Megan Gets Her Degree!
- Megan Thee Stallion shares with fans on Instagram this week that she is graduating college and posts a picture of a very bling, very rhinestoned graduation cap; she’s a role model for everyone pursuing a degree later in life.
- The Grammy-winning rapper lost her mom, Holly, in 2019; Holly had a tumor in her brain.
- Moving through grief after the loss of a loved one, like a parent or spouse, to cancer takes time.
Megan tragically lost her mother, Holly Thomas, in 2019 after she had a brain tumor. We’re proud of Megan’s determination to continue on with her life, even amidst the heartbreaking loss of a losing a parent, and coping with the grief that follows that event. Megan is such a role model to many, including those pursuing a degree at a later stage than their peers it’s never too late to go after what you want, and Megan is living proof of that.
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Megan tells People magazine in an earlier interview she’s completing her degree to make her late mother proud. She says, “I want to get my degree because I really want my mom to be proud. She saw me going to school before she passed.”
“My grandmother that’s still alive used to be a teacher, so she’s on my butt about finishing school. I’m doing it for me, but I’m also doing it for the women in my family who made me who I am today,” says Megan.
Holly’s Health Battle
Megan's mother, Holly Thomas, passed from a brain tumor in 2019. We don't know the specifics around Thomas's brain tumor and her treatment path, but we do know that brain tumors can result from brain cancer, as well as from other cancers. This is especially true of when cancer spreads from one area of the body to the brain; when a cancer spreads it is often called "metastatic cancer," or advanced cancer. With cancer that has spread, treatment options may be more limited.
In a previous interview, Dr. Melanie Hayden Gephart, a neurosurgeon at Stanford Medicine, explains the spread of cancer. She says, "Lung cancer is one of the most common types of tumors to metastasize to the brain. I think the key is that if we can minimize the side effects of the treatment, that's our main goal, and provide effective treatment of the brain tumor. That frequently looks like a combination of systemic chemotherapy, or targeted therapies, focused radiation, and surgery."
"Surgery's indicated if the tumor is over a certain size, is otherwise limited, and if the patient has a significant neurologic deficit that is associated with that tumor itself," says Dr. Gephart. "Focused radiation is ideal if there's a small number of small-volume tumors. Whole-brain radiation is indicated if the patient has failed other mechanisms of systemic treatment and has too many tumors that could be treated with focused radiation."
"Sometimes when patients are diagnosed with metastatic brain tumors, right at the initial time of diagnosis where they're treatment-naive have not seen any treatments if they have a particular mutation and can get targeted therapy, even the brain metastases can respond well to systemic chemotherapy."
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Coping with Grief after Cancer Loss
Moving through grief after the loss of a loved one, like a parent or spouse, to cancer takes time. It’s important to give yourself the time and space you need to grieve. Also know, there’s no timeline or “right way” to grieve.
Whether you’re grieving the loss of a loved one to cancer or perhaps grieving another way cancer has touched your life, through being diagnosed yourself know that grief comes “in waves,” Dr. Scott Irwin explains in an earlier interview.
Related: "Therapy Saved My Life": After Losing A Loved One, Don't Be Afraid To Ask For Help
Seeing a therapist or psychologist can help you process your grief in a safe, supportive environment with an experienced professional. Don’t be afraid to reach to a professional or to a family member or friend if you’re struggling to cope during a grieving period. Many people require support and there’s no shame in asking for help in fact, it’s a mark of bravery when you do.
Dealing With Grief After a Cancer Diagnosis
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