My father was diagnosed with a rare form of lymph node cancer five years ago. It is generally fatal. Over the six months after his diagnosis, he received radiation, chemotherapy and surgery. At the chemotherapy stage, he described simply wanting to die and only continuing because of his connections to his family. But he survived after surgery and has been cancer-free since.

I don't know if there's any good advice for coping with this stuff. The only compensation I can offer is you're probably at the worse part now - pain and uncertainty is the worst. If a person lives or if a person dies, it's done, it's easier.

Words of my father - "Dying quickly is easiest for the person dying and hardest on their loved-one. Dying slowly is hardest in the person dying and easiest on the loved-ones (because they can say good bye)". I don't know if that's true but it shows there are no easy answers.