Susan actually has colon cancer in real life, she was diagnosed in 2007 and has been struggling with it ever since. Currently, she is not terminal in the sense "you only have 6 months to live" but keep in mind ALL cancer is terminal, some cancer survivors just happen to live longer then others. Susan is 72 years old, her body is no longer able to fight off infections as it was say 40-50 years ago, at this point in her life she just wants to be with her family and enjoy not having to work everyday, she just wants to retire.