Ian is 15 years old. In 2019, he was diagnosed with osteosarcoma, a type of bone cancer.
After surgery and several months of chemotherapy, Ian was declared cancer-free. But in November 2021, the cancer came back and spread throughout his body. Just this past week, Ian and his family learned that there was nothing more doctors could do. The same cancer he had once beaten was now going to be the one that would take his life. When Ian heard the news, he cried. He wasn’t scared of dying, though. He was sad. He said, “I only want to do one good thing in the world before I leave you all.”
It was Ian’s choice to tell his friends and little brother that his cancer would eventually kill him. This picture truly shows the “good” Ian wanted to share. Even with the devastating news, it was Ian who comforted and consoled his friends and his little brother. In the photo, his little brother, Peter, is crying. Peter had just learned that his time with his older brother was running out. Ian held him tightly, kissed him on the forehead, and apologized for not being able to beat the cancer.
Although Ian says he’s sad, he also says he’s okay with dying because he doesn’t want to sit around waiting to die. Instead, he wants to live fully until the end comes. Ian has chosen not to live for himself. He wants to live for others, right up until his last breath.