Will someone explain to me how anyone with a conscience could fake having cancer, especially terminal cancer? I cannot wrap my brain around this, and I’m pretty sure if this keeps happening, I’m going to have a rage stroke. “Here lies Lara. This latest cancer hoax was too much.”
Canadian Ashley Anne Kirilow admitted “she faked cancer, ran a bogus charity and collected thousands of dollars from hundreds of people,” according to an August 6, 2010 article in The Toronto Star.
ABC7.com reported on November 5, 2014 how this woman was charged for “allegedly scamming dozens of Facebook friends with a fake cancer diagnosis.”
Jessica Vega faked having cancer in order to have her “dream wedding,” according to an April 11, 2012 CBSNews.com article.
A March 15, 2015 Buzzfeed piece reported that Kelly Johanneson was arrested after she allegedly “faked having [terminal breast] cancer and then stole thousands of dollars that individuals in her community donated to her.”
According to a September 26, 2012 NBC News article, Jami Lynn Toler faked having cancer to raise money for breast implants.
Lori Stilley claimed to have terminal bladder cancer, and according to a May 2013 Patch.com article, “She even engineered a wedding, financed by donations, by telling friends she wanted to marry her boyfriend before she died.” Ms. Stilley’s sister was the one who turned her in to the authorities.
The list seriously goes on and on. I’m not kidding — it really does. Also, I never understood those who faked a terminal diagnosis. What were they going to say when they didn’t, um, die? Were they going to pretend it never happened?
The most recent admitted cancer faker is Belle Gibson. An April 22, 2015 Guardian article reported that Ms. Gibson, “who built an online community and sold a recipe book off the back of claims she cured terminal brain cancer through diet and lifestyle alone, has admitted she never had cancer.”
Publications have quoted Ms. Gibson as saying, “I don’t want forgiveness. I just think [speaking out] was the responsible thing to do. Above anything, I would like people to say, ‘OK, she’s human.'”
Oh no. No. Hell nah. This is not a situation where you can go, “my bad,” and expect everything will be okay.
Most humans do not perpetuate a major hoax. Most humans don’t attempt to build a clean eating empire based on a lie. Most humans do not broadcast incredulous claims about reversing a terminal cancer diagnosis with diet alone.
We have no idea how many terminal men and women altered their treatment plans based on Ms. Gibson’s fabrications. The forthcoming Australian Women’s Weekly interview with Ms. Gibson indicated she had “millions of followers.” Those with terminal cancer didn’t need lies and false hope, which is what she gave them. I pray with every ounce of my icy cold heart that someone dying of cancer didn’t think to themselves before their death they didn’t try enough.
If you believe that baking soda cures cancer and then are diagnosed with cancer, then do you. Go nuts, and let me know how it works out for you. I believed in conventional treatments and using alternative methods to alleviate symptoms caused by treatment. Do I know what’s the best route to take if you have cancer? Of course not, because I know enough about cancer to understand I don’t know jack about cancer.
Please, don’t believe everything you read and if it seems too good to be true, odds are that it is. “Watch out for false prophets. They come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ferocious wolves.” For example, a November 2014 News.com.au item included a lengthy, glowing profile of Ms. Gibson, including this gem: “Fame holds no interest for Gibson, which is perhaps unsurprising; she has more important things to think about.” [Oh really?] She commented in the piece, “I believe that people are here to be teachers. And I know that I defied so many universal and life rules for a reason.”
Seriously.
I would never ever wish cancer upon anyone. Never. It’s a horrible disease, and nobody deserves this. However, in cases like Ms. Gibson, I wouldn’t feel at all sad if she was diagnosed with cancer years from now.
Be careful what you wish for. Karma is a bitch.
Get Up Swinging 
You are preaching to the choir sista girl!
Another deceptive practice almost equally as bad is milking, abusing, faking or taking advantage of a medical condition to get “intermittent FMLA” — meaning the person has demonstrated a chronic condition for which he/she may or may not have and now can call in sick to work whenever and however long the person wants on a dime’s notice, even leaving in the middle of the day.
Faking cancer and abusing systems is really what wrecks things for most of us “normal” folk.
I cannot read this post of yours again because I believe literally I will go up in flames at this level of dishonestly and abuse.
I couldn’t agree more. These fakers hurt those of us who are truly sick. It’s despicable.
I wish I could post meme macros for replies here, because I would TOTALLY post the one that said “apply cold water to that BURN”. You GO, girl. *waves pompomps*
I wish they would allow us to post memes! It’d make the comments section a lot more entertaining, haha.
I was taken in by one such faker two years ago. I was completely fooled, shared her posts and talked about her with people. You can still see my comments on her site.
Very angry.
I am so sorry to hear that this happened to you. She robbed you of precious time and energy that could have been directed to someone genuine and truthful. Even when someone fakes cancer just for the attention and not any monetary gain, it’s still just as awful. These fraudsters make those who are truly sick become more guarded or plant seeds, or make people less inclined to donate to someone’s crowdfunding campaign because they might think, “Hmm, is this person for real?”