Sorry to hear this news, Robin. My thoughts are definitely with you and your mom. Best wishes to her!
A similar thing happened to my grandfather back in the 80s. In his case, he was averse to going to the doctor. Finally couldn\'t live with some severe pain he was having and went to a doctor. Found out he had cancer and it had spread to his bones. Really a shame because the guy was in his 70s and was athletic enough that he would jog in the Oakland Hills.