Chances are we’ve all had our lives touched by cancer. It’s a hard truth. And if somehow you haven’t, well, you should know that it’s the hardest thing anyone will go through.
It shouldn’t be that hard to summon up a little sympathy for someone who’s just trying to save their own life. But apparently someone got tired of one woman’s attempts to raise funds for a treatment that might just turn a bad situation around.
It wasn’t long ago that Karen Land was fighting fires in Britain — now, she’s in the fight of her life.
The mother of five had already battled cancer once and was given the all-clear in the summer of 2018, but just weeks later, she relapsed.
For the most part she receives lots of support, but a supposed sympathy card shoved through her door one night shows not everyone is on her side.
The card, which read “Thinking of You” on the front, had a disturbing message inside.
“Stop begging for money!” it read.
“Enough is enough with raffles, just funding. Why do you still want people giving money to you? What will happen to to money when there is no cure for you?”
Although the card’s envelope had been stamped, it hadn’t gone through the mail, so Karen worries it could have been from someone she knows.
“I was just shocked that someone would do that to somebody in my position,” she told Lincolnshire Live. “I don’t understand how someone can be so bothered about my life that they go to the effort to do something like that.”
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Karen has been trying to raise funds to go to Germany for a treatment that Britain doesn’t offer.
As she explains on her crowdfunding site, she’s taking Olaparib “as a last treatment option,” which doesn’t seem to be working well.
She says her cancer has spread to her brain, lymph nodes, and lungs. “Without any further treatment my life expectancy is probably going to be 8 weeks maximum.”
She had previously tried to raise £100,000 to get immunotherapy treatment in Germany.
Her efforts raised £70,000, and she needs to make up the difference to have a chance at getting the treatment. “As I have not got a lot of time left I am desperate to raise these funds so I can have this treatment which if works could give me extra precious time with my children.”
It’s been a frustrating time for Karen.
“Can’t believe 3 months ago I was sat on a fire engine and now I am in this state unable to even walk up a flight of stairs,” she wrote in a Facebook post. “It’s unbelievable how quick it’s spread. Even though I am tired and uncomfortable and the situation isn’t good I am still holding on to the hope that I can come through this.”
And yet, she’s not raging against the person who dropped that awful note off at her home.
“I’m not angry, I would have liked to have discussed the issue with them,” she says. “I think I’m inclined to say that they’re more to be pitied.”
Her supporters have been there for her, too.
“I have been bombarded by messages of support on Facebook,” she said. “I like to get around and message everyone back, but I struggled to keep up because there were that many messages.”
You can donate to Karen’s Justgiving page here .
