ARLINGTON — When the Arlington Relay For Life returns to the John C. Larson Stadium from noon to midnight on Saturday, June 20, its teams will include a family with four generations of women who have survived cancer.

Elaine Lilgreen was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2000, while her daughter, Lori Miller, was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2004. Miller’s daughter, Olivia Erken, was diagnosed with a carcinoid tumor in her appendix in 1992, while Lilgreen’s great-granddaughter, Emily Lester, was diagnosed with a tumor in her lung in 2011, at the age of 12.

Except for Miller, all four women were cancer-free within a year, and Miller was clear the year after she was diagnosed.

“Cancer affects everyone, no matter what their age,” Lilgreen said. “Every other generation seems to get it especially bad in our family, though.”

Indeed, Miller required chemotherapy, while Lester lost almost an entire lung in surgery.

“She still struggles with it,” Lilgreen said. “If she gets so much as a cold, she has to go to Seattle Children’s Hospital.”

At one point, Miller’s chemo was so bad that she wanted to quit treatment.

“I just felt miserable,” Miller said. “Even today, I still haven’t gotten all my energy back. Chemo kills good cells, too.”

And yet, for all their hardships, all four women agreed that maintaining a positive attitude has proven invaluable on their respective roads to recovery.

“We’re always laughing,” Lilgreen said. “You notice little details more after cancer.”

Miller added: “It gave me a new perspective on life. I appreciate my family a lot more. Of course, my family has given me a lot of support.”

The family has been walking in the Arlington Relay For Life since it started in 2010.

“We used to do car shows each May to help raise funds for it, but we’re doing our car show at Relay this year,” Miller said. “The first few years, it was very easy to raise money, but it’s gotten tougher to get money in recent years.”

The family remains hopeful the American Cancer Society will find a cure.

“You survive by having something to believe in,” Lilgreen said.

“You don’t give up,” Miller said. “I’m doing this now because I don’t want my grandkids to ever know what it feels like to be told, ‘You have cancer.'”

This year’s Arlington Relay is a 12-hour event. There’s a $10 entry fee for non-registered participants. For details, visit relayforlife.org/arlingtonwa.