Editor’s Note: Publisher Patrick Graham wrote about his mother’s battle with cancer in this space last year. He shares an updated column again today in conjunction with Breast Cancer Awareness Month.
There are a number of dates which will live in infamy, to borrow a phrase from President Roosevelt, we all recognize.
From the bombing of Pearl Harbor, when the phrase was first used, to the day President Kennedy was shot, to 9/11, to members of this generation adding the assassination of Charlie Kirk — you know about the significant impact the events occurring on these days had on our country and its history.
I feel like we all also have personal dates which will live in infamy as well.
One of mine is Monday, Nov. 6, 2006.
That’s the day my mother, Anna Graham, died after succumbing to the ravages of cancer. She was 74.
Hard to believe it has been 20 years ago now.
With that dreaded anniversary just weeks away, and with October being Breast Cancer Awareness Month, it gives me pause to remember Mom and her struggle.
Four years prior to her death, mom had been diagnosed with both breast and uterine cancer, and she had a double mastectomy and a hysterectomy to try and end the threat.
We thought she had been successful. Just four months before she died, she had been given a clean bill of health during her regular doctor’s visit. But in the interim, the cancer came back with a vengeance, infiltrating “the three L’s,” her lungs, liver and lymph nodes.
We didn’t know how bad it was, and I’m not sure she did either, until she passed out at her Catholic church in Huntsville and had to be taken to the hospital by some of her friends.
This was during my first stint in Monroe, Georgia, and I remember driving to Hunts-ville to try and determine exactly was going on with her health. My wife, Allison, was already at the hospital and had warned me things weren’t good, but I didn’t know how bad it was until I got there. I checked in with her every week and she had never let on that she was having any difficulty at all.
After finally making it to her room I asked her how she was feeling. She told me, “I’m dying,” very matter-of-factly. If you knew my mother you knew this was her style. I remember saying, “Let’s see what the doctors have to say,” but the doctors, unfortunately, confirmed what my mother already knew.
They gave mom up to six months to live after discovering the cancer had reoccurred. She only made it 10 days.
Those last days were spent at Abbey Hospice in Social Circle, Georgia. I had her moved locally so that Allison and I could help look after her, however long that was going to be, along with my brothers and sisters. Although I cherish being able to spend those last few days with her, it really wasn’t enough time. I still miss her terribly, and I always will.
Cancer must be a six-letter word because not even a four-letter word would do justice to the truly awful nature of this insidious disease.
All of us have a loved one who has been impacted by cancer. This disease in all of its myriad forms has stolen mothers, fathers, daughters, sons, family and friends from all of us.
We also all still have loved ones who are struggling with it. Each year in October, we have shared stories of survivors in our “Think Pink” section who, with the advancements made in medicine today and the grace of the good Lord, have been able to beat back the cancer trying to invade their bodies.
Which is why it is incumbent upon all of us to do what we can to try and stop it from taking anyone else. The research being conducted is paying dividends, as the survivors will tell you. Cancer survivors are continuing the good fight. We need to continue the good fight to help find a cure as well.
We give a portion of the proceeds generated by our “Think Pink” section to a charity that funds breast cancer research. Our contribution alone won’t get this done, obviously, but every little bit makes a difference. Look for that in The Leader on Oct. 21.
As a good friend of mine, Keith Prather, likes to say, “Don’t give until it hurts. Give until it helps.”
Please help.
Anna Montalbano Graham of Huntsville died Nov. 6, 2006, after a battle with breast and uterine cancer. She was 74. SPECIAL TO THE LEADER
Patrick Graham is the publisher of The Sand Mountain Leader and other newspapers in Alabama and Georgia. His email address is [email protected].
