Rob Lowe shares vivid memories of his grandmother Mim's breast cancer battle
The actor, 61, known for his role in '9-1-1: Lone Star', shared a close bond with his grandmother during his childhood, and has said his grandmum's health fight became a pivotal experience that would shape his life and the way he approaches cancer awareness today.
He told People: 'My memory of it is like it happened yesterday because of this sort of uproar it caused in our family. In those days, the odds were not good. I 100 percent remember our family feeling lost, wishing that there was more that could be done.'
Rob affectionately refers to his grandmother as 'my beloved,' and recounts the profound impact her illness had on their family.
As Mim's condition worsened, doctors told her to 'get her affairs in order' in a grim diagnosis that devastated the family.
But just as it seemed there were no options left, Mim's fate took a dramatic turn when she was accepted into a clinical trial for breast cancer treatments.
Rob also explained how the clinical trial changed everything for his grandmother, saying: 'There were multiple times where she had run out of options and just at that moment there was a clinical trial (that) changed the course of her cancer journey.'
Mim's survival story became a beacon of hope for Rob and his family.
The actor said: 'She survived and thrived longer than anyone with her type of cancer in those days.' He added Mim's success in the trial not only defied the odds but also paved the way for treatments that would later become standard care.
Inspired by his grandmother's resilience, Rob has partnered with Eli Lilly and Company to promote awareness about the importance of clinical trials into cancer treatments.
Despite the transformative role these trials played in Mim's survival, only seven percent of cancer patients in the United States participate in them.
Rob hopes to change that, and added: 'My great grandmother, my grandmother Mim, and my mother all had breast cancer and they helped raise me.
'They raised me and now, in their memory, I can raise awareness about the importance of doing clinical trials.'
Rob stressed every cancer patient's journey is different, but said the key to finding the right treatment is taking the initiative to ask about options.
He said: 'You're only going to know that if you actually take the initiative and ask.'
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