Tammy Faye: Coping With Cancer Through Faith & Courage

LOS ANGELES, Calif. (July 19, 2007) — In an interview that was both hard to watch and impossible to turn away from, Tammy Faye Messner provided a lesson in dignity. Messner, struggling with cancer at a frail 65 pounds, bravely put on those trademark lashes and mascara yesterday to tape an interview with Larry King.

“I talk to God every single day,” said Tammy, as she sat beside her husband. “And I say ‘God, my life is in your hands, and I trust you, with me.’”

The spiritual former televangelist displayed the optimism and courage that make her an inspiration to so many people.“I’m doing pretty good considering the circumstances,” she told Larry as the interview got underway.

Diagnosed with Cancer in 1996, Tammy Faye successfully fought off the effects of her disease for ten years. When she spoke with Larry two years ago, it seemed at the time like she may be out of the woods.“I wasn’t here last year because of chemotherapy treatment,” she said in 2005. “But this year, no chemo for nine months, so, thank the Lord.” But over the last few months, the 65 year-old fell to 60 pounds as the inoperable cancer took its toll, restricting her ability to swallow and keep food down.In a recent posting on her Web site, Tammy Faye announced that her weight had risen to 65 pounds, and that she was yearning to eat a big meal.“I crave hamburgers and french fries with LOTS of ketchup!,” she wrote. “When I can eat that again, it will be a day of victory.”But when Larry asked if she was at the point where she could eat those things, Tammy’s answer was sad, but hopeful.“I can’t eat it,” she said. “All I eat is chicken soup and rice pudding, but I’m looking forward to the day when I can bite into that hamburger and those fries.”Tammy told Larry that she’s in pain “all the time,” and that it’s focused in her back, stomach and lungs. She added that the Cancer has stayed in her lungs, and has not spread elsewhere.When asked if the doctors had given her an indication of how much time she had left, Tammy answered the question with no trace of defeat.“I asked them not to tell me,” she remarked. “I don’t want my faith level to go down.”And though Tammy struggles with breath when she speaks, it is her faith and positivity that are loudest heard.“I believe when I leave this earth, because I love the Lord, I’m going straight to heaven,” she said.Part two of the “Larry King Live” interview with Tammy Faye airs tonight on CNN at 9:00 PM (EST).

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