Tickles Tabitha’s Cancer-Tankerous Mommy

Mommy’s wig was still attached to her head, but she didn’t look so good. The wig-hair stuck out like snarled rat-tails in all directions. There was a crooked horizontal line right where her smile should be. Worst of all, she was in no mood to play Tickles Tabitha. The award-winning Tickles Tabitha’s Cancer-tankerous Mommy was released October 2001, to a national audience on the Rosie O'Donnell Show. Its release helped pioneer resources for families coping with cancer. Diagnosed with breast cancer at age 34, this is the story Amelia Frahm wrote to help explain her cancer diagnosis to her own children. Told through her daughter, Tabitha’s eyes, the book uses candor and comic reality as it acknowledges some of the moody truths faced by families living with cancer. Mom is tired, scared, and hungry. Tabitha is worried; her little brother is making a mess, and Dad is watching the ball game instead of paying attention to Mommy. The book makes no promises about Mommy’s health, but the children are assured that no matter what happens Mommy will always love them.