I just returned from a 2 1/2 week trip out to the Midwest where I was helping take care of a dear friend whom I have known since I was 4 or 5. She was just like another mom to me and my siblings as we grew up. Her and her family were always a part of every holiday and special occasion over the years. She was also a chain smoker. About a year ago, she was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer and when she decided to go home from the hospital and have hospice care, I flew to Missouri and helped take care of her and decided to stay as long as needed. Her daughter, being an only child, needed all the help she could get.
My friend passed away last week but it was not a peaceful death. She was in a lot of pain for weeks and it was worse and worse as the last days approached. I would say, she was only at peace 10 minutes before she passed away. A very difficult thing to watch and be a part of but we did what we could to help ease her transition with acupressure points, soft talk and encouraging her to let go. It was a difficult task.
My dear friend was the fourth person in my personal life who passed away from pancreatic cancer. Most recently, my own aunt in Australia. All four of these people were smokers (one had stopped years before but not before the damage was done).
While I was in Missouri, I found an article by Johns Hopkins University Pathology explaining how our DNA can mutate and give us pancreatic cancer. It also explains what the risk factors of damaging our DNA are. Number one...you guessed it...SMOKING!
Please take a read of the article and pass it onto the smokers in your life. Especially if they have family members who have had pancreatic cancer.
http://pathology.jhu.edu/pc/BasicCauses.php?area=ba
My friend passed away last week but it was not a peaceful death. She was in a lot of pain for weeks and it was worse and worse as the last days approached. I would say, she was only at peace 10 minutes before she passed away. A very difficult thing to watch and be a part of but we did what we could to help ease her transition with acupressure points, soft talk and encouraging her to let go. It was a difficult task.
My dear friend was the fourth person in my personal life who passed away from pancreatic cancer. Most recently, my own aunt in Australia. All four of these people were smokers (one had stopped years before but not before the damage was done).
While I was in Missouri, I found an article by Johns Hopkins University Pathology explaining how our DNA can mutate and give us pancreatic cancer. It also explains what the risk factors of damaging our DNA are. Number one...you guessed it...SMOKING!
Please take a read of the article and pass it onto the smokers in your life. Especially if they have family members who have had pancreatic cancer.
http://pathology.jhu.edu/pc/BasicCauses.php?area=ba
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