She's too young for this...

[U2democrat]

A dear friend of mine, at the young age of 16, has just found out that she has a malignant tumor in her lymph nodes.

When my family and I first moved to Virginia 6 years ago her parents took me under their wing and made sure that the transition went smoothly for me. I have nothing but love for her, her little sister, and her parents. This girl is brilliant, could probably get into any Ivy League school she wanted, is a gifted musician with her voice and flute, and completely down to earth and cool.

For this to happen to her is just tearing me apart, and I can only imagine what she and her family are going through.



PS I don't know much about cancer, but I know that malignant tumors are bad. What would a typical prognosis be for that?

 

[cobl04]

That's terrible. Not much I can say I'm sorry but I can't imagine how awful that would be for everyone involved. Life can really suck sometimes.

 

[Varitek]

what a nightmare. I'm so sorry, that's awful

 

[LemonMelon]

Wow. How horrible! I'm so sorry.

 

[redhotswami]

that's horrible. i hope there is something that can be done.

 

[kafrun]

I hope she makes it through. She's so lucky she's got you to be there for her.

 

[Doozer61]

Laura, it depends on the exact type and stage and treatment. It is a tough thing especially for someone that young. Be strong for her.

 

[U2democrat]

Thanks everybody


Her parents have always been there for me, and, not to sound arrogant, she and her sister have always looked up to me.

It's so hard. Why do these things always happen to the best people? Feeling so helpless sucks.

 

[cell]

sorry to hear this

 

[Kiki]

PS I don't know much about cancer, but I know that malignant tumors are bad. What would a typical prognosis be for that?

I'm so increadibly sorry your friend has to go through this. Thankfully she has a great friend like you that cares about her though.

It would pretty much depend on what the doctors say about how far or how quickly they've caught this. A good thing....if there is anything to be good----is that she is young and that plays a HUGE factor in the healing process and fighting things off. Her immune system is probably a lot stronger at this young age.

Depending on how far the cancer has progressed, she may have minor treatments all the way to more major treatments. Just be there for her, talk to her, listen to her, do things with her if you can or call her and email her. Encourage her to fight it and to stay strong, but let her know it's okay to be scared and nervous too.

My prayers are with you and her and your families.

 

[MrsSpringsteen]

I'm sorry Laura

 

[tiny dancer]

A dear friend of mine, at the young age of 16, has just found out that she has a malignant tumor in her lymph nodes.

When my family and I first moved to Virginia 6 years ago her parents took me under their wing and made sure that the transition went smoothly for me. I have nothing but love for her, her little sister, and her parents. This girl is brilliant, could probably get into any Ivy League school she wanted, is a gifted musician with her voice and flute, and completely down to earth and cool.

For this to happen to her is just tearing me apart, and I can only imagine what she and her family are going through.



PS I don't know much about cancer, but I know that malignant tumors are bad. What would a typical prognosis be for that?

It all depends what stage her cancer is. If it's 1 or 2 stage that is a good sign that she could be cured. The worst stage is 4, which means it's terminal.

I am so sorry to hear this and I hope for the best for her. She will definitely be in my prayers. ray:

 

[Lila64]

Hoping for the best Laura - think positive & just be there for her & her family.

 

[anitram]

PS I don't know much about cancer, but I know that malignant tumors are bad. What would a typical prognosis be for that?

I'm very sorry to hear that, Laura.

I think generally it's a bad idea to look at things like prognoses because what does it really mean? If there is a 90% survival rate, that means little for the other 10%.

However, generally, lymph node malignancies are among the less aggressive cancers, particularly something like Hodgkins, which at least when I was doing research in my past life, had the highest survival rates of any cancer. So you'd have to know what type she had and how advanced she was.

But really, it's never a numbers game and I think it probably wouldn't be the most helpful to play it. You sound like a good friend to her and that's what she needs.

As an aside, a good friend of mine had a brain tumor (grew behind her optic nerve) and she had it removed and has recovered from it really nicely. It set her a year back in her grad studies, and it was a long and painful recovery, but she's done so much better than we could have expected. She was 23 when she was diagnosed, so as you can see, you never can tell.

 

[joyfulgirl]

A friend of mine was diagnosed with stage 4 cancer and was told to get his affairs in order as quickly as possible. They gave him 4-6 weeks. He's now an 8 year survivor.

You're a good friend and have had a tough year with friends in trouble. I wish you and your friend and families the very best. Keep us posted.

 

[BonosBaby12]

Im sorry about your friend Laura Hope everything turns out for the best for her

 

[Mr. Green Eyes]

I'm really sorry to hear this.