Since then he has survived cancer and a heart attack.
The lyrics are inspired by Thomas as an adolescent having to live with a mother fighting to survive cancer.
He had survived cancer in his other lung 17 years earlier and been cancer-free since.
A patient survives cancer but ends up with something just as deadly.
In fact, her husband was the first in the family to survive cancer, she said.
"We all know what he's done - survived cancer, the list just goes on - no way can he ever be replaced."
And two young girls discuss how playing the piano helped them survive cancer.
People who survive cancer appear to get worse care than the general population when it comes to other diseases, a study released last week concluded.
Her two assistants also have children who survived cancer.
But Armstrong's favorite club has a much larger constituency - the 9 million people who have survived cancer.
