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How did the doctors miss this especially when they should be checking if the tumor comes back on the pancreas?


They didn't miss anything. The fact he lived that long was amazing. Both my grandfather and great-aunt (his sister) died of pancreatic cancer and were dead within months after the diagnosis.

Once the tumor came back, there was probably nothing they could do for him. Pancreatic cancer has extremely low survival rates, even if detected early.

Well I'm guessing it is the same cancer as last time and steve said it was a special type that could be treated which is why he didn't die 6 years ago.
They treated it 6 years ago. It came back in a more aggressive form, nothing could be done.

With cancer, no treatment is a guarantee that it won't ever come back.
 
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Now that that's out of the way we can remember the man rather than what he wanted to keep to himself and his family.
 
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He didn't have the usual type of pancreatic cancer, it would've killed him years ago. He had a much rarer, less aggressive form.

Anyways, lol at all these people discussing the details are an extremely private man based on his life, death, and subsequent funeral. Lots of respect here for a man people "loved" so much.
 
Cancer is awful. I lost my Grandfather last year and it ravages the body often making other organs incapacitated. I just hope he didn't suffer too much pain!
 
They didn't miss anything. The fact he lived that long was amazing. Both my grandfather and great-aunt (his sister) died of pancreatic cancer and were dead within months after the diagnosis.

Once the tumor came back, there was probably nothing they could do for him. Pancreatic cancer has extremely low survival rates, even if detected early.


They treated it 6 years ago. It came back in a more aggressive form, nothing could be done.

With cancer, no treatment is a guarantee that it won't ever come back.

Ok, I didn't realize it came back worse.
 
As mentioned above, the respiratory arrest was likely related to morphine for pain relief at the end-stage.

It ain't much to hang on to, but if that's so, the end was peaceful for him, thank goodness.

RIP, and may your friends and family find peace in time.
 
Given Steve's personal beliefs, his deteriorating condition and his quick burial coupled with the respiratory arrest listed on the death certificate, I'd venture a guess that he might of opted for assisted suicide suicide at the end.

Especially when you look at what another person mentioned he had enjoyed when he died and that he was surrounded by loved ones.

Only speculation though.
 
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gri said:
Yes. This. Maybe with a focus on pancreatic cancer research .

Good idea - I can send a grant immediately, written on a Mac, too!

Perhaps Steve should have done some good towards cancer research with his billions. Maybe his family will donate a few billon towards pancreatic cancer research.
 
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Perhaps Steve should have done some good towards cancer research with his billions. Maybe his family will donate a few billon towards pancreatic cancer research.

Although giving money for additional research could never hurt, it isn't as though cancer research isn't being funded. I wouldn't even begin to say that had he donated more, a "cure" for cancer might have been found.

At any rate, RIP Steve. I think you deserve it.
 
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It's not important now but I don't think his doctors missed anything. The fact that he didn't die back in 2005/2006 means he most likely had that rare pancreatic cancer which was resectable.

I wonder if the immunosuppression for his liver transplant caused some residual cancer cells to activate. In reality, all it would take is a single cancer cell to be floating around somewhere in his system when the immunosuppression started.

I sincerely doubt he was uncomfortable at the end. Anytime we have palliative patients in my ICU, they have a good cocktail of meds to keep them comfy as they pass.
 
i cried this morning reading on zite some more news about steve. its hard to believe the death of someone i don't personally know causing me so much sadness. this bit of news is really depressing, to think he suffered as he must have.
 
This breaks my heart even more to hear this. Respiratory arrest does not sound pleasant at all and his final breaths were, from what I read, peaceful so we can only hope that he wasn't in too much pain or discomfort. I just cannot imagine dying from not being able to breathe. :(

Such a great loss that a man's body was not in the same league as his mind. RIP Steve. Will always miss you! :apple:
 
I've been an end of life caregiver since 1973.

With cancer, the body fades away, gets very thin and weak. A person simply slows down and stops. Yes morphine is often used but sometimes a patient will ask to not have any medications in order to be as awake as possible to experience the transition. A person naturally stops breathing when they pass.

Every passing out of the physical body is unique. Speculation is pointless. To know exactly how Steve exited, one would have had to have been right there.

Suffice it to say that the cancer gradually consumed his physical body. His fierce fiery blazing intelligence, passionate heart, focused interests and determination most definitely went with his soul to forge new heights of accomplishment in his next journey.

Wherever Steve is now, it is a certainty that place will not remain the same!

He is free of all pain now, whole and complete, full of youth and vigor, armed with his Life Review and total understanding and memory of all that has happened. Steve is now more powerful than ever, having successfully gone through an amazing life and emerged from years of suffering full of grace.

Mourning for those left behind; rejoicing for those to whom he has just been born!
 
Cancer is awful. I lost my Grandfather last year and it ravages the body often making other organs incapacitated. I just hope he didn't suffer too much pain!

I never knew my grandad because he died of cancer when he was 46. He was very into technology, like me. Its such a shame he never got to see the technology age :(
 
I remember the last few keynotes, he sounded very low and his voice was changed from previous keynotes. I wonder if that is related to the respiratory issues as the COD.

I also remember when he came out for the last keynote in June and how flattered he was at the ovation he received. I wonder if he knew then that his time left would be short

Not too much room on a death certificate. His accomplishments have been well documented here and elsewhere.

I"m assuming that the respiratory issues might be related to the immunosuppessant medications necessary for transplant recipients.

It's not necessarily "respiratory issues" so much as he was just getting so weak that even breathing was a chore. So, the immediate cause of death was respiratory arrest, but that was caused by the pancreatic tumor and all the other health issues he was dealing with.

Still... very sad. I sincerely hope he was asleep when it happened, as respiratory arrest is not pleasant.

This breaks my heart even more to hear this. Respiratory arrest does not sound pleasant at all and his final breaths were, from what I read, peaceful so we can only hope that he wasn't in too much pain or discomfort. I just cannot imagine dying from not being able to breathe. :(

Such a great loss that a man's body was not in the same league as his mind. RIP Steve. Will always miss you! :apple:

I do not know if suffered so much at the end if they had him under pain management medication. The term "respiratory arrest" essentially means that he stopped breathing. Essentially, most people who die in their sleep will die from "respiratory arrest". Usually there is another cause that triggers that. In this case it was a cancerous pancreatic tumor which eventually caused his body to shut down. I just hope they had him under proper pain management at the end -- I would imagine that is what they would have done.

Nobody is perfect, but Steve Jobs seemed like a fairly decent guy who certainly contributed to the human race in a big way. His family and Apple will be the legacy he leaves behind. From the things Steve Jobs said in life he would probably be a little anxious for all of us to move on and get back to contributing to world in whatever way we are best at. I don't think Steve was nostalgic, he always seemed to be looking forward. I think that celebration of his life that Apple will be doing on the 19th for their employees will help bring that closure to the company and maybe help the world a bit too.

Prayers still going out to his close friends and family.
 
Could we give Steve Jobs the respect he deserves by giving him and his family some semblance of privacy? We all know he died of cancer. Do we really need to know how the medical examiner termed his death?

How the hell is posting on a message board infringing on his family's privacy or disrespecting him? Or reading the medical examination? It's public record. No, you don't NEED to know, but it may satiate some people's curiosity and conclude the matter. I'm pretty sure his family couldn't give a **** that the report is read, not like the 2 lines contain anything private.

Relax. Macrumors isn't calling his wife insisting on details of his death. It is posting public record of his death, as thousands of other sites will, and the same thing done after anyone remotely famous dies. Some of you have strange notions of 'privacy'.

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If Steve had another 10 years left on this earth how do you think he would have impacted the world? What would he have thought of next?

Todd

I think that's the thought that is most depressing. He was at the top of his game. 'Just getting started' as many commentators have stated. We'll never know.
 
I never knew my grandad because he died of cancer when he was 46. He was very into technology, like me. Its such a shame he never got to see the technology age :(

It's all perspective. Sad that he was lost at 46 though. But imagine what we're all missing 200 years from now!
 
cancer in any form is a horrid beast. if left untreated it will kill you.

My father died when i was 4 due to cancer, My mother had battled it 2 times now but is free of it currently (never know when it will come back).

Quite a few of my family has had it or died from it, many of them had a curable or treatable form with early detection but wasn't. My mothers ex-boyfriend just recently passed due to cancer, He died from pneumonia which was caused by the treatments he was receiving for his cancer.

A lot of the times its the treatments that end up killing you, either by lowering your immune system and you catch something or having a bad reaction to the treatment. but if you don't try by getting treatment you wont have any chance of beating it, it will just spread like wildfire, its a catch 22.
 
This is still so sad to read. It also makes me reflect on how mortal we all are and serves as proof that there's isn't enough money and/or power in the world to stop us from meeting our fates.

It's amazing, however, that the legacy he leaves behind will be remembered for a very, very long time.

:(
 
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