"The truth is that Ian refuses to live for himself. He chooses only to live for others until the moment he takes his very last breath," the gut-wrenching post read.
In 2019, Ian was diagnosed with osteosarcoma—a type of bone cancer. He underwent surgery, followed by months of chemo, and was eventually in remission.
Unfortunately, in November 2021, the family learned that not only did the cancer return, but this time, it had spread to his whole body.
On August 17, 2022, in a now-deleted post shared by a man named Benjamin Elliot, he wrote how "he and his family would learn that there was nothing else they could do." Though the original post has been deleted, the image and the contents of the post have been shared and reshared multiple times.
"Upon finding out that the cancer would kill him, Ian began crying. He wasn't scared of dying; in fact, he was okay with it. Ian was sad. Ian cried because, as he said in his own words, 'I only want to do one good thing in the world before I leave you all,'" the post shared.
When Ian found out he didn't have a lot of time to live, he told his younger brother Peter about it. The photo that was shared with the message shows Ian comforting his younger brother who was sobbing uncontrollably upon hearing the news.
The picture that is worth more than a thousand words: Gut-wrenching image shows 15-year-old boy with terminal cancer comforting sobbing younger brother after telling him that he is going to diehttps://t.co/bYYS0SNA7z
— roxanne watson (@roxannewatson74) August 21, 2022
"It was Ian who made the choice to tell his friends and his little brother that his cancer would inevitably kill him. I think this picture truly shines the light on the 'good' that Ian wanted and believed he needed to share," it continued.
Even though the news was hard to digest, Ian consoled his friends and family. "Peter had just learned the devastating news that his days with his older brother were numbered. Holding him as tight as ever and kissing him on the forehead, Ian held on tightly and apologized to his brother for not being able to beat the cancer."
The 15-year-old admitted to being sad that his life was going to end, but it is not death that he is sad about.
"From here on out, while he says he is sad, he also admits he's okay with dying, because while 'dying' is the technical term, he refuses to sit around dying and instead chooses to be busy living until his death becomes reality. The truth is that Ian refuses to live for himself. He chooses only to live for others until the moment he takes his very last breath," the gut-wrenching post concluded.
It really does take a lot of courage to be able to embrace something this devastating and even though Ian is a young boy, the kind of courage he's shown is beyond his age.
References:
https://www.facebook.com/search/top/?q=Benjamin%20Elliot%20cancer
Representative Cover Image Source: Getty Images | FatCamera
