Update 1

This is the update that I've been sending to all who have enquired -

Hello to everyone,

Many have asked for news so I have decided to do a round
robin on where we have got to.

The good news is that John is home for the first time in
weeks.  We went to the oncology centre today (Wednesday 22^nd July) in Nicosia and
saw Dr Papamichael, who is not only the specialist for his
type of cancer but also the head of the centre.  He was in
UK for 17 years, Westminster Hospital and Royal Marsden, and
his only reason for returning was to help set this centre
up.  The Cyprus Government offers free cancer treatment for
all and this centre is part funded by the Bank of Cyprus. 

He spent over an hour with us, getting a picture of how it
had started and progressed, and he'd read all the notes from
doctors in America as well as the doctors from the clinic in
Limassol, where John stayed for 11 days on our return from
USA.  he looked at the Catscan taken in USA and brought back
with us, and explained that he wouldn't recommend surgery on
the tumour, and that he wasn't too worried about the lesions
on the liver.  But the worry was the spots on the
peritoneum, which are causing the fluid to build up in
John's tummy. He's already had some 3 litres removed.
He then explained the different types of chemotherapy he is
recommending, evidently when one lot stops working they then
move onto another type.  Plus two types of biological
treatments which can have rather bad side effects.  They can
be in pill form, which could be a bit toxic for John, and we
will probably go with the other recommendation that he has
some form of portal (plug) inserted in his shoulder, and
then this stuff can drip into him over a 48 hour period.
The treatment will be once every two weeks - and the drip
bag can be inserted, he can come home, and then a nurse will
come and remove it.

He recommended a website, set up by his old boss in UK,
Google – cancer backup - and asked us to have a look at this,
come back with questions, and then we'll go ahead with
treatment after that.
for those who are interested the therapies are:
Rinotecan plus 5 Fu (5-fluorouracil)
or
Oxaliplatin plus 5 Fu
plus the biological ones, Benacizumab and Cetuximab
so, we feel we have moved on a stage and have every faith in
this very impressive man.  John says he made him feel that
he was the only patient in the world, he had time for him,
and this gives great confidence.

what he is hoping to do is reduce the spread of the cancer -
it cannot be cured - in order to extend John's life.

John sends his love and thanks you all for your concern,
love, and support which has also given him great strength.

with love too from sue.