A mother and daughter have touched millions of hearts on TikTok after one immediately made the trip to see the other who just received a cancer diagnosis.
Maria Karpinska, 88, traveled over six hours to see her daughter, Elizabeth Pawlak, 64, who had recently learned she had stomach cancer.
The moment when Karpinska walked through the hospital room door was captured on video by her granddaughter, Estera Pawlak (daughter of Elizabeth Pawlak).
“Motherhood is so powerful, Estera Pawlak captioned the footage, which was viewed over 4.8 million views times on TikTok.
Elizabeth Pawlak was first diagnosed in early January, but the news was initially kept from Karpinska so she wouldn’t worry, Estera Pawlak told Fox News Digital.
She needed surgery to remove the cancer, but her blood levels were too low, and as a Jehovah’s Witness, she was unable to accept a blood transfusion, Estera Pawlak said of her mother.
For over 10 weeks Elizabeth Pawlak, she was moving to different hospitals hoping to find a doctor who would take on her case and develop a proper course of treatment. Soon after, her diagnosis was taking a turn for the
worse, and were told she only had “days to live.”
Due to her health status, on April 10, Estera Pawlak and her siblings, Luke and Emily, who all live in Scotland, made their way to Poland to see their mother.
Estera Pawlak sent a photo of her mother and siblings to her aunt, who had taken over the care of Karpinska before Elizabeth Pawlak’s initial diagnosis.
“My auntie burst out crying in front of my grandma,” Estera Pawlak shared.
While most of the family knew about Elizabeth Pawlak’s diagnosis, her own mother, Karpinska, was still in the dark.
“As soon as she found out, she was like, ‘I need to go and see her,’” Estera Pawlak shared of what her grandmother, Karpinska, said.
Karpinska traveled over six hours with the intention of surprising Elizabeth Pawlak at the hospital.
“My mom was still quite drowsy, but she hugged [my grandmother] and said, ‘I was not expecting you,’” Estera Pawlak recalled.
“Motherhood is seriously the most beautiful and pure thing in the world,” one user commented.
“So sweet. Our babies will always be our babies,” another added.
“That is sooo precious, we always need our mommy no matter how old we are,” another shared.
“I know, as a mom now, I would be there for my baby no matter what age,” Estera Pawlak told Fox News Digital.
“It’s just powerful that [my grandmother has] six children, and she wants to be there for them all.”
When Elizabeth Pawlak lost her first child at 20-years-old, Karpinska helped her get through the loss. Elizabeth then relocated to Poland from Scotland in order to care for Karpinska as she aged.
“A mom is always a mom,” Estera Pawlak shared.
@esterapawlak motherhood is so powerful 🥹🫶🏼♥️👵🏼🌷🤍 #fyp #motherhood #cancerfighter #motherhoodunplugged #mumpov ♬ What a Wonderful World – Hana
She has since been discharged from the hospital after seeing improvement in her blood levels and is in communication with an oncologist to schedule surgery.
Estera Pawlak feels as though she has won the “lottery” now that there is improvement in her mother’s cancer journey.
Read the full story here.
Scroll down to leave a comment and share your thoughts.
