If only you knew (Camren)

Chapter 22

Laurens POV
Me and Camila spent the next few days visiting each other and going to the mall together. Over all we have had a very good time so far, our relationship growing stronger by the second.
Today was the day Camila had to go to hospital for more tests. I've not asked her about her illness because I don't want to ruin the good time we have been having together so I guess today I will find out what I want to know when I go with her to the hospital.
Camila confirmed with her mum that I will be going with her today so her mum can have a break from the grey roomed building. I would be picking her up at 10am so we can be at the hospital for 10:30 in time for her appointment; I woke up pretty late so I skipped breakfast, had a 2 minute shower and threw on some clothes. I wasn't to bothered about looking good today because we agreed to go back to Camila's house and watch a cute film together because her parents have gone out for the day.
I got in my car and drove for half an hour till I reached Camila's house. As I was running late Camila was already waiting on her porch for me. "You're late" She reminded me as she got into the passenger seat. "I know, I'm sorry I woke up late" I apologised.
"Don't worry, we will be waiting for my appointment for at least 20 minutes" She told me
I nodded and pressed my foot on the accelerator. I tried not to show it but I was really nervous and I had no idea what to expect from this hospital appointment. Because me and Camila have never spoken about her cancer I don't actually know what type of cancer she has or where about it is in her body and I guess the fact I will be finding out today is what is bothering me. We drove in silence until Camila casually broke it by turning on the radio.
Ronan by Taylor Swift was playing. "Oh, how ironic" Camila said and rolled her eyes "I do love this song though" she informed me and started singing along to it. I could listen to her singing all day if that was possible, her voice sent me off into my own little world which I loved. I smiled at the younger girl who was watching the world go by as she was singing her little heart out. When the song come to an end I looked across at her while I stopped at traffic lights to see her eyes filling with tears.
"Camz are you okay?" I asked her with a very concerned tone to my voice
"Yeah I'm fine, just thinking" she said and wiped her eyes
"About what?" I questioned. "It's nothing, I'm being stupid" she said and laughed to try and cover up the tears she couldn't clear.
"Camz" I said seriously. I saw that the green light was now on so i drove forward. Camila still hadn't answered me so I prompted her again.
"Camz, talk to me" she took a breath and swallowed the lump in her throat.
"What if I die? I can't leave you, I can't leave my family. I'm too young" she said quietly through her tears. I was trying to stay strong but I couldn't help the tear rolling down my cheek.
"Camz don't worry, you won't die. You are a strong girl and you will fight what ever life throws at you so this is no different, try not to worry about it yet, it will be treated" I told her hoping the words that just came out of my mouth will be true.
"I hope you're right" she mumbled.
We drove the rest of the way to the hospital in silence and soon enough we got there with 5 minutes to spare.
I pulled Camila into a warm hug before we went in the main doors
"Good luck beautiful" I told her and automatically made her smile. We had to be wearing our hoods of our jackets today and even sunglasses because we couldn't risk being caught going into the hospital because Camila isn't ready for it to go public. We informed the hospital staff before we came that we will be doing this so then they know who we are and we won't have to remove them which was a relieve.
We both thought we would be waiting for at least half an hour in a waiting room for Camila's appointment but we was taken straight in from the moment we arrived. Once we was in the consulting room we took down our hoods and took off our sunglasses. The doctor gave us a smile. "I see you have told your friends?" she asked Camila
"Yeah I did, it felt so much better, you was so right about that" she told her doctor.
"Well, your Lauren right?" She asked me and held out her hand for me to shake it.
"Yeah I am" I replied to the polite woman
"Vice nice to meet you Lauren. I am Dr Wilson and I will be with Camila throughout the whole of this" she informed me and I nodded in agreement
"Have you explained everything to Lauren?" She asked Camila and she shook her head.
"Would you like me to do that for you?" She questioned
"Yes please" she answered quietly
"Okay then" she said and opened up her notes and started to read what she had written down.
"This might be a lot to take in so if you need me to stop then just say" she reassured me and I nodded. I knew that I need to show that I was strong so I tried to listen and take in everything Dr Wilson told me.
"Your friend here has lung cancer" she told me. I felt the colour drain from my face but I continued to listen to what the doctor had to say. Lung cancer is one of the most common and serious types of cancer. Over 41,000 people are diagnosed with the condition every year. There are usually no signs or symptoms in the early stages of lung cancer, but many people with the condition will eventually develop symptoms including, a persistent cough, coughing up blood, persistent breathlessness, unexplained tiredness and weight loss, an ache or pain when breathing or coughing. Cancer that begins in the lungs is called primary lung cancer. Cancer that begins in another part of the body and spreads to the lungs is known as secondary lung cancer. Camila has primary lung cancer" I could feel my heart being crushed inside me by the words of Dr Wilson.
"There are two main types of primary lung cancer. These are classified by the type of cells in which the cancer starts. They are non-small-cell lung cancer and that is the most common type, accounting for more than 80% of cases; can be either squamous cell carcinoma, adenocarcinoma or large-cell carcinoma and then second type is small-cell lung cancer which is a less common type that usually spreads faster than non-small-cell lung cancer. Camila here has the small cell lung cancer. Lung cancer mainly affects older people. It is rare in people younger than 40 so this is quite unusual. Lung cancer is most commonly diagnosed in people aged 70-74 years. Although people who have never smoked can develop lung cancer, smoking is the main cause with almost about 90% of cases. This is because smoking involves regularly inhaling a number of different toxic substances. We need to do future tests on Camila because the treatment for lung cancer depends on the type of cancer, how far it has spread and how good your general health is. If the condition is diagnosed early which it was, and the cancerous cells are confined to a small area, surgery to remove the affected area of lung is usually recommended.
If surgery is unsuitable due to your general health, radiotherapy to destroy the cancerous cells may be recommended instead. If the cancer has spread too far for surgery or radiotherapy to be effective, chemotherapy is usually use but luckily for Camila we think we have found it in time" when she explained it all to me I didn't know what to feel, it could be treatable but what if something happened. I had mixed emotions about it all. "Do either of you have any questions?" She asked us. Camila shook her head but there was one last thing I was curious about.
"Emm, I have one if that's okay?" I asked
"Sure go ahead" she encouraged
"If the cancer can't be treated then how long will she have left?" I knew Camila would kill me for asking this but I needed to know
"It's hard to tell really, as lung cancer does not usually cause noticeable symptoms until it has spread through much of the lungs or into other parts of the body, the outlook for the condition is not as good as many other types of cancer. Overall, about 1 in 3 people with the condition will live for at least a year after they are diagnosed and fewer than 1 in 10 people will live at least five years. However, survival rates can vary widely depending on how far the cancer has spread at the time of the diagnosis. Early diagnosis can make a big difference" she explained further.
"Okay thank you" I said to the older lady in the room.
"Actually I have a question" camila spoke up "what are the possible treatments?"
The doctor looked at the files and then began to answer Camila's question
"Small-cell lung cancer is usually treated with chemotherapy, either on its own or in combination with radiotherapy. This can help prolong life and relieve symptoms.
Surgery isn't usually used to treat this type of lung cancer. This is because often the cancer has already spread to other areas of the body by the time it's diagnosed. However, if the cancer is found very early, surgery may be used. In these cases, chemotherapy or radiotherapy may be given after surgery to help reduce the risk of the cancer returning."
"There are three types of lung cancer surgery, Lobectomy, where one or more large parts of the lung called lobes are removed. I will suggest this operation if the cancer is just in one section of one lung.
Pneumonectomy, where the entire lung is removed. This is used when the cancer is located in the middle of the lung or has spread throughout the lung.
Finally, Wedge resection or segmentectomy, where a small piece of the lung is removed. This procedure is only suitable for a small number of patients as it is only used if your I think your cancer is small and limited to one area of the lung. This is usually very early-stage non-small-cell lung cancer.
Before surgery can take place, I will need to have a number of tests to check your general state of health and your lung function. These may include
an electrocardiograph (ECG), where electrodes are used to monitor the electrical activity of your heart
spirometry, where you will breathe into a machine called a spirometer, which measures how much air your lungs can breathe in and out which is what we are going to be doing today."
Camila nodded which basically said she understood.
"I'll be back in a moment" the doctor informed us and left the room.
"Are you okay?" I asked my girlfriend
"Yeah I think so, are you?" She asked me back
"I guess, it's a lot to take in. I've never been through anything like this" I told her
"I'm sorry" she said
"Why?" I asked
"Because it's my fault you have to go through this experience" she confessed
"Camila, you can't help that" I told her and she looked looked down at her feet
"look at me" I ordered and she did as I said. "I love you and nothing, I mean absolutely nothing will change how I feel for you. You are beautiful outside and in which is very hard to find so I want you to promise you'll never apologise for anything like that again" I said seriously
"Okay, I promise. I love you too"
She leaned in for a quick peck on the lips and luckily she pulled away in the nick of time because Dr Wilson walked back into the room with some medical things.
"Camila can you just stand on these scales for me? I need to measure you height and weight for this"
Camila stood up and walked over to the scales and the doctor recored her weight, she then went over to the right of the room and got her height measured before the test could be carried out.
Camila came and sat back down next to me and the doctor set up the spirometry machine
"For the spirometry itself, you need to breathe into the spirometer machine." She informed Camila
"First you breathe in fully and then seal your lips around the mouthpiece of the spirometer. You then blow out as fast and as far as you can until your lungs are completely empty." She instructed camila did as she was told. This was repeated three more times to check that the readings are much the same each time she blew into the machines.
After the results were recorded Camila had some blood taken and then we was able to go home.
With our hoodies up and sunglasses on we made our way back to my car and took the drive back to camilas place.
Once we arrived at camilas and sat down on the sofa Camila thanked me
"Thank you for coming with me today, it made me feel so much better having you by my side" she admitted to me
"That's no problem at all, I'll happily be by your side all the time Camila you know that" I reminded her
"I know and that's one of the many things I love about you" after she said that I could help but smile. We cuddled up on the sofa for the remaining time we had left before Camila's family came home. She fell asleep in my arms once again and I couldn't help but cherish this moment just incase.