Initial treatment

On the 23rd Jan we had an ENT appointment with the consultant to discuss the next steps.  Addenbrookes' ENT department is very good, but always seems to be running late, and this time we had a 90 minute wait in a waiting room so full there was barely anywhere to sit.  Sigh.

The consultant confirmed that the PET scan had found some 'activity' in the left tonsil, which was where they had thought it might be based on the visual examination previously - no other areas showed signs of anything, which was something of a relief.  The first step was to get the tonsils  removed and checked out, and to do a panendoscopy to check there were no other signs in the throat of any problems.  Eager to get this done, the consultant got us scheduled for the following day, much to our surprise.  Hence, we spent the rest of the day in hospital doing the pre-surgery work such as blood tests.  Very tiresome, but as the prognosis was still good, we were remaining positive.

The next day I waited much of the day, talking to the other patients, and watching them leave for surgery, then return.  I finally went in to surgery, and awoke feeling pretty good in recovery (as is often the case, with the stuff they pump into you during operations).  Once I was breathing well enough and a little more awake, I was returned to the ward.  I recovered enough to force down some sandwiches and biscuits, though my throat was very sore.

I moved to an overnight ward, which was lovely and quiet (only one other person in my bay of 6 beds) and had an OK night, though I did have to keep up the painkiller dosage.

I went home the next day, painkillers in hand, and spend the next week and a bit in the most painful discomfort I've so far experienced.  They told me the recovery for an adult tonsillectomy was one of the most painful I would ever go through, and they were not wrong.  On the plus side, painkillers and determined eating of rough bulky (but well chewed!) food, which the hospital had suggested, worked well and I was 80% recovered a week and a half later.

Next we had to wait another week or so to return to the hospital to discuss the results of the tests on my tonsils and the specifics of the follow on treatment...