I watched my son die from cancer. Here are the lessons I have learned

Sacha Langton-Gilks has written a book to help other grieving parents

At 6.10am on Tuesday 14 August 2012 my eldest child drew his last breath. I have to look up the time and date because my brain refuses to acknowledge this information, it’s automatically sent to the spam file as dangerous. I find my brain’s attempts at self-protection rather touching in the wholesale carnage that is grief.

The death certificate states who, where, when and why – number nine on the list, cause of death: I (a) medulloblastoma. Medulloblastomas are a group of cancerous brain tumours, the commonest in children, and David, known as DD, was diagnosed with his during October half-term in 2007, aged 11. What his death certificate doesn’t tell you is the quality of his life up to the point of death, his quality of death if you will, because that is a subjective judgment. Many people fortunate enough not to be familiar with death assume all deaths must by definition be “bad”, but as a bereaved granddaughter, daughter and, now, mother, I can tell you that is not true.

He lived as long as he possibly could because his quality of life was so good – entirely down to palliative care.

Continue reading... January 21, 2018 at 05:35AM