As I sat beside my mom today, the irony of World Cancer Day hit me like a punch to the gut. According to the calendar, today, February 4th is World Cancer Day, however, as you likely know, the effects and impacts of cancer reach wide and deep, well beyond a specific day. Ask any fighter, survivor, caregiver, or family member of an angel who never gave up, I believe they will agree. When my mom called before noon today, my stomach immediately sank. Call it pride, independence, or plain stubbornness, my mom does not ask for help or not until she has exhausted all of her resources and has tried something multiple times. So, as I answered the phone hearing her say, "I need help" was alarming. As the conversation went on she said she needed help putting her shower curtain and liner back up in the bathroom. Again, knowing that she is not one to ask for help, I tidied up a few things and zoomed over. Thankfully, she lives less than 5 miles from me so it's a quick trip. When I arrived, I determined her "request for help" was more than needing a shower curtain hung. She was laying on the end of the couch, knees and legs bent, tucked into her stomach. She was wearing a Flight Line Jacket that belonged to my grandpa from when he served in the USAF. She could not get warm. Then she revealed to me that she did not have an appetite and could not eat or drink anything. So, there she was: stomach pain, chills from a fever due to infection, and nauseated.
Thankfully, within a few hours, we were able to get the fever to break. After taking all of her morning medication, which she forgot to take, her pain subsided. Once those symptoms were relieved, she wanted lasagna. If you do anything today, please remember this very condensed version of a few hours in the shoes of one person battling cancer, my mom. Tomorrow isn't World Cancer Day but I can guarantee for those fighting cancer, it will be a close repeat of how they spent today.
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