My Story is about My Mum, Maureen

 

This event took place from to

 

The Discovery

In hindsight, Mum had been experiencing symptoms for a few months. Her symptoms included indigestion, bloating and a sore back.
It wasn’t until her doctor was concerned about her overdosing on pain medication that she was sent to the hospital for scans.

 

This is My Story

There is little to no history of cancer on Mum’s side of the family and certainly no history of pancreatic cancer.

The thing I still struggle to this day, is how fast the cancer took her away from us and how cruel the disease is. The pain levels Mum experienced were so intense, to the point she didn’t want to be around anymore and was approved for voluntary assisted dying (legal in Canada). My understanding was that she was waiting to reach her 60th Birthday in September. Time wasnt on her side though and she passed away in August.

 

The Impact of Time

Mum didn’t get a lot of time, she had 5 months between being diagnosed until she passed away – April 2020 to August 2020. She was living in Canada at the time and once my brother and I knew she was running out of time we jumped on a plane (from Australia) to be with her – not an easy task in the middle of a pandemic with border closures. In fact, it was 2 years ago to the day, 31 May.

After completing 2 weeks quarantine in Canada, Mum was released from the hospital so we could care for her at home, with the help of family, home care nurses and doctors. I got 3 weeks with Mum before I had to return to my young family in Australia, and complete 2 weeks hotel quarantine. My brother stayed on until Mum passed (1 month after I left). My Mum and my brother were incredibly brave.