Facing A Terminal Illness: Care For Your Heirs

Patrick Swayze, star of the Dirty Dancing, is suffering from pancreatic cancer and may have less than two months to live.

Published reports of the actor's illness surfaced March 5 and Swayze's publicist confirmed the cancer diagnosis, which was made last month, to The New York Post (NWS). The representative also released a statement refuting The National Enquirer's report that Swayze has just five weeks to live. "Patrick has a very limited amount of the disease and he appears to be responding well to treatment thus far," the statement said. "All of the reports stating the timeframe of his prognosis and his physical side effects are absolutely untrue."

Swayze should draw strength from Carnegie Mellon Professor Randy Pausch, who delivered the much heralded "Last Public Lecture" entitled, "Really Achieving Your Childhood Dreams" at CMU late last September. Pausch, also diagnosed with terminal pancreatic cancer, became a media sensation for this "last" lecture where he spoke to students about how to fully realize their lives and livelihoods. Pausch impressed students and YouTube watchers alike with his gentle, humorous insight on death, dying and living.

But anyone battling serious illness should take care to talk to their heirs about estate planning. When time is precious, few people want to spend their days involved in financial paperwork, but taking care of a few essentials can get your affairs into shape, and make life easier for your loved ones. First and foremost, write a living will designating your medical wishes in the event you are unable to articulate them yourself. “Make sure authority has been given,” says Kendall Maddox, an estate attorney in Birmingham, Ala. A living will can allow someone to turn off life support if that is your wish, thus avoiding the tragic situation that happened with Teri Schiavo. Dictate your future course of treatment so that your wishes are respected and your family does not have to make gut-wrenching decisions on your behalf.