It all started when OH Mary, having been very unwell during the summer culminating with a great deal of pain round the midriff and nausea and saw our GP on 7th September. She was diagnosed as probably suffering from gall-stones and the doctor arranged an ultra-sound scan of her upper abdomen at Wycombe General Hospital.

The scan was made in the morning of 13th and in the afternoon our GP unexpectedly called at our house as she had obtained the result and wanted to tell us, face to face, that it was not gall stones but a "mass" at the top of the pancreas. On being asked outright, by Mary, if this meant cancer she agreed that it was. On seeing her out of the house I asked her what were the prospects for successful treatment she replied "not good, I am afraid".

Marys condition deteriorated rapidly and after a telephone I made to our GP on 18th Septembershe was taken by our son Andrew, at night, to Stoke Mandeville Hospital A & E and subsequently warded. The following day they made a CT scan. Apparently, the growth on her pancreas was pressing on and closing her bile duct. She was eventually allowed to return home, after blood tests, on the 21st

On 25th September, she was admitted to Stoke Mandeville Hospital where she underwent an Endoscopy to insert a stent to open her bile duct. The stent brought about an almost immediate, though temporary, improvement in her condition.

On 2nd October, we had a meeting at Stoke Mandeville with the consultant surgeon Mr Farouk who informed us that she has a tumour on the top of her pancreas measuring 3 cm across. He said he was referring her to the Churchill Hospital, Oxford and a team of specialist cancer experts.

I thought about this, long a deep, and recalled memories of days long gone when I learned of certain healing processes at the Spiritualists Associating HQ in Belgrave Square. My tutor then, Tom Davies (who's day job was a Loss Adjuster with Royal Exchange Assurance), told me how he practiced, and of some of his successes. so I thought it would do no harm to have a try. I went into deep meditation (something I do often) and enlisted the help of my late brother Les to ask if he could do anything to shift the thing. I was always very close to Les, who died in 1995. He being 10 years older than me always acted as "my big brother" was very protective even in later life. Mary and I always had a very close relationship with Les and his wife Ida who pre-deceased him.

He was a tough nut who knew how to handle situations and always took charge; an ex Detective Inspector in the Metropolitan Police, released by the Met. to become an officer in the navy during the 1939-45 war, serving at sea. I reckoned that, if it was possible, he would find a way to help. I suggested that it would be much better if the trouble could be removed or transferred to somewhere more amenable to treatment.

On 9th October Mary had an MRI scan at the John Radcliffe Hospital, Oxford, prior to seeing a consultant at the Churchill.

On 12th October, Mary was seen by Mr Sylva a consultant at the Cancer Unit, Churchill Hospital, Oxford. We were told that this was the foremost cancer specialist unit in the country. The consultant, told us that the tumour may or may not be operable but before reaching a decision he would refer her again to the John Radcliffe Hospital, who had state-of -the-art scanning equipment which would give him precise location of the tumour. We would receive a notice to attend the hospital within the next couple of weeks

About then it occurred to me that I should have kept a diary note of my sessions with Les so sent myself the following e-mail on 16th October:-

Subject :Mary
Date: 16/10/2012 22:35:26 GMT Daylight Time
From: Len@aol.c
To: Len@aol.com
Sent from the Internet(Details)

This is to place on record that, following the scan, I contacted my late brother Les and asked him to use his influence to speed Mary's recovery and, if it is a cancer, to remove it if he is able to.
If this is successful and the tumour vanishes, this is the only way I can think of, at the moment, to place on record that I have asked Les to intercede.
Jim

She had an MRI scan at the John Radcliffe on 23rd October, to assess the tumour and again on 26th for endoscopy/ultrasound scan, MR Sylva told us that this latter procedure was technically very advanced and available in few hospitals. They had been going to replace the stent, thinking (in view of Mary's jaundice and very parlous state) that it may have become blocked, but they observed it was not blocked and apparently working well so canceled a pre-arranged endoscopy to replace it.

On 2nd November our GP arranged for her to be again ambulanced to John Radcliffe Hospital as she was very jaundiced and ill and thought she was dying. She was warded until 6th November during which time she had a further ultrasound scan, gradually improved in well-being, becoming quite chirpy though very weak, having lost about 28lb in weight.. The hospital said that as there were no further tests or treatments that could be made at that time, she would be happier at home as her condition was now stable, so discharged her. I was visiting that evening together with daughter-in-law Sue, so we took her home.

We attended John Radcliffe Hospital 23rd November to hear the results of the latest scan and Dr Maggs, the Registrar, greeted Mary with "My, you look better than when I last saw you". We thought, perhaps, that he may have greeted all his patients thus but obviously he did remember as he remarked on other things said in the ward that could only have applied to her. His summary was that there was no tumour although he qualified this by saying that if there was, it was too tiny to detect. There was some swelling of the bile duct and an inflamation of the gall bladder which eventually yielded to anti-biotics. He put her on a course of steroids as an anti-inflammatory - which she says have done wonders for her knees. He has arranged that they will fix a further MRI scan (and maybe removal of the stent) on 3rd January. In the meantime she is to continue with a reducing dose of steroids and I will continue my chats with Les.

As for Mary .......she is wearing me out. Sitting and watching her spring-clean, cook, make quilts,decorating the house for Christmas whilst looking about 20 years younger is very tiring for an old coot. I tell myself it is the steroids and that she will slow down a bit when she has finished the course.

It is now over 6 months since typed the above and, fingers crossed, all seems to be well.