Guilt and grief - found out my older brother, who is only 45, has stage 4 brain cancer. My family were cut out of his life and now we won't get to say goodbye

I’m not really sure what I’m asking for I think I just need to write everything down to try and process what’s happened. Four days ago I found out through screenshots from social media that my older brother who is only 45 has stage 4 brain cancer and has lost most of his mobility, sight and speech. Our relationship has been quite difficult. My parents my younger brother and I were excluded from his wedding in 2019. This led to a big argument between my brothers and ended up in none of us speaking. My older brother and I did meet up to talk things through however maintaining the relationship became very difficult. His wife did not approve and slowly my brother became isolated not only from us but from his close friends too. When we found out about his illness my parents reached out to his wife and were sent a text saying it was their wish to not have any of us know about this and not to contact them again. I suppose I’m struggling with accepting I won’t ever see him again, I can’t have the conversations I want to have with him, support him and most importantly just tell him that I love him and I’m sorry. We won’t be able to attend the funeral and will only find out when he passes if his wife writes another post on social media and one of his friends tells us. I feel like I’m in limbo grieving and don’t know how to help my parents who are absolutely devastated. I have never seen my dad breakdown like this. I also feel an overwhelming sense of guilt at feeling the way I do because I blame myself for not being there when he needs me. I think in time my mum and dad will need to speak to somebody who can help them process all of their feelings. All I’m trying to do is remind myself of who my brother was, the kind caring person who would help anyone in need.

  • Hi Freckles, and welcome to the Cancer Chat community.

    I'm so sorry to hear about your older brother and that you and your family no longer have any communication with him.

    This must be such a difficult and heart-breaking time for you all, but our members are here for you Freckles and hopefully some of them will be along soon to offer their support and advice.

    I do hope getting your thoughts and feelings down is helping you process everything that is going on. That is exactly what the forum is here for, so do keep posting if you find it helpful but if you would prefer to talk things through with one of our cancer nurses, they're available on 0808 800 4040, Monday - Friday between 9a.m - 5p.m.

    Be kind to yourself Freckles and remember that with us by your side, you and your family are not alone as you go through this very challenging ordeal.

    Kind regards,

    Steph, Cancer Chat Moderator