Franklin's Story
- Late musical legend Aretha Franklin’s life is chronicled in National Geographic’s Genius: Aretha series, with award-winning actress Cynthia Erivo playing the Respect singer.
- The civil rights activist, who was the first female to be inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, died of pancreatic cancer in 2018 after an 8-year battle with the disease.
- A top expert in pancreatic cancer explains to SurvivorNet why it’s one of the more difficult cancers to catch early, unlike breast cancer or cervical cancer, which can be screened and detected early.
The 1965 Otis Redding tune, that the ‘Queen of Soul’ made a signature hit of her own just two years later, has empowered women all over the world to ask for a little R-E-S-P-E-C-T.
Read More"It is with deep and profound sadness that we announce the passing of Aretha Louise Franklin, the Queen of Soul," her publicist had said in a statement after her death on August 16, 2018 at her home, surrounded by loved ones. “In one of the darkest moments of our lives, we are not able to find the appropriate words to express the pain in our heart. We have lost the matriarch and rock of our family. The love she had for her children, grandchildren, nieces, nephews, and cousins knew no bounds.”
Although her team asked for privacy, they acknowledged the support from fans around the world. “We have felt your love for Aretha and it brings us comfort to know that her legacy will live on.”
View this post on Instagram
And so it shall, not only through her incredible music and live footage, but now in this new deep dive into her life to be showcased in the third installment of the Genius series (first seasons covered scientist Albert Einstein and artist Pablo Picasso). Franklin’s persona was known to be very controlled.
"I think she very much wanted to be seen in a certain way," showrunner Suzan-Lori Parks told The New York Times. "As Black American people, we are very aware of our marketability, and as Black American artists, we are maybe even more aware of our marketability."
View this post on Instagram
Parks spent the last year taking in every aspect of the songwriter’s life.
"I spent months and months reading about what she said, and also noting what she didn't say," she said. "Jazz musicians will remind us that the music isn't just the notes, it's the stuff between the notes, the silences."
Tony Award-winning actress Cynthia Erivo plays the civil rights activist in the series.
"I was more interested in telling the story as truthfully as I possibly could, as opposed to mimicking," Erivo said in another interview. The British entertainer starred in The Color Purple on Broadway, and has also won a Grammy and Emmy Award.
View this post on Instagram
Franklin’s Battle with Cancer
Franklin was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in 2010, and had surgery in December of the same year. She lost her battle with the disease eight years later. Since she kept her life very private, not much is known about her course of treatment.
Pancreatic cancer is typically treated with surgery, chemotherapy and radiation therapy. Surgical removal of the pancreas may be an option for some if the cancer hasn't become too advanced.
The pancreas has two main functions one for hormones and one for digestion. Franklin had a more rare type of the cancer called pancreatic neuroendocrine cancer, also referred to as PNET. PNET grows more slowly than the more common form of the disease, adenocarcinoma.
Challenges to Screening for Pancreatic Cancer
It's often difficult to diagnose pancreatic cancer early. By the time patients come in with symptoms, the disease is often too advanced to treat. The pancreas is an organ in the abdomen. Since it is in the abdomen, it's hard to tell issues specifically within the pancreas.
"By the time individuals walk into the clinic with symptoms like jaundice, weight loss, back pain, or diabetes, it's often very late in the stage of the disease," Dr. Anirban Maitra from MD Anderson Cancer Center tells SurvivorNet.
Each year in the United States, about 53,000 patients get pancreatic cancer, "And unfortunately, most will die from this disease within a few months to a year or so from the diagnosis," he says. "And the reason for that is that most individuals, about 80%, will actually present with what we called advanced disease, which means that the cancer has either spread beyond the pancreas or into other organs like the liver, and so you cannot take it out with surgeries."
Early Detection is Difficult for Pancreatic Cancer
Learn more about SurvivorNet's rigorous medical review process.
