There was nothing but blue skies ahead as I stared up and my thoughts strayed to some far off sunny beach.
It is hard to believe that the song “nothing but” Blue Skies is almost 100 years old – written by Irving Berlin to celebrate the birth of his daughter.
“Never saw the sun shining so bright,
Never saw things going so right.”
It is almost a signature tune of hope and optimism to lead us out of pandemic lockdown.
I looked skywards again. A few wisps of white cloud were drifting along high up signalling a warm day ahead.
Out of the corner of my eye a bright orange and yellow hot-air balloon was bobbing away on thermal air currents.
It looked as warm and welcoming as the sun. All I needed now was chocolate or ice cream to round off my glorious dreamy moment.
Yes, the view of the ceiling from my hospital MRI scanner was beautiful and absorbing. Just the thing to take my mind off the job in hand and make my appointment less stressful.
The hospital had created this beautiful therapeutic image in a LED skylight positioned right above the MRI machine, covering most of the ceiling.
It was meant to take my mind off an infernal banging noise.
An MRI scan is a surreal experience
I was flat out in the middle of the MRI scanner and it was not due to release me from its embrace for 40 minutes.
The noise was generated by magnetic radio waves directed from a closed-off operating booth behind me, where they were staring inside my body.
All I could do was enjoy the artificial view created in the skylight above.
Having an MRI scan is quite a surreal experience, but weirdly reassuring, too.
The hospital info pack likened MRI noise to a “pneumatic hammer”, so they gave me ear plugs and headphones.
But it was an unequal contest for the music they played through ear pieces to keep me calm and relaxed.
It’s not meant to be a five-star hotel here at Aberdeen Royal Infirmary, but they do their best.
They kindly offered a choice of music, so I went for a classical radio station.
I have not had service like this since I was in a posh resort in the Far East.
While I stretched out on the hotel’s strip of beach a waiter came around every now and then to spray my face with water to cool me down.
At least I think it was part of the service; maybe he had another purpose – was he trying to make me leave the beach?
I detected faint notes of Haydn’s cello concerto and Beethoven’s Pastoral symphony through the hospital headphones, which struggled on against the odds.
But don’t worry if you are about to have an MRI scan for the first time. It’s painless and the medical staff are always attentive and friendly.
Prostate cancer is a massive killer of men, but not if caught early – so they deserve the best medical technology
You might even feel sleepy; I think I started snoring briefly.
This was my third MRI session over the past couple of years, but first time in a mobile scanner parked outside in what resembled a converted lorry trailer.
My recent appointment was booked for 9am on a Sunday morning.
That was a shock to my system: I am normally scanning a bacon and egg sandwich then.
But I was pleased to see the mobile scanner was being pressed into service at evenings and weekends, and possibly helping to reduce horrendous non-Covid waiting lists.
📢 Prostate cancer doesn’t stop for Covid-19.
📉 8,600 fewer men started treatment in 2020.
Unless these ‘missing men’ are found, they risk being diagnosed too late, when their cancer is incurable.
Help us find them 👉 https://t.co/odYI6tCLCQ
#MenWeAreWithYou pic.twitter.com/Jblk5yvqID— Prostate Cancer UK (@ProstateUK) March 12, 2021
The hospital’s once bustling pre-pandemic corridors from my previous sessions were deserted: on arriving I only saw two security men and a cleaner.
Urology surgeon Justine Royle spoke to The Press and Journal recently about her plans to bring a new high-precision biopsy MRI scanner to Aberdeen.
It can pick up early-stage prostate cancer in men which might be missed by older machines.
I can vouch for that as my prostate cancer was not detected initially by MRI despite suspicious blood test results.
I thought I had got off scot-free, but unconvinced medics called for two hands-on biopsies (a considerably more uncomfortable experience than an MRI scan).
But I was thankful they found my cancer hiding away under deep cover, preparing to pounce at a later date.
Ms Royle and I are acquainted: she whipped out my prostate two and a half years ago before cancer had time to kill me.
Prostate cancer is a massive killer of men, but not if caught early – so they deserve the best medical technology.
And lots of blue skies ahead with their families, too.
