posted by joanne30
03 November 2020
Advice
Last reply:
04 November 2020 12:18
Hi all my dad has been recently diagnosed with lung cancer which has spread to his lymph node we are all heartbroken and shocked as he never smoked a day in his life, he is really struggling with sleep he’s only getting 2-3 hours sleep at night sleeping pills aren’t working he’s been prescribed them he’s also in a lot of pain with his knee and wrist he’s had 3 chemo sessions and this is the first time he’s experienced joint pain, just looking for any advice as we have never been through this before.
Thank you
Joanne
Dear Joanne
I am very sorry to read of your Dad’s diagnosis. What a huge shock for you all. Joint, muscle and bone pain can all be a side effect from chemotherapy as can disturbed sleep. Anxiety and fear will exacerbate poor sleep. It may be that your Dad will need support from a number of resources. Firstly he could ring his lung cancer liaison nurse or the nurse on the day oncology unit and let them know about this pain and not sleeping. They will want to prescribe pain killers for the joint pain and he might find that warm baths and taking regular rests helpful too.
Your Dad might need an opportunity to talk about his fears whether it is with his doctor/nurse and or counsellor/psychologists. If you would like to phone our support line and speak to a cancer nurse we can discuss this further at 1800 200 700. We are here Mon- Fri 9-5pm. We have a number of publications too that we can put in the post to you such as ‘Understanding Chemotherapy & other Drugs’/ ‘Understanding the Emotional Effects’ and Understanding Lung cancer see here
Kind regards