Elizabeth Edwards Posts Apparent Goodbye Message

story by CBS News
photos by Center for American Progress (left) and Brian Doben(below)

Elizabeth Edwards, the estranged wife of former Democratic presidential candidate John Edwards, has been advised by doctors that "further treatment of her cancer would be unproductive," according to a statement from the Edwards family.

A source close to the family tells CBS News, "She is dying." The source said Edwards would likely die within weeks and possibly days.

Edwards, 61, posted to her personal Facebook page a message to friends reading in part, "The days of our lives, for all of us, are numbered. We know that."

CBS News has confirmed that the Edwards family, including husband John,are now gathered with Elizabeth Edwards at the family home in Chapel Hill, North Carolina.

"You all know that I have been sustained throughout my life by three saving graces - my family, my friends, and a faith in the power of resilience and hope," Edwards wrote in the Facebook post. "These graces have carried me through difficult times and they have brought more joy to the good times than I ever could have imagined."

"...there are certainly times when we aren't able to muster as much strength and patience as we would like," she added. "It's called being human. But I have found that in the simple act of living with hope, and in the daily effort to have a positive impact in the world, the days I do have are made all the more meaningful and precious. And for that I am grateful. It isn't possible to put into words the love and gratitude I feel to everyone who has and continues to support and inspire me every day. To you I simply say: you know."

Edwards was diagnosed with breast cancer in November of 2004, shortly before the presidential election in which her husband was the Democratic vice presidential nominee. In March 2007, at the start of John Edwards' presidential campaign, she revealed that the condition had returned and spread to her bones, and that she had been diagnosed as terminal.

The couple later became separated following revelations that John Edwards had engaged in an affair with a campaign videographer. Edwards wrote about her cancer and her relationship with her husband in multiple memoirs, including last year's "Resilience."

Edwards was hospitalized last week with doctors saying the cancer had metastasized to her liver, according to People.com.
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