Terminally Ill Cancer Patient In Singapore Prepares Own Funeral To Reduce Family Stress

He possesses courage and dignity, even in the face of death—and now he is preparing for his own funeral.

A Singapore resident that goes by the name of Mr Lim, is dying from cancer, wrote Mr Tan Chuan-Jin, Marine Parade MP and Speaker of the Parliament of Singapore in his Facebook post.

A terminally ill cancer patient in Singapore has reached out to Mr Tan Chuan-Jin. | Photo: Tan Chuan-Jin / Facebook

Lim had reached out to the MP previously through email to introduce himself and his condition.

The reason behind it? He wanted to prepare “for his next journey” and hence requested for use of certain facilities in the estate. It came as a surprise for the MP as he said that he and his team usually receives such emails from the affected’s family members instead. 

“I had to read it again to realise that Mr Lim was making the preparations himself.” 

About one to two months more to live

When the MP visited Lim at his home, he noticed that Lim was unable to speak and used an iPad to write out his answers. The disease was said to have spread to his liver and bones. 

Lim shared that he estimates that he only has one to two months more to live. 

He also explained that he is stopping all treatments as he does not want to put his body through further suffering. 

The family have been receiving great support from the HCA Hospice Care thus far, according to the MP.

Cancer Patient In Singapore: Did not want to burden wife and kids

Despite his plight, he remains cheerful and “carried himself with such dignity and politeness”, said the MP.

It was as though he is totally [at] peace and ready to go, said the MP. 

But not before Lim had made all the necessary preparations for his funeral. Lim said that he did not want his departure to  cause stress in his wife and children.

According to him, Lim’s wife also shared that they had been visiting hawker centres to try various food. The food however, had to be blended and fed to Lim through the tube in his belly due to his condition. 

The MP’s experience with Lim and his family was said to have moved the MP deeply. Having asked if Lim would mind if he shared his story to encourage those in similar situations, Lim gave off a “bright smile and two thumbs up”. 

He had also thanked Lim for being an inspiration as he shared some reflections at the end of his post.

“We all have to go at some point. I wonder if we all can have that same courage and dignity as Mr Lim to journey our last steps thus.”

You can view Mr Tan Chuan-Jin’s post below:

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