Hello,
My name is Angela and i am 22 years old.My oldest sister passed away in August, 2000 due to this cancer.It was the most difficualt time for my family seeing how we only had less than a month with my sister, Victoria.We had found out hat she has cancer on July 16,2000 and we laid her to rest on august 16,2000. I never really knew how hard it would be to let her go.After watching the most bravest person I know tell her two young boys good bye, I realized it was time to let go myself. I am in no way telling anyone to give up!!!!!This will be the hardest thing that you will ever face. be strong and keep words of comfort in both directions, have faith and believe. the battle has yet to come. for those who are watching the battle remember to look for a loss of appitite, blue fingernails and toes, and the pain to increase. remember to tell your loved one how much you love them and need them in your life. there is much living to do no matter how hopeless the fight may seem. be strong and supportive, it is much harder for your loved one to let go of you then it is you to let go of them. ( that is waht it seems like to them)you can e-mail me any questions or thoughts that you might have. i will always be here for you. sincearly yours,
angela
iibcrayz4u@hotmail.com

Hi Angela. You are so kind to share with us. It must have been so hard for you, you are so young and your sister must have been, too.

I have learned that one of the terrible things about this disease is how fast it acts. It has usually grown out of control before there are any symptoms. That was the case with me. I cannot give the dimensions of my tumor when it was discovered but it has been described as huge by my doctors. It has shrunk 50% and is still about the size of a fist. But I've been lucky so far, no growth, no spreading, no pain. Perhaps it is under control :-).

How are your sister's children doing? I have three children. My oldest is 19 and the others are 6 and almost 1 (my baby will be 1 on St. Patrick's Day). I think my oldest is the most afraid, the others are too young.

You are right about being supportive. People going through this definitely need lots of support and encouragement. It is easier to fight when you feel loved. I am afraid there are probably many people on this board who come here because they're not getting enough support at home. Or perhaps they feel that their families do not understand. What is important is that they get support in some way. Your kind and generous offer is much appreciated by many, I'm sure.

Helping others surely helps you to deal with your loss. I am very sorry about your loss - I read some of your posts on the old board from last Fall. I hope that my sister can be so brave if the worst happens to me!

Hugs,
Alison

Angela, so sorry to hear of your loss. You are soo right when you say to let your loved ones know how much they mean to you! My Mom had this awful disease, but thank God her symptoms were so severe it was caught in the first 6 weeks. Her cancer was inoperable, she had chemo and radiation. She was cured! Unfortunatly, the docs, (close to where you live) talked her into "prophylactic brain radiation"... Just in case it came back, it wouldn't spread to her brain... Sorry to say the preventative radiation eventually killed her. She too died just last year. It's so hard to lose our loved ones, but I find peace in knowing her spirit remains alive. We acknowledge her, talk to her, talk about her and laugh. And we cry too. Sometimes thats all you can do. Love to you and your family.