If I had a personality label, it would read highly motivated and very energetic! I am 47 years old and my husband and I are the parents of two beautiful teenagers. I also work in the busy role of General Manager for a land survey practice. Life often gets absurdly hectic with juggling all of our schedules, but we are a happy and healthy family.
Having previously worked with a medical research institute as the finance manager left me with a good understanding of how much medical research relies on funding support. I chose to become a regular ACRF giver because I particularly like how ACRF funds cancer research of all types.
Sadly, cancer touches all of us at some point. The first time I encountered the disease was with my grandfather. The memory of going to see him during his last few days remains vivid. Although told that he might not remember me, his face lit up when I walked into the room and greeted him. I burst into tears and cried; it was the last time that I saw him.
The next cancer encounter was with my gorgeous father. Some 10 years ago he was diagnosed with non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma, and I will always remember how upset we were at the possibility of losing him. Dad recovered fully from that cancer, only to suffer squamous cell carcinoma a couple of years ago. The wound healing process after radiotherapy was long and painful but thankfully he pulled through again. I dread the thought that Dad might face another round of cancer at some point in time.
In more recent times my sister-in-law, Deb, was diagnosed with breast and secondary cancer, and my brother in law is currently receiving treatment for lung cancer. My understanding of his cancer is that it can be managed, but not cured. Deb and Trevor are beautiful people and it’s a long road ahead for them both.
Finally, during the past few weeks, the wife of one of my work colleagues was diagnosed with both breast and lung cancer. They are devastated and trying to come to terms with what their future holds. There are only so many hugs and good wishes you can send when someone you know is confronted with the distressing news of cancer. I want to honour them all by giving back and taking a positive step toward helping to find a cure.
I would encourage anyone thinking about becoming a regular giver to not hesitate. If you can afford to give even a small amount, it will help and is definitely worthwhile. Continued cancer research is the only way of finding a cure, and to give hope to the many patients and their families suffering from the disease.
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