A hole in his spine

So, dad thought he had arthritis in his back, why not, it was sore - his son has it (i.e. me) and the pain responded to arthritis medication. They x-rayed his spine to check out how bad the arthritis was and instead found a huge hole in one of his vertebrae, most probably a myeloma. Late night phone calls from doctors urging they come in immediately and see him. Earnest conversations with specialists ultimately leading to the "how long have I got" question. Trips to Canberra to be scanned, probed and measured.

Prognosis: not great but so far it looks treatable but not curable.
Mood: shitty.