Does dot actually have cancer or is it just a "i've found a lump i will go to the doctors only to discover it was nothing after 6 weeks of being scared and depressed" storyline?

Its going to be really depressing isn't it? I don't think i'll watch it much this summer. Hope it improves back to its old self by winter time when the charactors who are on maternaty leave / restbite return.

This storyline just screams of the whole "Peggy Mitchel" cancer plot a few years ago!

Could they just stop repeating themselves for ONCE!

we should have the Aussie Gold channel by that time, thankfully.

At least it's realistic. That only 2 (did Sam actually have breast cancer or was that a false alarm?) people out of that many would get cancer is highly unlikely

its also highly unlikely that nobody has a washing machine. but it dont mean everyone should rush out and buy one.

She'll battle cancer after finding a lump but she's not to be killed off.

Dot's Cancer Storyline - DS

It would be good if they tackled lung cancer (especially with Dot) as I don't remember seeing this done before in a soap. I'm a smoker & I'm more than well aware of the dangers (sadly I still smoke ) but some of the younger or more influencal audiences of soaps believe things are real more if one of their soap characters portray it than they do if you hand them an 'educational' NHS leaflet.

Even if it didn't hit the message home, if nothing else it may help EE's flagging storylines.

I know the soaps aren't there to educate as such but as Mark's HIV storyline proved to me, there are people out there who take heed of these storylines. I remember friends at the time being shocked that a hetrosexual could contract HIV/AIDS, they were still being led to believe it was a ';GAY' disease. Just a thought.

<Weegie steps down of soap box>

Hopefully this story will be handled poperly, though I seriously doubt that given their recent performances. As someone who has lost a sister to the big C and who has a wife who was successfully treated for cancer I hope EE uses this opportunity to dispel a few myths. I hope they dont use the story as an excuse to run us all into another depressing storyline

smoking / lung cancer is a very worthwhile story line, 2 of my family have died from smoking related diseases and yet virtually all my friends still believe it can't happen to them and have a 'my nan smoked till she was 100' story up their sleeve to prove that it's harmless. So many people die every year from smoking related illnesses and it costs the NHS a fortune, a bit of education through a mainsteam soap is just what's needed imho.

Yes, it would be a lot better if this storyline was about lung cancer, mainly because of the points already stated above. Dot has always smoked throughout her time on EE so this storyline would make more sense and be more realistic if she got Lung cancer and it could also show everyone that Smoking Does do serious damage!

I have close friend who have died of breast cancer and they were young
all i am going to say is this
Eastenders = deppresing sad and did storywriters from corry join EE rember Alma

Yeh my Nan was diagnosed with lung cancer two months ago and the family have been reeling ever since. If handled properly it this could be a very good storyline with a lot of emotion. But I don't think it's lung cancer she gets.

a lot of you are sayin its just repeating itself, but if you lived in 1 neighbourhood how many things the same could take place over the years? its realistic if you wanna watch fiction switch on a cartoon channel

I think June Brown is a tremendous actress, I just really hope the storylining and scriptwriting gives her something to work with and does justice to her talents.

My mum smoked herself to death, but didn't die of cancer. She spent two years suffering from increasingly worse bouts of asthma - and she still smoked (she had been a nurse as well) until a month before she died. I hope EE do the thing properly. they should take note of those anti-smoking adverts where they used real people.

I agree with you Agent. June is a tremendous actress, I think with all the publicity in the media and everywhere else EE had to do a cancer scare storyline. However, the lovely June will not be leaving our screens just yet. Plus who else would be able to work the part as good as her?

It's just another depressing EastEnders storyline like when Peggy Mitchell had it. They've done it before and there is no need to do it again.

Thought I would bring this up again.

Although I think this has been probably the best storyline in ages, why have we not seen Dot in hospital recovering after so much hype about her having it? I didn't notice much until my mum complained and said they made such a big deal from this storyline and haven't seen her.

I may have missed an episode for which I apologise in advance if I am wrong, but this is not very realistic is it?

I was thinking pretty much the same thing last night too. I got really into the Dot cancer story line and loved seeing her with Jim, especially the night they both admitted how much the loved each other and Dot couldn't believe Jim actually loved her. Ok I didn't want the whole of each episode of EE to move to the hospital as it still gives me shivers after the Ronnie kidney saga but I want to visit Dot, make sure she is ok and all that jazz.

I know. And before anyone accuses me of EE bashing, come on. They made us really care for Dot and what she was going through...yet it seems *storyline over - lets move on*. I hope we see her after the op and for it not to go down the road of...she is out of danger, life can go on.

I wouldn't consider it EE bashing as other soaps have dropped stories very fast. I'd say that we will return to the story when she is discharged from hospital and needs to be cared for at home as she recovers. Also we will need to see the times she has to go back in for tests to ensure they got all of the cancer,there are no secondaries etc. There might even be a time where she has to have treatment if a second source does show up as this happens a lot to people in real life. I'd still like to have seen Dennis go to visit her. I'd like him to come to visit me if I was in hospital (with prior notice nat. so I could put on a face and fix my hair )

Yeah Dennis visiting her would have been a nice touch and I would think to prove very popular!

It would have been very realistic for him to do that with all that has happened between the two characters. They should have a least shown some hospital post op scenes but this was probaly due to the arrival of the much hyped Milller family

Just had a thought (which can be dangerous sometimes). Did Dennis actually know that Dot did have cancer. Remember she told him she was ok when she decided she wasn't going to have the operation did he find out after the lock in at the Vic? I missed that episode. If he doesn't know then he can't have visited her, but if he does I think he should have gone with the inevitabe bunch of grapes. Then Martin and Sonia could have bought a new pillow or something for their new bed? That is if the Minute Mart actually sells pillows.

I think Dennis was waiting outside the hospital for Dot when the doctor told her she had a tumour in her kidney and she told him then. It ended with Dot looking worried and Dennis putting his arm around her shoulder.
I actually like the fact that they haven't shown her in hospital. That could get very boring with just her lying in bed. I think the best of her encounters with Jim, Pauline and Dennis were covered in the scenes before she had the op, and dragging these into the hospital would be like too much of a good thing. And after the past few months the excellent June Brown deserves a long, relaxing holiday.

Still haven't seen Dot in hospital! My mum again mentioned it yesterday and commented on how they built it up to be this massive thing, then didn't even show Dot recovering (which imo would have been great viewing). It has made me mad how they seem to have forgotten this massive build up to a good storyline and then dropped it!

Not impressed at all!