Sad tale

[Tosh]

Late last July, our neighbours in the flat downstairs moved out. Been there 3 years and we said hello on the stairs and that sort of thing.

 

Past few weeks, there's been some official looking post for her addressed to "the estate of" of "the late"...

 

So I gets a bit concerned and decide that it may either be a mistake, or if not that the husband might be interested. But where to find him? So I get on google, and find them both, having written a review for a BMW in the Indy in 2007 (go figure) and a piece in the Times on Li-Frumeni syndrome. The name was the same and the brief profile" fitted the girl.

 

However, no joy finding him. Finally I got on facebook and searched like crazy and she popped up. I sent a message and got no reply. Decided to send some messages to her friends to find out more. One came back to me yesterday morning pointing me to his blog. And from there I found her blog that he sort of finished.

 

She'd died in early May, aged 34 of Liver cancer (Li-Frumeni does that and it had been her). She'd known from a very young age that she had the syndrome and would die young (mother lost her first breast at 15, 2nd at 19 and died when her daughter was 11 - the syndrome is genetic). So she tried to live on as "normal". So we never knew, and only their closer friends did - seemingly, until late on, few of her colleagues knew.

 

I sent him a message via his website and got one back and now have a forwarding address for the post. So we are feeling guilty that we didn't know, were not able to help him in the better part of 3 months he lived downstairs alone. sad that we were typical Londoners and never really bothered to find out or pay attention other than say to eachother "she doesn't look very well" (well chemo does that, you numpty...). I guess happy that she lived to her choices and was not a "victim" of terminal cancer (even when she was clear she had a death sentence).

 

Just thought I'd share.

 

His last few updates of her blog are (starting at the bottom) at: http://www.taooftash.com/posts/May08/tot_may08.html

[charlie clown]

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[Swipe]

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[Montse]

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