Jen's Blog

Sad news

Long story short, my grandmother passed away on Monday. For those interested in details (and prepared for tears), keep reading.

My grandmother (whom I refer to as Avó, which is Portuguese for grandmom) started having problems with cancer 20 years ago. She had colon cancer and was given 6 weeks to live. The doctors managed to remove all the cancer, and she was able to enjoy more time on Earth than they expected.

Somewhere in the 90s, she suffered a stroke that affected the left side of her body. She was still able to speak and walk after some rehab, and she was able to regain mostly full functionality, but she'd still sometimes have pains in her left side.

Back in April 2000, Avó, my aunt, and I enjoyed a 10-day vacation in England, Wales, and Ireland (tour bus). I only want to share that as a wonderful memory I had in spending time with her. She was able to get around well. Slowly, but well. And she was as spunky as ever.

A few years ago, I got a phone call from my mom that she had pancreatic cancer. Things seemed to look bad again, but the surgeons at Univerisity of Pennsylvania took care of that.

Most recently, she had uterine cancer. The docs told her that they couldn't operate again with positive results. She went through with radiation therapy. Unfortunately, they didn't tell her about the side effects -- swelling and fluid retention. She wasn't getting around the same, and you just knew she was suffering. The most recent biopsy of her fluid still showed cancer cells. She was sent to ICU on Saturday.

My aunt from GA happened to be here, so we drove up to NJ that evening, thinking Avó wasn't going to make it the night. Well, she pulled through the night and the next day was able to speak to us and understand everything we were saying. We even got some laughs and smiles out of her. She was moved out of ICU because her heart rate stablized and seemed to be improving somewhat. We left that night when visiting hours were over, and glad that she seemed to be doing better.

The next morning, my uncle called my cell phone and told us that Avó was unresponsive and we should get to the hospital ASAP. We got there, and my aunt and I held her hands and stroked her face. We got a couple of gurgles out of her, but she wasn't able to say anything. We told her that we love her and said our goodbyes, and she took her last breath as I was holding her hand.

I don't mean to bring everyone down, but I felt I had to share. Avó meant a lot to me. I would call her on the way home from my evening classes some nights just to chat. My mom and I spent the first 13 years of my life living with her, so she was like a second mother to me. I miss her terribly, but I know she's in a better place now.

That said, if you feel the need to do anything, please make a contribution to the American Cancer Society in memory of my grandmom, Mrs. Leone Marie Falcao. New research kept her alive as long as she lived, and even more may have kept her around longer. I'm just glad I was there for her.

posted by Jen @ 10:56 PM