LIFE STORIES
Josh Zuercher, USA
A Son’s Story of Hope, Fear, and Survival
Josh shares his personal experience of how his mother’s breast cancer diagnosis changed his life and his family’s perspective, and how they found hope and strength in the face of fear and uncertainty.
My name is Josh. In 2012, I was living in Florida, about 2,000 miles from my family. It was October and I was watching football with my friends. All the players and coaches, even the stadiums and fields, were all awash with a pale pink color and pink ribbons. It was Breast Cancer Awareness month. Everything on the broadcast brought attention to Breast Cancer awareness and detection. I thought it was annoying, I just wanted to see football. While watching the game, I got a phone call. My mother always calls to check in, so I did not think anything of it. Little did I know, the pink colors and ribbons that annoyed me minutes ago would become important symbols of hope, family, and survival. My mom called that day to tell me she had breast cancer.
Over the coming weeks and months, my life took on new meaning. I went from a 22-year-old wild child to a scared, broken little boy. The pillar of our family, my support and my best friend was going through a process that far too many people know. Biopsies, tests. and targeted radiation treatments all became part of normal life for my mom. Thousands of miles away, I could do nothing to help her. Instead, all I could do was think about my younger brothers. They relied on my mother as much as I did. Now, in the front of our minds was one thought: What if she doesn’t make it?
The diagnosis of breast cancer had a huge impact on my mom and how she saw the future. The same happened for every member of our family. We began to grieve; we reconsidered the meaning of life and what our purpose was. How would we live and survive and find happiness when our mother was fighting for her life in a fight that she might not win. To this day, when people see my breast cancer tattoo, they ask how my mom is doing. I can safely say that today she is a survivor. Cancer is a family disease; it affects everyone and anyone that knows the patient. As my mom poignantly likes to say, she is not the only survivor, our family is survivors. For the rest of her life, we will be vigilant in her health, and we will cherish every day that she is still here.
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