7 September 2009
I made my long-awaited visit to Papworth Hospital today. I was there for nearly 4 hours undergoing a variety of respiratory and expiratory tests as well as having a chest x-ray and a lung blood test. Basically they were testing my FVC (Forced Vital Capacity) and checking my diaphragm for any deterioration in my breathing. I came out reasonably happy with the result having been shown to be 87% of the predicted FVC for someone on my age, weight and height. (With less sophisticated equipment the Addenbrookes team made it 93% in June). Papworth want to see me again in December and repeat all the same tests and from the differences, if any, will be able to tell me roughly what they consider will be my ‘slope of deterioration.’