My dad was diagnosed with Mesothelioma on the 1st February 2018 after being treated for pneumonia in hospital. I had never heard of this disease and the consultant explained that it was a type of lung cancer present  in the lining of the lung caused by asbestos exposure, there is no cure and we were advised that palliative care was the only option. Dad was totally devastated and in a heartbeat I felt my whole world was falling apart, I took the consultant aside to ask what the prognosis was, I was told weeks to months, this was so difficult to accept and something that Dad never asked. I just wanted to support Dad in any way that I could and make the most of the time he had left due to this life limiting illness. 

No-one ever expects cancer to come knocking at their door but sadly it happens more than I realised, I really thought that MacMillan or Marie Curie would be waiting in the wings to offer support and Advise us what we could do to help Dad make the most of whatever time he had left, sadly this was not our experience and we really felt left in limbo for about 3 weeks struggling to cope with daily life and the diagnosis. 

We then received a call from Asbestos Action Tayside who are a very small charity who offer help and support to Asbestos related illness sufferers and their families. . After a home visit from their Support worker Dianne Dad and I finally felt that we were not alone, they were our lifeline offering support and advice about a wide range of services that we knew absolutely nothing about yet would have a huge impact on Dads quality of life  which was limited and precious  due to this horrible working mans disease. . 

I can’t thank Asbestos Action enough for their support through dads illness and I really want to give something back to them so that they can continue  providing the invaluable support that they offer to sufferers and their families. I don’t think that there is enough recognition of this charity and it is vital as more and more cases of Asbestos related illnesses seem to be coming to light.  

Sadly my dear Dad passed away on the 3rd August 2018 which was 6 months and 2 days after diagnosis.I miss him so so much every day and so  I am doing the Loony Dook in his memory as this would be right up his street with his wicked sense of humour.

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