It Could Be Worse

There are 2 young women in my small town that are battling stage 4 breast cancer.  One I think I have mentioned before.....she is in her early 40's, was in MOPS leadership with me, has 2 kids the same ages as my middle and youngest son- 4 and 7.  She is so funny (used to stand-up comedy, I believe) and entertaining.  She is not doing well.  She was placed on Hospice last month.  Her liver has been failing.  It makes me so sad because there is nothing that anybody can do to stop this monster called cancer.  She has a blog and she is an amazing writer.  It's dinas boob blog (get it?  for breast cancer) at blogspot dot com

The other woman had (notice I used the word "had") metastatic breast cancer and also a primary ovarian cancer.  She also had a great blog, was a terrific writer.  Her blog was called something like drink water and breathe at blogspot dot com.
She had one of her surgeries back in 2009 at the same place my mom was having surgery AT. THE. SAME. TIME, and I had rotated with her surgeon when I was in internship.  I noticed him come into the lobby to talk with her family after her surgery, while I was in the waiting room waiting for my mom's surgery to be over with.  I didn't find this coincidence out until like the next day when I started reading her blog, and realized that's who my old attending physician was operating on.  I never got the chance to tell her this coincidence.  My friend had 2 huge benefits to raise money to help her with expenses.  I missed them both- one was the same time as my son's birthday party and I think I was out of town for the other one.  I never got to meet her.  And never will.
She started to do downhill in November I think and was recently placed on Hospice also.  She has two young boys, around 7 and 8 years old.  She passed away yesterday.  I have never met her, but several of my friends were good friends with her.  I found out the news on a Facebook post yesterday, and I started getting tears in my eyes.  I told Dave the sad news, and we started talking about Dave and all of his medical issues over the past several years, including his recent surgery.  He looked at me said, "See, it could be worse.  I could have passed away too."

Both of these women are going to leave their young children without their mother.  How devastating.  I would have been devastated as a child (and even now) if my mother died.  I am so afraid and almost paranoid that I am going to get cancer too and leave my children without their mother.  Because even though Dave is a great father, he is not me and nobody does things "the right way" like I do!  ha ha
Just kidding- but you know what I mean.

I think both of their breast cancers came back-out of remission- last January, and now they are probably going to pass away very close to each other this month.  Things come in 3's I always say- and last February my sister-in-law's brain tumor came back.  She has a grade 4 brain tumor (Glioblastoma Multiforme- GBM) which is a nasty sucker.  Go ahead, look it up-it's very scary.   However, she is doing well and is on chemo and is in remission.  So thankfully she won't be the 3rd person to succumb to their cancer any time soon.

So was this enough of a Debbie Downer post, or what?!  Sorry.   I am so sad for these women and their families.