By Tessa Todd
In December 2009 my mom was initially diagnosed with bile duct cancer. On January 14, 2010, her diagnosis changed to pancreatic cancer after a new biopsy was performed. She was given six months to live without chemotherapy and nine months with chemotherapy and surgery. After further investigation, it was found that mom was not a surgical candidate because they found one metastasis in her liver. She began a chemotherapy regimen while seeking out other surgical options. She had a liver ablation to remove the one spot in her liver in April and in August found a surgeon that would attempt a Whipple procedure. The doctor opened mom up and found that the cancer had spread so they closed her up and surgery was no longer an option. Mom stayed on chemotherapy until she passed away on January 12, 2011. She endured a few set backs; infections that ended her up in the hospital, an allergic reaction to chemotherapy, but through it all g-d was beside her.
I wanted to do something to honor my mom and raise awareness and money for pancreatic cancer research. I decided to create a Hirshberg Fund and raise money to shave my head. I raised $830 for research! My mom was there with me through the whole process. I miss my mom and wish there was a cure for this horrible disease!