When it comes to fighting cancer, we in the SurvivorNet community know well the importance of family as a core source of strength on the cancer journey. Support from family members can aid in emotional health and aid in a positive recovery outcome.
Family has always come first for Beth Chapman, wife of Dog “Duane the Bounty Hunter” and an acclaimed bounty huntress in her own right. Beth has been engaged in a brave and very public battle with Stage 4 cancer, and this holiday weekend she thanked her nephew, Justin Bihag, for coming to her defense against cruel online trolls who’ve attacked her in her time of struggle.
Read MoreCancer is no joke! And anybody who thinks you can tease or mock or hurt someone going through it, is not only disrespectful, but stupid af! Lost my grandfather last year, and it appauls me to see family or fans come after my Aunt @MrsdogC at this time! #NoClass #GetAGrip
Justin D. Bihag (@JustinDBihag23) May 26, 2019
He added the hashtags “No class” and “Get a grip.” at the end of his message, which elicited a thankful tweet from his aunt.
“Love you bruddah jus,” Beth wrote endearingly.
Justin, who’s now a musician, was responding to some troll activity which targeted Beth during her cancer journey. The cruel trolls accused Beth of being an attention-seeking celebrity, with Beth’s many fans rushing to her support via social media.
On Thursday and Friday, we told you how Beth has expressed hurt and sorrow over her stepdaughter allegedly not wishing her well for mother's day; not inviting her to the graduation of Dog's granddaughter; and supposedly blocking her and Dog on social media platforms. Stepdaughter Lyssa denied the charges (which Beth standing her ground). And as the disagreement between stepmother and stepdaughter dragged on in the very public forum of Twitter, online trolls crept in, crashing Beth’s Twitter comment field to suggest that Beth's social media airing of family dirty laundry was not constructive.
On Friday, Beth would have nothing of it.
"I'm just blocking and deleting today," she said of cutting off social media trolls who criticize and harass her despite the fact that she's a cancer survivor currently in, as she's put it, the fight of her life. "I take no s remember that! This feed is not for your opinions it's for mine! Got it," a defiant Beth, 51, wrote.
A user named Ashley had made the insensitive comment that "her posting their personal problems online just fuels the fire and creates an even bigger fire. I get she's just trying to reach out to [Beth's stepdaughter] baby Lyssa but it's obvious she doesn't want to be reached this way. It just makes it worse," said "Ashley".
To which Beth responded: "Ashley maybe you don't get that it's none of your business and your opinion is not wanted or needed here I'm 52 years old and I been her mom a long ass time I obviously know far more than you so sit down and shut up or get off my page !"
And now Justin has stepped into the fray to defend his aunt. His appeal to trolls to “get a life” was met with strong support from Beth’s online fans.
“I lost my dad to Cancer a year and a half ago and it still hurts,” wrote one fan. “People should shut their mouths and say nothing if they can’t say anything nice or supportive.”
I TOTALLY agree with you. I too lost my husband. Week’s ago. To Cancer (s). Cancer is No Joking Matter!” wrote another.
When it comes to Beth, she has been very open about her cancer battle this time around and the ups and downs of facing cancer in the public eye. She was diagnosed with cancer for a second time in late 2018. And even though she's been open about the journey she is on over the past few months, it's unclear what kind of treatment she is currently undergoing. On Mother's Day, in Beth's first public speaking appearance since she was diagnosed again, Beth told congregants at the Source Church in Bradenton, Florida, that she is not undergoing chemotherapy and that she's really putting her faith in God as she battles the disease. "This is the ultimate test of faith," Beth said during the event. "It is the evidence of things hoped for, and it is the substance of things not known. And although chemotherapy is not my bag, people, sorry, that's not for me. So for me, this is the ultimate test of faith."
For a long time, chemotherapy was considered the standard of care for people with stage 4 lung cancer but times have changed over the past decade or so. Precision medicine, or matching treatment to the biology and characteristics of a specific tumor, has made major headway when it comes to treating advanced lung cancer. Targeted therapy seeks out very specific cancer cells and leaves the healthy cells alone. Chemotherapy tends to cause a lot of collateral damage because it kills all fast-growing cells both healthy and cancerous.
Still, it's unclear if Beth is using targeted therapy or some other form of cancer treatment. We do know that she's still completely committed to continuing her life's work bounty hunting. Dog and Beth have been filming their new reality show "Dog's Most Wanted," which will air on WGN America though an official release date has not been announced yet.
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