Thank you all!
When my MIL and my own father had cancer there wasn't anything that they could remove...they just had to go through chemo and hope for remission.
My MIL was 50 when she died 6 months after her diagnosis of lymphoma. My MIL hid her diagnosis from us and we didn't know the extent of it until after her passing. She was a smoker.
My Dad was 52 and died 1 year, 6 days after his diagnosis of leukemia...until then we thought leukemia was a childhood disease. 40,000 adults get it each year, while only 8,000 kids do...and yet almost all trials are for children (easier to get money I guess). My dad swore he'd beat it until his last breath. He never smoked, drank or did drugs.
My FIL is 61 just diagnosed with bladder cancer. You can live without a bladder, so if they have to take it out I feel he probably has a good chance if he fights. The problem is...he's already giving up. He told DH weeks ago (before his diagnosis) that he was convinced he was dying...and now he's even more convinced. We can't fight for him (lord knows I tried with my own dad) we can only be there for him.
Mrs. Research, I understand your anger at the cancer that surrounds us. Before making the decision to be a farmer and a stay at home mom I worked for a company where the statistic was always in front of us...1 in 2 men and 1 in 3 women WILL develop cancer in their lifetime. I used to do a test in a room...everyone stand up...sit down if you had a personal experience with cancer...now sit down if an immediate loved one did...now sit down if a friend did...now sit down if a coworker or acquaintance did...I had an entire room sitting down every single time. How sad is that? How angry does that make you feel? I just had a tumor removed 2 months ago (it was benign now) but they told me that it was the type that in 15-20 years would have developed into colon cancer...I'm 33 and now I have to have a scope done every 3 years. Am I lucky I caught it early? Maybe....or maybe it'll come back and I'll just know my fate. Our research is lacking in all different types of cancer. But there is hope in some areas...did you know that Children's hospital of Atlanta has developed a cure for one type of childhood cancer? We need more dedicated teams like them. We need more people willing to speak up like you.
I hate cancer. It doesn't discriminate. Cancer makes me angry after it makes me sad. But I learned from my dad's experience that you can't fight the fight for the person as much as you may want to. The thing about my FIL that pains me the most is that it seems like he gave up before he was ever diagnosed
Your prayers and hugs are very much appreciated.