LETTERS

Thank you to Betsy Sharkey for her tribute to Patrick Swayze [“Dignity More Than a Role for Swayze,” Sept. 15].

As we watched his personal struggle unfold in a very public way, the decency and dignity she so eloquently characterized gave meaning to the terrifying yet unifying fact of cancer. His journey is shared by so many others, and his dignity is reflected in the efforts of doctors, nurses, research scientists, fundraisers, activists, healers, families and patients who deal with cancer every day.

My thanks to Patrick, his family and those who treated and loved him for maintaining a strong spirit. I believe that spirit lives on in those he inspires to stand up to cancer.

Sharon Lawrence

Los Angeles

The writer is chair of the Women in Film Foundation