Lindas Cancer Battle

Hey everyone, this is Sarah. I have been thinking of how and when to post an update for a few weeks now. It's never an easy thing to announce that someone you love is losing a fight. For those of you who don't know, my mom has been battling pancreatic cancer for 3 years now, and has been putting up a damn good fight! There has been many ups and downs, and to say that you're still here after 3 years with pancreatic cancer is pretty miraculous. My mom is one of the strongest people I know, but even the strongest can't fight forever.

She started having extreme pains in November, and thanksgiving time was pretty rough. After a PET scan in early December, we found that the cancer has spread. In ways that no one was prepared for. She has cancer plaque cells spread in her chest cavity, which was causing her sharp pains at times. She was having pain in her stomach and intestine area, which was first diagnosed as colitis - after the PET scan we found out this was actually the cancer spreading in this area also.

It's fast now. She has moved in with me now, and we are hoping to make her comfortable and happy as people are able to visit and spend time with her. She is in a lot of pain, but we are doing everything we can to try to ease the symptoms. Your support, prayers, and we'll wishes will mean a lot to her right now. Please comment and share to let her know that she is in your thoughts, simple encouragement can go a long way lifting someone's spirits.

From October 2015: There hasn't been an update on this page for quite a while. 16 months ago was the last time I posted anything.

For those of you who knew what was going on, you know how bad things got last year. They removed the cancer in September, but from there things only got worse. She had an infection in the hospital that got her stuck in Charlotte for a month, then takotsubo syndrome when we got her back to charleston. She was sick and wasting away, losing weight drastically and in and out of the hospital for the next few months - doctors couldn't figure out what it was. Finally, just when things were at the worst, and hope was dwindling, they found out that she had gastroparesis. With that revelation, she was able to treat it and get better and stronger. From the 1st of this year (2015) she has been on a steady incline, to where this summer she was pretty much her normal healthy self again!

Then, in September this year... She went in for her a regular checkup with her oncologist. She had been cancer free for 1 year.... What they found was a tumor, attached to a part of her liver. Its stage four cancer, returning from her pancreatic cancer, and inoperable. She has, with heavy treatment, at most a year.

It was a heavy blow to someone who had just gotten back on her feet. A heavy blow to a family that had just felt like we were able to move on. This next year is going to be very tough....

And then, sometimes it seems like things happen all at once. Over Halloween weekend, the back half of her house caught fire. Thankfully she was not home, and everyone is ok. But she has a lot of damage to her house, and right now cannot live in the house until some major repairs are made, they wont even turn the electricity back on until then.

An electrician and contractor has looked at the damage and given her estimate on what it would take to get the repairs done. We are looking at about 30-40k. My mother does not have insurance on her property. Nor does she have any way to get this sort of money. She is staying at my great aunt Patsy's house, and has plenty of family to stay with. But, for the next few months, she is strong and healthy, and wants to be independent for a long as she possibly can.

We need to raise some help, and fast. We are hoping to be able to not only raise some money to pay for materials, but also raise help from people who know what they are doing and can repair my mothers house with the money that we raise. I know that people cant always work for free (I know that I cant...) so if you would like to offer your assistance at least at a good discount that is what we are raising money for. Any penny helps!

And, if you cant afford to donate, if you aren't a home repair person, please please please share this story. Facebook, emails, anything to get the word out - you never know who may see it that will be able to help.

This was what was posted last year:
Linda Bendorf, age 55, is battling pancreatic cancer. She is a wonderful mother, sister, daughter, and friend. My name is Sarah, middle of her 5 children, and I am trying to do what I can to help. It was a miracle that we found the cancer when we did- she had a gallstone that caused pancreatitis. She went to the er one night because of pain, and had she not had a gallstone, they may not have found it in stage one. So we were hopeful, we were told they would be able to do a Whipple procedure to go in and remove it, do chemo after to be on the safe side, and we would be done. However, when they went in, they discovered that the tumor had adhered to a vein. They are not able to remove it, not yet. Even though they weren't able to remove it, it was still a pretty major surgery, leaving her week and out of work for weaks. Now they are going to attack it with pretty aggressive chemo, and possibly radiation if the chemo doesn't shrink it, which will leave her drained, enable to work or care for herself.

Since she cannot work, she will not have income. Her sick and leave time from work has run dry, long ago. The hospital bills are piling in, her living expenses are stacking up, and she has other things she needs to focus on other than her empty bank account. She is single with no financial support. There is plenty of family around her that is able to physically care for her, but unfortunately none of us have any extra funds to help support her that way. We do what we can, but we are begging for your help and support as she battles this.

Even if you cannot donate yourself, share this page and her story, maybe you can help reach someone who can donate. And that my friend is just as helpful. Prayers and support go a long way as well, thank you.