CBS's story about Liz Dustin really touched my heart today. As a mom of twins, who also went through a cancer scare after my twins were born, it hit me hard. While my tumor turned out to be very benign, our family struggled for a few months before we found out. My heart goes out to the Dustin family, and I hope that this story will touch you too. We should regard every day as precious. In her final days of life, a young Minnesota mother sat down with WCCO-TV's Liz Collin to talk candidly about her battle with cancer and the memories she wanted to leave behind for her 9-month-old twin daughters.
"Today's a really good day for me. I'm able to sit up on the couch and enjoy time with my little girls," said 29-year-old Liz Dustin, of St. Cloud, Minn.
That was on Friday. Wednesday morning, Liz lost her battle with cancer, but her family still wants to share her story of courage.
Nine months have passed since the two days in May that changed the Dustin family's lives. Liz and her husband, Shaw Dustin, were getting ready to be parents. After two miscarriages, Liz was pregnant with twins that were due in a month.
Something wasn't right with her legs, so she went into the doctor to get them checked out.
"I was in so much pain, I had to sit downstairs on the couch," she said.
"We thought it was just from the pregnancy until they gave us the actual diagnosis," said Shaw. "That was the hardest part."
Doctors diagnosed Liz with sarcoma, a tissue cancer. Two days after her diagnosis, doctors performed an emergency Caesarean section at St. Cloud Hospital and her daughters were born more than a month early.
Even though they were premature, the twins are now healthy, though they wear helmets to reshape their heads.
Right after the twins were born, doctors removed a tumor the size of a football from Liz's upper thigh. The cancer had also spread to her lungs. Chemotherapy and radiation haven't helped.
Doctors said there's nothing more they can do. Over Christmas they told her she wouldn't make it, but she fought for six more weeks, enjoying the time that she had.
"That's what I'm doing right now, enjoying every minute of it," she said last Friday.
She scrapbooked, wrote letters to the twins and has told her family what she wants her daughters to hear.
"Tell them about me, how I enjoyed life, you know, that I was a great mom who fought this, who wanted to be here for you girls," Liz said.
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Liz's sister wrote this poem for her sister:
Remember Me
Remembrance is important to the human soul
We all want to be remembered when we are gone
Please remember me as the way I am
A beautiful strong soul who did not give in
Who did not give up the battle when the fight got tough
My spirit is forever resilient
Although my body is not as I wished it was
It can only endure so much pain before it gives up the struggle to survive it
Remember me for my radiance
As it rays down on you like sunshine warms the soul
Remember me for how much I cherish life
Embracing how lovely and delicate life truly is
As life is a precious gift to us all
We only have this one life to live
Be inspired to be the best person you can be
Tell my children they are loved and adored
How truly resilient I am for life and all it's beauty
As I face death with grace
As I watch over them from heaven
As an Angel with wings
Bathing them with love from heaven above
I'll always be within your hearts and souls
To be remembered and kept safe as a keepsake
As I know I am truly beloved
My final wish is to be truly remembered and not forgotten
Please Remember Me
To my sister.
Sharon Yvone Hoffarth
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