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LeftInTX

(34,438 posts)
Fri Apr 10, 2026, 12:50 AM 16 hrs ago

Did you know that Fmr GOP Sen Ben Sasse has pancreatic cancer? He has cancer everywhere....

Graphic warning

How Ben Sasse Is Living Now That He Is Dying

On December 23, 2025, Sasse announced that he had been diagnosed with terminal "stage-four pancreatic cancer".[125][126] In April 2026, during an interview with The New York Times, Sasse revealed that his cancer had spread to his liver, lymph nodes, lung and vascular system.[127] He also revealed that due to the oral cancer treatment he was receiving, he had visible facial scarring due to the treatment causing lack of skin growth and excessive bleeding.[127]

https://www.nytimes.com/2026/04/09/opinion/ben-sasse-death-pancreatic-cancer.html

20 replies = new reply since forum marked as read
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Did you know that Fmr GOP Sen Ben Sasse has pancreatic cancer? He has cancer everywhere.... (Original Post) LeftInTX 16 hrs ago OP
Really sad situation, especially considering his age fujiyamasan 16 hrs ago #1
Cancer sucks. murielm99 16 hrs ago #2
I had no idea that he had cancer. This just popped up today. LeftInTX 16 hrs ago #3
He does not have long. murielm99 8 hrs ago #20
How terrible. Peace and strength to him and his family. LoisB 15 hrs ago #4
I am very sorry to read of this. He is a good man, showed his decency and would not support this nonsense. mahina 15 hrs ago #5
Sad. H2O Man 15 hrs ago #6
This must be the one Trump and Mike Johnson Haggard Celine 15 hrs ago #7
They were referring to rep Neal Dunn of Florida fujiyamasan 15 hrs ago #9
Horrible situation for him. And knowing every day will be worse than the previous one. OAITW r.2.0 15 hrs ago #8
"The former senator wants to heal the America he's leaving behind." sheshe2 14 hrs ago #10
While he's an asshole for a number of his beliefs IMO I still offer him and his family my honest sympathies. cstanleytech 14 hrs ago #11
He's facing it in his own way. My dad went through that, too. DFW 14 hrs ago #12
Sasse is 54. I didn't know he had cancer, much less terminal cancer. It was kind of a shock. LeftInTX 13 hrs ago #13
My dad died of cancer, but didn't tell anyone it was terminal. LeftInTX 12 hrs ago #15
Life is one twisted lottery n/t BaronChocula 13 hrs ago #14
I feel horrible for him... no one deserves this but Sasse was among those who was hlthe2b 12 hrs ago #16
This breaks my heart Grim Chieftain 11 hrs ago #17
Yeah, I think I posted it in LBN about a month or two ago Polybius 11 hrs ago #18
Yikes... 2naSalit 10 hrs ago #19

fujiyamasan

(1,783 posts)
1. Really sad situation, especially considering his age
Fri Apr 10, 2026, 12:59 AM
16 hrs ago

Shocked to see his face in the video. Obviously not in agreement with a lot of his policy positions, but to his credit he was one of only six to vote in favor of impeachment after January 6 and has been critical of Trump.

murielm99

(32,999 posts)
20. He does not have long.
Fri Apr 10, 2026, 08:28 AM
8 hrs ago

I hope tsf is too busy with his other evils to say bad things about this man when his time is up. It would be just like him.

mahina

(20,662 posts)
5. I am very sorry to read of this. He is a good man, showed his decency and would not support this nonsense.
Fri Apr 10, 2026, 01:21 AM
15 hrs ago

I swear I wonder if the poisoners poisoned him. He could have stayed and resisted but we never know what is behind decisions of others. He must have known. Wishing him as much comfort and as little pain as possible.

Rough cards.

Haggard Celine

(17,840 posts)
7. This must be the one Trump and Mike Johnson
Fri Apr 10, 2026, 01:24 AM
15 hrs ago

were talking about the other day. Trump said something about the Senator having a month to live, I think, but the Senator hadn't divulged that information to the public. It was another shitty, thoughtless thing for Trump to do.

OAITW r.2.0

(32,242 posts)
8. Horrible situation for him. And knowing every day will be worse than the previous one.
Fri Apr 10, 2026, 01:32 AM
15 hrs ago

Will be interesting to see how he may change his political/social perspective, given his terminal illness.

sheshe2

(97,719 posts)
10. "The former senator wants to heal the America he's leaving behind."
Fri Apr 10, 2026, 02:14 AM
14 hrs ago

I am sorry to hear this. His youngest, a boy, is only 14 years old.

I don't wish this on anyone.

cstanleytech

(28,495 posts)
11. While he's an asshole for a number of his beliefs IMO I still offer him and his family my honest sympathies.
Fri Apr 10, 2026, 02:46 AM
14 hrs ago

DFW

(60,256 posts)
12. He's facing it in his own way. My dad went through that, too.
Fri Apr 10, 2026, 03:02 AM
14 hrs ago

I could have done without all the religious parts, not because I don’t believe any of it, but rather because I thought it distracted from the best of the rest of his message.

My dad passed way before there were smart phones or podcasts. But as a respected journalist, and one who deliberately chose NOT to color his writing with a religious or ideological agenda, I found his farewell column to be my own inspiration to keep on. It appeared in his paper ten days before he died. I still go back and read it on occasion. I have posted it on DU on occasion. He was diagnosed in January of 2000. He died in November of that year, and did not have the advantage of a quarter century of advances in cancer treatment, nor the privileges a Senator (ex- not withstanding).

My dad passed at a very young age 78. My mom complained that his idea of retirement was going into Washington four days a week instead of five. It sounds like Sasse won’t even see 58. But whether I agree with them or not, I always read through articles like this with huge interest, even when presented by a pompous right-winger like Douthat. This is in no small part because my dad’s age of 78 when he died looked far off at the time. Now that I’m 74, it doesn’t seem so far away any more.

LeftInTX

(34,438 posts)
13. Sasse is 54. I didn't know he had cancer, much less terminal cancer. It was kind of a shock.
Fri Apr 10, 2026, 03:46 AM
13 hrs ago

It came out of the blue for me today.

LeftInTX

(34,438 posts)
15. My dad died of cancer, but didn't tell anyone it was terminal.
Fri Apr 10, 2026, 04:11 AM
12 hrs ago

Maybe he didn't know himself...Who knows? One day he didn't show up for work, he had collapsed and died two days later. He was 87.

He had prostate cancer for quite awhile and we knew it had gone to his hip bone about a year or two before he died. He had updated all of his wills etc.

hlthe2b

(114,070 posts)
16. I feel horrible for him... no one deserves this but Sasse was among those who was
Fri Apr 10, 2026, 04:42 AM
12 hrs ago

at least "rational" comparatively in Congress and was quite young when he left.

At this stage, I am wishing he lived in a state that allowed for a peaceful and more pain-free end to his suffering (when the time comes). Until then, may he continue to find purpose and peace in his efforts.



On EDIT: I read the article and am very impressed with his ability to move through this horrific experience with such humor (however dark) and seeming positivity. I wish him the proverbial miracle that he deserves and that he can continue to find positive purpose in life despite the pain and trauma he has been dealt. But, yes, when that time comes, I hope he can be as pain-free as possible and possibly in a state that allows an end to the worst suffering.

Grim Chieftain

(1,811 posts)
17. This breaks my heart
Fri Apr 10, 2026, 05:20 AM
11 hrs ago

He's smiling during the interview - how does that happen? Wow. May his remaining days be filled with peace and comfort surrounded by those he loves.

May the angels light your way, Senator Sasse

Polybius

(21,930 posts)
18. Yeah, I think I posted it in LBN about a month or two ago
Fri Apr 10, 2026, 05:25 AM
11 hrs ago

It's so sad, he's so young. He was one of the better Republicans too. My former coworker had a huge crush on him when he was in the Senate.

2naSalit

(103,078 posts)
19. Yikes...
Fri Apr 10, 2026, 06:33 AM
10 hrs ago

My dad died of full on cancer of everything at 60. Started with cancer of his tongue and larynx and it was nasty but it took 10 years to kill him. He was Cared for by the VA.

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