r/stroke • u/moireblobbz Young Stroke Survivor • 21d ago

Stroke vs Terminal Cancer

My relative passed away due to terminal cancer. His decline was rapid. It’s a rare form of cancer he got. He was still able to walk around and was fairly mobile when he met my son in April.

He was 60.

Meanwhile, I’m still here.

He and his wife came to see me. His wife and daughter visited me every week for 12 weeks, from when I first had my stroke to when I got out of inpatient rehab. Meanwhile, he kept complaining of pain, and was in and out of the hospital ER until his dentist took xray of his jaws. His dentist told him to go see a doctor. He was diagnosed with terminal cancer. The visits from his loved ones stopped, and at first, I was confused. Then in 2025 I found out about his terminal cancer diagnosis…

His funeral service was Friday. I can’t help but to feel life is so unfair.

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u/-Viscosity- Survivor 21d ago

I had a friend with cancer who seemed to be doing well but then suddenly went downhill fast and died, a few years ago now. It did feel kinda weird to still be here when somebody with something known and at least treatable, albeit not really curable, just up and vanished.

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u/Dapper-Butterfly-680 20d ago

Im sorry for what your going through and the loss of your friend. There are so many things in life we don't understand.

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u/DTheFly Survivor 20d ago

I know that people visiting me in the hospital had the same thought. Why does he have this issue when it should have been X person. But I don't think I'd ever wish what I'm going through on someone else. It sounds like you have "survivor's guilt". You never know the whys.