Lost a dear friend to cancer

[maxaroni]

I'm so sorry for your loss.

My mom recently passed away from metastatic breast cancer. She was initially diagnosed with breast cancer in 2014. She opted to have a double mastectomy, along with chemo.

In November 2018, the breast cancer metastasized in her colon. She had a successful surgery to remove the tumor and began taking preventative medicine. She had an excellent prognosis, but the cancer had another idea. She passed away at the end of July 2019 after undergoing surgery to remove another bowel obstruction. The cancer had recurred again and was covering her intestines. This was found after a clean PET scan two weeks earlier. I absolutely despise cancer!

So sorry for the loss of your mom.

 

[maxaroni]

You might be surprised. My daughter is only 31 and she has had several mammograms and a sonogram. The insurance paid for all because of my history of early onset breast cancer. I was first diagnosed at age 31. Have your doctor submit to your insurance company that the MRI is medically necessary due to a close family relation with breast cancer.

Oddly, no one in my family, on either side, has been diagnosed with breast cancer for as far back as anyone can remember, except me. Sometimes, it just happens. It doesn't have to mean there is a familial predisposition. My daughter was tested for the BRCA gene and she doesn't have it. Hopefully, you'll find out that you have no more chance than the general population.

Good to know. I will contact my doctor and see what happens.

Same with my mom, no family history on either side of breast cancer.

 

[Hisgirl]

I am SO VERY SORRY for your loss. I too lost a dear friend this year and it's awful. Not like a grandparent or great aunt...it cuts deeper, I think. So very very sorry. Time for a puppy or kitten. I'm not kidding. Treat yourself and find ways to add happiness into your life. Bless you.

 

[cedricandsophie]

My best friend died two years ago from kidney and liver cancer. She was diagnosed in April, did a few weeks of chemo and once it was determined it was inoperable entered hospice in July and died 10 days later. I saw her almost every day, drove her to chemo, visited her every day in the hospital and in hospice and sat with her for a few hours the night before she died, Her son called me st 6 am that morning to tell me she had died and I was there within an hour. I was blessed to be with her so much at the end, I was able to hold her hand, reminisce about our memories together and the very last words she spoke to me was to say I love you. her sister and I dressed her before she was moved from the hospice center. It was very special to do that for her and pick out the clothes that we knew she would have liked. We had a memorial service at our home for her and I wrote a speech entitled She Was Always There, detailing our 40 plus years of friendship. And the one good thing about her illness and death was that it brought me very close to her sons who I had known since they were very young but didn’t get a chance to see very much, I promised her that I would always be there for them and I will never let her down. I was in Colorado a few days after her death and on a Jeep tour. We ran into rain, which brought out double rainbows over the mountains. It was a beautiful and special moment because I knew that was her saying goodbye and wishing me well.

 

[Heather07438]

As sad as it is to read these it always helps me re-focus on the best things in life, like my family and friends and the time we share. Thank you all

 

[Raelyn30]

That s*cks. But it happens.

Everyone is going to deal with grief differently, so I can't really give you advice, beyond the general stuff; make sure you surround yourself with people who care about you, and share what you're feeling if that makes you comfortable. Remember the positives in your relationship with your friend, even if it hurts, and when it hurts, let it.