Claudette Lee, who likes to go by Clawz, is a strong and outgoing individual who fought rectal cancer twice. With no family history of rectal or colon cancer, it came as a surprise when she started to have pain and issues. It started off as stage 2, but quickly metastasized and became stage 3 within a couple of weeks. Everything happened so quickly that it left her in a tailspin and led her to begin her own process of dealing with her diagnosis and dying.
With her first diagnosis, Claudette went through chemo, radiation and surgery, which successfully rid her of the cancer. She did a lot of meditation and yoga to help her get through the ordeal, and also found comfort in having her family and friends there. She was able to recover within a year and started to get her life back together. After surviving, she was filled with gratitude and had gotten to a place with being okay with whatever life would bring her.
Almost two years of being cancer free, the doctors found another mass. This time it was in a hard-to-reach spot, surgery was not an option. A specialist on the mainland informed her it was a risky surgery and if they did it, it would not remove the whole tumor. After considering her options, Claudette decided to stop all chemo and to not pursue the surgery.
Claudette knows that dying is a part of life and has remained positive about what is to come. Even with her diagnosis, she was determined to check things off her bucket list. From traveling to Italy, Ireland, Sri Lanka, Thailand, and London to riding along the Pacific Coast Highway on a Harley, she never let her diagnosis define her.
In September 2017, she was told she would only have a month or two left to use her leg. With that news, she decided to cross one last item off her bucket list – going to Alaska and seeing the Aurora Borealis.
Claudette has come to terms with what is to come and remains open to life. She journals every day, hopefully one day to tell her story and maybe help someone going through the same situation. She cherishes every memory and moment she has created and hopes it helps her loved ones when she is gone. Today, she is currently on our service and doesn’t have one regret; only memories and love.
