Nov.16, 2013.
It's a day Lesley Hruby said she would never forget. Sitting at her ailing father's bedside, she said goodbye as he slipped away.
"It was real quick. I knew at that time pancreatic cancer was a real threat to us," the New Westminster resident said. Hruby's father, Leslie Armstrong - yes, she was named after him - had become the third family member to die of the illness, following her grandmother and aunt.
"It's scary, you know, because it is hereditary. If you're told you have it, it could be six weeks, if that."
Her parents, originally from England, were back home for a few months last August when, just two days before their scheduled return to Canada, Armstrong had a stroke.
"We thought we were dealing with a stroke victim. We found out he had cancer only two days before flying back."
Unbeknownst to the doctors in Cornwall, England, Armstrong had been having mini-strokes during his time abroad and had even fallen a few times.
"These were signs they didn't recognize until they ran tests later and found cancer in the liver too," she said. After nearly a two-month battle with the insurance company, Hruby was finally able to get her dad back on Canadian soil. He passed away three days after they landed.
But the possibility of a future diagnosis for her or her family has not brought her spirits down. In fact, the 50-year-old has signed up to take part in the B.C. Cancer Foundation's Concrete Hero Aug. 17.
Now in its second year, the urban obstacle challenge is a nine-kilometre trek through downtown Vancouver that sees participants leaping over parked cars, crawling through sand and traversing muddy water.
"I'm a bit terrified, but I've been training hard," Hruby said. "I know I will do it even if I have to force my way through."
Hruby added regardless of the outcome, simply wearing the colour purple and creating public awareness is enough for her. "We really want to get the word out there, that this is one of the most under-funded types of cancers."
The event raised more than $400,000 last year and had more than 1,000 people registered. Originally having set a goal of $400, Hruby has surpassed it and has personally collected close to $1,000. Her group has also been the team to beat, rasing close to $5,500 collectively.
"When I signed up as part of Team Adrenaline, I had no idea Concrete Hero brought awareness to pancreatic cancer. That's unheard of. You hear a lot about breast and prostate cancer. We need to funnel a bit of money to this cause so people at least have a fighting chance."
Part of the money raised goes to Pancreas Centre B.C., a research partnership between the B.C. Cancer Agency, Vancouver Coastal Health and the University of British Columbia. Established in 2012, the research team has been examining what causes this form of cancer and how to detect it.
Hruby admitted her family is on high alert for symptoms and is currently taking part in local studies that look for early warning signs. But despite the whirlwind of events last year, this mother-of-two continues to believe her dad had a specific purpose.
Shortly after Armstrong's funeral, her mom Betty was going through his bedside table and came across his landed immigrant papers.
"He arrived in North Vancouver Nov. 16, 1974. He died at Lions Gate Hospital exactly 39 years later. His calling was to bring our family over."
