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Help in the cancer fight

It was just a year ago this week that we wrote here asking for prayers for an American hero, John McCain, who had just received a devastating diagnosis of brain cancer.

Sen. McCain is hanging in there, still weighing in on the important issues facing our country. But, his opinions this year have been in absentia — McCain is waging his battle against cancer at his home in Arizona. His contributions have been limited to written statements about the issues.

Fact of the matter is that Hawaii’s own United States senator, Mazie Hirono, has had a battle with kidney cancer. She had her right kidney removed in May 2017, and then had further surgery to remove a rib that had a cancerous lesion on it. Our thoughts and prayers remain with her for a complete and lasting recovery.

The subject needs to be expanded because cancer is so pervasive in our society that attention to finding preventions and cures needs to be kept in the forefront of the public consciousness.

Frankly, cancer seems to have affected the lives of all our friends and acquaintances. Just in the past two years, two family members on the Mainland have had battles with different forms of cancer. One of those family members — our son — lost his battle last August.

Unfortunately, we don’t know too many families that haven’t had similar experiences.

And, as important as prayers are, we all can contribute directly to the fight by making donations to aid in cancer treatment and research. The American Cancer Society website — cancer.org — is a good place to start. Or just send a check to American Cancer Society, Maui-Molokai-Lanai Unit, PO Box 30560, Honolulu 96829-0560.

If you have specific areas where you would like to contribute — like breast cancer, childhood cancers, leukemia, lymphomas, etc. — a simple web search can help steer you to worthy recipients.

Progress in cancer treatments is being made daily. But, it is expensive. Remember, every contribution — no matter how small — will save lives and hasten the day that cures are found.

So continue those prayers. But make a donation, too.

* Editorials reflect the opinion of the publisher.

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