunner machines. I set implement.

My four wheel walker or Rollator qualified me and off we set.

The others in out to complete 30 km (19 miles) of walking in my month whilst the others set their own challenges.

The mywas team all under 21 and usedthe Racerunner three-wheeled machines.

I setofout fundraising forwere Cerebral Palsy Sport hence RaceRunner machines used by sufferers CP to in particular.

30 £3500 km (19 of were walking in my Fundraisers month whilst others their own 42 miles Our teamcomplete raised over formiles) CPS and awarded of the Year byset them.

I walked challenges. The fundraising was for Cerebral Palsy Sport hence the RaceRunner machines altogether. used by sufferers of CP in particular. Our team raised over £3500 for CPS and were I enjoyedawarded my nearly daily walksofand outbytothem. walk Iinwalked different areas altogether. of the Wirral. I had an audience for this Fundraisers theset Year 42 miles in my daily blog on Facebook and the walks showcased Wirral for non-Wirralians as well as documenting my progress.I enjoyed my nearly daily walks and set out to walk in different areas of the Wirral. I had an audience for this in my daily blog on Facebook and the walks showcased Wirral for After thenon-Wirralians Challenge had as finished exhorted my by many of my Facebook followers to continue. well asI was documenting progress.

I realised this great wayhad to move my Irehabilitation even more, so decided to do to weekly blogs Afterwas theaChallenge finished was exhortedforward by many of my Facebook followers covering continue. all the walks I had covered in the week. Lockdown has curbed my walking to some extent but I have managed to get walks in of varying interest and increasing distance. My longest walk to date is three and a this wasto a great waymy to love moveofmy rehabilitation forward all even so decided half miles.I realised I have managed continue photography throughout thismore documenting all that I see. to do weekly blogs covering all the walks I had covered in the week. Lockdown has curbed The daily my Blogs in here taken directly Facebook including the photographs. walking toare some extent but from I havemy managed topostings get walks in of varying interest andThe photos, however,increasing don’t havedistance. the comments attributed to them in Facebook.

My longest walk to date is three and a half miles. I have managed to continue my love of photography throughout all this documenting all that I see.

None of this would have been possible without my wife, Alison, by my side. She has taken my cancer on board as thoughThe it has struck She crieddirectly with mefrom and my felt Facebook my pain. She has grasped comfortable daily Blogsherself. in here arehastaken postings includingourthe lifestyle and altered it The beyond beliefhowever, so that both us can on living as normal life asinpossible as photographs. photos, don’t of have the carry comments attributed to them comfortably as possible. Alison has taken charge of my welfare, my medicine, my physical and emotional Facebook. needs, everything. Together we are meeting this challenge head on.

Blog 12: Sun 21st: 1.11 miles.

My bog standard minimum walk these days takes me up to Irby and back down Thurstaston Road. Had to get a move on as our 'bubble' was visiting later.

Mon 22nd: 1.18 miles.

Alison and I called in to Meols to collect our bubble (Trevor and the girls, Livvi and Ella) for a walk on Meols/Hoylake promenade as it was such a lovely day. Despite the blue skies there was a nip in the air. As we walked we were always aware of the silent giants out at sea.

You can't help but notice the windfarms and they distort your view of distance somehow because they are so large and appear to be closer than they are. We stopped by the boating pool which fascinated Ella and Livvi as it was covered in a thick, green slime and not good for sailing. I took the opportunity to take pics of Hilbre and Alison took the opportunity to trip on some paving and stumbled headlong towards the pool wall. Trevor sitting nearby could only watch as she fell short and I returned to find them convulsed with laughter. She wasn't hurt but both realised that another foot or so and she would have been in the pool emerging like a monster from the deep covered in slime. The girls couldn't understand what we found funny. Returning via the Parade Gardens we found much happening in there from crown green bowling, football, tennis courts, basketball and a sensory garden. Times have changed though as they were built in 1908 and in 1912 a bandstand was opened. No sign of that now.

Tuesday 23rd: 1.58 miles.

I set out alone to do the Thurstaston Loop as I call it. This is one of the few destinations from our house that constitute a 'walk'. At a mile and a half it's not too far and not too near plus it's very pretty and there's a hill in it. I pass Thurstaston Local Nature Reserve on the way whilst opposite they have a porcine solution to clearing overgrowing undergrowth. Can you say that? Can you have overgrowth of undergrowth?

Anyway down into Thurstaston which always holds an appeal for me. The hall and the old church tower which have been there for centuries have a sort of magic being there almost on my doorstep. Leaving the village the Old Rectory doesn't look

that old to me but there's been one there for many years. This one has had extensions and now an entrance makeover which makes it look like a posh hotel entrance.

Wed 24th: 1.83 miles.

Heading back to Hoylake for dentist appointments Alison and I walked down Stanley Road to Red Rocks afterwards. The Green Lodge pub/hotel was built in the 18th century as a hunting lodge for the Stanley family. St. Hildeburg's Parish Church deserves a further look as it is an impressively large building for a parish church. Fittingly the Vicarage in Stanley Road is equally as large as are many of the residences here. We did find a very small residence carved into a tree which will delight many local children I'm sure. There are some fine examples of opulence in the architecture to marvel at but none finer than the mock lighthouse with a conservatory on top. Many visitors viewing from afar think it is a real working one. There are great views of Hilbre Island from here as well as down the estuary.

Working our way back we marvelled at some of the well kept gardens and views of the Championship Royal Liverpool golf course.

Thurs 25th: 3.45 miles.

Left to my own devices again and a glorious day I opted to up my game and head not just to Pensby as for my previous furthest foray but to go up to Mere Lane which involved a substantial hill on the way. Enjoying the spring weather and the spring flowers I noticed that somehow nos. 39 and 41 Townshend Avenue had managed to get parking instructions on the road nameplate. How many of us can manage that? Reaching Mere Lane my real target loomed on the left. Many of us locals have watched, over the last couple of years, the construction of what we call Wacky Manor. Now finished , we presume, it appears to be built out of a hoard of building materials of many different types and styles. It has a certain beauty I suppose but I reckon I could have built a garage just out of the bricks in the chimney! A saving grace are the terracotta motifs built into the perimeter wall. On the way home I saw a relatively rare sight - an open single gig jauntily trotting along oblivious to the traffic which wasn't really backing up anyway. Having so many horses on the Wirral (the highest amount per capita in Britain so I've read) means it should be more than likely we would see some of these I suppose.

Fri 26th: 1.42 miles.

Flouting the 'Do not travel away from your home' law yet again we thought the Marine Lake perambulation was worth a try. Seems like everyone else was flouting too as it was very busy. Noting that there was a one-way system installed to try to make it safer we set off from the Morrissons end having parked on the front nearby. It was no surprise in this day and age to see many people walking the wrong way. Being ageing do-gooders this got our hackles up and I said I'm going to 'have a word'. To which Alison pleaded with me not to cause any trouble or offence.

However she soon joined in with me as I used my walker to try to force offenders into the lake and then telling them the error of their ways. Responses were varied from totally blanking us as a couple of crazies to a simple 'Sorry is it? I didn't realise' (with signs and arrows all over the place!).

We had a sarcastic 'It's one-way? Well I'm only going oneway' and a 'It's not going to make any difference is it?' So we gave up and continued to enjoy the day.

Sat 27th: 2.23 miles.

The bubble was visiting again so Alison said she'd entertain the girls whilst Trevor offered to have a 'Dad & Lad' walk with me. Aaah. He took me down to Thurstaston Country Park to walk on the Wirral Way (How far away from home can you be for the walk to be classed illegal?) Lo and behold the world and his wife were down there flouting as well. We managed to get in a queue going into the overflow carparks only to realise parking charges had restarted.

Neither of us had any money so we managed to reverse out.

Fortunately I have a friend who lives in Thurstaston so we parked on their driveway. We explored the clifftop, including the display of rare erratic boulders invitingly placed to encourage geological

hopscotch. We walked the Wirral Way as far as the first bridge called Dungeon Bridge after the ravine nearby which housed smugglers of the past. We then had a long walk back to retrieve the car.

Total for the week: 12.8 miles