When she called me right before dinner she hesitated to share the news, but I prompted her with the phrase again. Even though we both knew that her saying the following information would ever change it from being just another day. My baby sister has stage 4 terminal cancer. It is called leiomyosarcoma. It is NOT breast cancer, liver cancer, or whatever cancer your mother, father, brother, or sister has. (I say this kind of with irritation because I am SO tired of her cancer being compared to others.) I realize that cancer has touched so many people and that each person has a story that somehow identifies with hers, but it is not the same. This cancer is very rare and unfortunately has now became stage 4 with spots in both her lungs and liver. The original site of surgery has no regrowth.
What does this mean? This means that once again my sister is going to start the fight for her life. She is a natural fighter that still has hope and LOTS of fight in her. She will be getting a second opinion next Friday to see if there are any other options. She is such a vibrant beautiful wife, mother, sister, daughter, and friend that no one wants to believe that there is nothing out there to take this all away. We are all choosing to pray with purpose that there is something better than the clinical study that she has been offered at OHSU.
How did she know? Ashley had been going in for check-ups every 3-4 months since her original surgery on September 8, 2011. The cancer was rediscovered during her annual check up on September 5, 2012. She did not have any symptoms prior to this. She still remains healthy and full of fight.
What you can do? Pray and pray some more. We all appreciate the love support and prayers. Eventually I will probably be asking for further help for tangible things once she begins chemotherapy. Ashley believes with her whole heart that the Lord will use this for His purpose and that her one wish is that no one's heart is hardened to Him after hearing this news. Our family remains faithful. None of us have lost hope or our faith. We will continue to pray for another miracle. It might sound selfish, but I firmly believe that God will provide my sister another miracle. Let's join together to pray for that one. Our directed prayer is that Ashley will survive and live the life that God intended for her to live. Hug your loved ones, let little things go. Our greatest commandment is to love one another and I plan on doing that each step of the way.
2 Corinthians 1:3-5
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God. For as we share abundantly in Christ's sufferings, so through Christ we share abundantly in comfort too.
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God. For as we share abundantly in Christ's sufferings, so through Christ we share abundantly in comfort too.
