Douglas Y.

About Douglas Y.

My stepfather, Doug, was diagnosed with prostate cancer in 2000. Luckily they caught it very early, his PSA was only 4, but it had doubled in less than a year and his very observant doctor decided to err on the side of caution and they did tests and found the cancer. He had radiation, and survived for a long time after, changing therapies and drugs several times to keep the cancer at bay. About two years ago, they found a bone lesion on his skull, but it remained unchanged after that. Last summer, it spread to his lymph system in his stomach and chest. They started chemo and it spread the lymph node in neck, very aggressively. He passed away December 11. For years, my mother took him to all of his appointments an hour away, usually several times per month, usually staying for up to 8 hours, helped him with all of his medications, and watched as the man she loved got sicker and sicker in the past year. At the end, myself and my husband also took turns helping my mother keep watch over him, going with her to the ER as he struggled with infections and falls and the inability to stand and take care of himself. It was heartbreaking. I feel grateful that we had so much time with him, and I know 17 years is such a long time to live with cancer. But we still were robbed of him – he was only 67. He will never see his grandchildren get married or have their own children. And my mother has lost her soul mate way too early. She has been so strong throughout this whole ordeal and I am so mad that she had to go through this. Cancer needs to be eradicated. Something needs to be done so that families will stop getting their loved ones ripped away from them way too soon.

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