Published Mar 25, 2021

Dual Stage 4 Cancer Diagnoses: Community Rallies Around Ill Husband and Wife Who Have Five Children

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Community Rallies Around Family

A couple from South Yorkshire in the UK with five children have both been diagnosed with stage 4 cancer within nine months of each other.
The family’s community is doing what they can to raise funds for the family in need, while also planning a sponsored half marathon in July to assist with as much financial help.
A daughter who lost both of her parents to cancer reminds the SurvivorNet community that no matter how much tragedy cancer brings to a family’s life, cancer can’t kill love.

Junior football coach Steve Thawley and his wife Sarah have five kids together, and are both fighting stage 4 cancer.

Sarah was diagnosed with stage 4 breast cancer last March after giving birth to a son, her fifth child. Then, in December, Steve found out he had stage 4 gastric, or stomach, cancer after having problems swallowing his food. Navigating through two advanced cancer diagnoses, especially during a pandemic, has been devastating for the family, who live in South Yorkshire in the UK.

When Sarah went to the hospital in June for blood tests before her first chemotherapy treatment later that week, she was hospitalized that same day with hypercalcemia, which occurs when you have too much calcium in the blood. The hospital called her husband and told him to come as soon as possible.

“Sarah had been moved to a private room and it was there that we were told that she had only weeks left to live,” friend Marina Whitwam wrote on a fundraising page for the Thawleys. “Everyone was devastated but were determined to bring Sarah home … the living room was organised with a bed so that she could come home and be looked after and be surrounded by her family.”

The mom of five fought hard and started making improvements. “Sarah finished her treatment in October and her CT scan showed remarkable response to treatment,” Whitwam wrote.

At this point, Steve found out that he also had cancer. Initially doctors chalked his symptoms up to stress, but an endoscopy (where a thin tube scopes out the insides of the digestive tract) revealed cancer.

Not only is Whitwam helping to raise funds for the family via GoFundMe, but she has spearheaded a plan within the community to host a half marathon in July as a fundraiser.

“We would welcome any support whether it's through a donation, sharing this story or joining us later in the pub to toast our aching limbs!”

The Benefit of Support

A little support can go a long way. People going through cancer need the comfort of knowing their friends, loved ones and community are there for them as much as (if not more than) their doctors. It takes a village, as they say.

Ovarian cancer survivor Kelly Sargent was seeking support after moving to Texas from Chicago, and thankfully it came back tenfold.

"When I was diagnosed, as soon as I got in the hospital, I started going online to find not only information, but also support groups, stories from survivors, anything that I could find as far as my treatment I definitely looked for," she tells SurvivorNet.

"I have met some incredible people in San Antonio. Coming here not knowing anyone, I've been blessed with having met some incredible ladies. I have an incredible set of friends that I met after my diagnosis through a Bible study group that have become very, very close friends of mine that are an incredible part of my support system. That support from those ladies has been life-changing for me."

The Benefit of Support Networks for Cancer Patients

Carrying on During Tragedy

A cancer diagnosis is always difficult to comprehend, especially when facing a potential terminal disease. With the stress of the pandemic, and financial struggles on top of that, life can certainly seem hopeless. But the Thawley family is fighting to hold on, with some help from their friends. And they have each other. Many facing illness don't have the love and comfort of a partner. No matter what tragedies or double or triple-whammies you may be facing, never give up hope. Leaning on family, friends, or finding support from your local community can do wonders for your stress levels, giving you hope and comfort.

Meagan McGoldrick, who lost her parents to cancer, reminds us that cancer can't kill love, and shared a story from a sermon given at her mother's funeral. "The priest had told the story, you know, cancer can kill this. Cancer can kill that," she tells SurvivorNet. "But cancer can't kill love â€¦ " So she started an organization to remind people what cancer cannot take from you; and that is love.

Cancer Can't Kill Love Fighting for Something So Much Bigger Than Ourselves

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