Justin Anderson's life ended Wednesday afternoon the way he'd been living it for the past year: quietly, without complaint and while thinking of everyone but himself.
"He was such a strong kid, the whole year just fighting," said his mother, Lori Anderson. "He never cried once. He was the most strong, inspirational person I ever met. I never have anything to complain about because of what he went through."
THE 17-YEAR-OLD Adna High School senior had been undergoing treatment for his exocrine carcinoma, a rare form of stomach cancer, since his diagnosis in September 2005. Originally, doctors expected his treatments to be completed by this spring. In March, his tumors began getting larger. In May, he underwent a surgery where part of his liver, a large section of his colon and 22 lymph nodes were removed.
A CAT scan in July showed more tumors in his liver and abdomen. His chemotherapy was again changed, but another CAT scan in September showed the tumors were getting larger. A stem cell transplant aimed at curing the immune deficiency with which he had lived since birth had been indefinitely postponed.
Lori Anderson said more recently, Justin's condition had continued worsening. He developed fluid in his abdomen and his organs began shutting down. Nov. 10, his family took him to Madigan Army Hospital on Fort Lewis, where Justin was undergoing treatment, and Tuesday, the family received the news that he was not going to pull through.
"We told him he wasn't going to make it, and he said he knew, and we all got to say our goodbyes," Lori Anderson said. "I told him I loved him a million times; I think he kind of got tired of it. And I kissed him a million times. I'm so glad we got that opportunity."
IN THE COURSE of their goodbyes, one of Justin's last acts was to give his car to his younger brother, Joey. Justin turned 16 during his cancer treatments and managed to get his driver's license, even though he was still sick from chemotherapy. When his trip to Hawaii through the Make A Wish Foundation fell through because of his poor health, Justin opted to have a new sound system and wheels put on the cherry-red 1998 Honda Civic instead. They were installed a week ago. Justin never got to see them.
Justin's father, Doug, was in his son's hospital room when Justin died. Lori told Justin beforehand she could not be there to watch him die, and he told her he understood. The last thing he said was "I love you," to his father, before doctors gave him a powerful mixture of medicines to make him more comfortable.
"I feel at peace. I know he's in heaven and is having a good time," Lori Anderson said. "We're going to remember him every day for the rest of our lives. I told him, 'I'm going to think of you every second of every day for the rest of my life.' Every holiday, every birthday. I will never forget him."
RECENTLY, Justin had returned to classes at Adna High School after spending the entirety of his junior year doing home study. He was to have been the fifth generation of his family to graduate from Adna High School. Because of his mounting illness, Justin hadn't been to classes in about three or four weeks, but he went many times even when he may have been too sick to go.
"He was the kind that would work hard, especially with the illness he had to deal with," said Ed Rothlin, superintendent of the Adna School District. "He wanted to succeed in school, whereas most people would have said, 'I have this illness I need to deal with and take care of myself instead.'"
THURSDAY EVENING, the Andersons returned home to find Adna High School students had placed flowers next to Justin's car at their home. Rothlin said the school is working with the family to decide how best to memorialize Justin among his classmates. He said he suspects a service will eventually be held at the school, but said he didn't know when it would be.
"It's a very tight-knit community. Justin is part of the Adna family, and the staff and students are really going to miss him," Rothlin said.
Besides his parents, Lori and Doug, Justin leaves behind siblings Joey, Krysta and Austin, as well as a large extended family in Adna. Family and community members rallied around the family in the past year. A couple of benefits were held to assist the family with medical expenses.
"We appreciate everybody's love and support, especially our family because the support is what got us through," Lori Anderson said. "We appreciate everything that everyone has done."
Carrina Stanton is a feature reporter for The Chronicle. She may be reached at 807-8241, or by e-mail at cstanton@chronline.com.
