Losing Someone to Cancer Essay Example

which helped me get my life back on track. But just as my life seemed to be getting back to normal again, my uncle was diagnosed with an extremely aggressive form of cancer, just 6 months after his wife had died. Once again my family and I would have to endure another long battle. As the months went by I was forced to watch my uncle endure a lot of suffering. This brought back numerous memories of my aunt’s illness.

At one stage he became so sick that he was given just days to live. It was at this time, at the age of 12, that I began thinking of life without two special people in my life. This scared me a lot. However, my uncle’s grit and determination enabled him to hang on, and he slowly regained his strength and health. As his health continued to improve, he re-married, and once again I had another aunt in my life. Perhaps I could now live a ‘normal life, with simple problems, like that of my schoolmates. Unfortunately, this was not to be the case.

My other aunt was diagnosed with an advanced form of breast cancer, which had spread into her bones. Over the following 14 months, I watched a perfectly healthy woman go through extreme amounts of suffering. The pain that she endured was so intense that she would often scream. This took its toll on me and there were several times I wanted just to give up. The thought of these friends encouraged me to keep on going (and still does, for that matter) as I realized that I was fortunate

enough to have a choice.

Sadly my step-aunt lost her fight with cancer and passed away halfway through my year 12. For the months following I put an enormous amount of effort into my studies, trying to put the whole cancer thing behind me. I think I slowly began to get on top of everything. I can even recall one of my best friends commenting on the fact that my life was finally getting back on track. However within days of her making this comment, and just one week before my final year of high school, my uncle was diagnosed with a recurrence of his prostate cancer.

Since this diagnosis, cancer has spread throughout most parts of his body and continued to spread. Although he was putting up an extremely strong fight, the reality is that he will eventually die from cancer. It could be years, it could be months or it could even be days. We just don’t know. But what I do know is that each moment I spend with him will be memorable and will be full of joy. Joining a support organization helped me immensely. It has enabled me to live a ‘close to normal life while forming several strong friendships, which will no doubt last a lifetime.

I have also learned several valuable skills in life, such as team leadership, and being able to relate to people of all ages. I've realized that in life we should never take anything for granted – not even the smallest of things. This encourages me to live my life to the fullest and I hope one day to form a

foundation, similar to the Make a Wish Foundation, and any other organization, that helps the families of those facing the prospect of terminal cancer. Giving them one last chance to get away for a while, as a family, and make some valuable memories that will last a lifetime.