Diane Pierce was the mother of Maggie Pierce. She ultimately died of inflammatory breast cancer.
History[]
Early Life[]
She was born in a two-room shack with an outhouse. ("Be Still, My Soul")
She and her husband adopted Maggie and raised her. The marriage fell apart while they pretended everything was fine to protect Maggie. Diane started an affair of 11 years with the man who serviced their car.
Diane was very pleased with how easy Maggie was. She never talked back, she had good grades, and her room was always clean. She was concerned when Maggie left Boston for Seattle and called her a lot, but she was happy Maggie did so after learning about the people she met. About a year after Maggie had left the city, Diane and Bill got a divorce, after which Diane moved to Hawaii to make soaps.
Discovering Her Disease[]
When Diane noticed a rash, she went to a local doctor and started treatment, but it didn't look good. As she had always taught her daughter to find the smartest person in the room or otherwise another room, she found Jackson Avery was the best and also a friend of Maggie's. She scheduled an appointment with him. However, realizing that there was a real chance of her dying soon, she started skydiving and traveling the world. ("What's Inside")
Consult with Jackson[]
When the time for the appointment came, Diane went to Seattle, a surprise to her daughter. She quickly bonded with all Maggie's colleagues, who all liked her. Jackson examined her rash and took a biopsy, which showed inflammatory breast cancer. She asked him to help her tell Maggie and he said he would and also offered to refer her to local specialists and fly to Hawaii to operate on her.
Diane then went to Meredith's house where she folded laundry, made lasagna, and put the kids to bed. When Maggie came home and confronted her mom about her behavior, Diane decided not to tell her and instead just said she'd leave and when Maggie was ready to have her in her life, she could let Diane know. ("None of Your Business")
Mastectomy[]
Diane came back to Seattle to have her mastectomy. She'd been going to chemotherapy and was getting a good response, but shocked Jackson by telling him she still hadn't told Maggie about the cancer. She wanted to have the surgery and then tell Maggie, but Jackson said he wouldn't go forward with the surgery until she'd told Maggie. After Maggie came in and tried to be supportive, Diane told Maggie about the breast cancer. The next day, she went in for her surgery, but during surgery, the doctors found something unexpected. ("Till I Hear It From You")
Clinical Trial and Death[]
After her mastectomy, Diane got the news that her cancer had spread. She had surgery to remove more cancer from her body and continued to have radiation and chemotherapy. When she complained of stomach pain, Meredith ordered a new CT, which showed a met near her liver, which was causing the pain. When Meredith advised against removing it, Maggie pressured Diane to fire her. Maggie then found a clinical trial with promising early results that she could get into if they could lower her LFTs. Bailey figured out a way to place a stent to lower Diane's LFTs and get her into the trial. The procedure worked, but Bailey, Richard, and Jackson didn't think the trial was a good idea. Despite this and Richard advising Diane that it wasn't a good idea, Maggie pushed forward and Diane supported her, believing Maggie wouldn't do anything to hurt her.
Once on the treatment, Diane had multiple side effects. She got an infection in her arm and blood built up. She had to have fluid aspirated from her back, but she eventually started to feel a little better. She taught Maggie to make her lasagna and told Maggie to invite all her friends over to have dinner together. At the dinner, Diane started coughing heavily. She soon coughed up some blood and they rushed her to the hospital. She had a tear in her esophagus, which Richard repaired with difficulty. Maggie wanted to get her up and moving again after the surgery as soon as possible, because she'd lose her spot in the trial if she missed a treatment. Richard went and talked to Diane privately, to tell her she didn't have to keep going with the treatment if she didn't want to. She told him Maggie was a gift to her and if she died, it would give Maggie darkness not to know she did everything she could and she didn't want to do that. Richard told her Maggie was strong and she could handle it. Maggie tried to call around to find newer treatment possibilities for her mother, but Diane told her it was time to stop fighting.
Later, while Diane tried to give Maggie life advice, Maggie painted her nails. When the smell overwhelmed her, Maggie went to open a window and saw that it had stopped raining. When she went back to the bed, her mother was dead. She continued to paint her mom's nails as she cried. ("Be Still, My Soul")
After her death, Jackson saw her loaded file that showed her medical history before she came to see him. He discovered she had already found out she was sick before she came to see him, and he guessed that she came to Seattle because he would do everything possible to cure her because of how close he was to Maggie, as well as take care of Maggie if she really were to die. ("What's Inside")
Posthumous History[]
Diane appeared in Maggie's fever dream as a beacon of warmth and comfort after Maggie had read Ellis's letter. ("The Makings of You")
She appeared to Maggie again, alongside Ellis, when Maggie was leaving Grey Sloan Memorial on her last day. ("Mama Who Bore Me")
Relationships[]
Romantic[]
She was married to Maggie's father. However, she had a long-term affair with the man who fixed their car. They ultimately split up over it. She said leaving Maggie's father was the moment she finally felt like she could breathe again. ("None of Your Business")
Familial[]
When she surprised Maggie with a visit, Maggie was upset that she didn't give her advance warning that she was coming. Maggie also disliked how she quickly bonded with the other doctors at the hospital. ("None of Your Business") She told Meredith she always wanted to have more kids, so Maggie could have a brother or sister. She was glad when Maggie found Meredith. ("Be Still, My Soul")
Friendships[]
Diane quickly bonded with all Maggie's colleagues. She made plans to have dinner with Richard, but cancelled those plans when she was diagnosed with breast cancer. ("None of Your Business")
While she was in chemo, she also formed a relationship with her nurse, Aurora, to the point where she knew Aurora's son, Lee, was re-taking his driver's test, which he'd failed twice before. ("Be Still, My Soul")
Career[]
She made soap in Hawaii.
Notes and Trivia[]
- She brought her engagement ring to Seattle with her to give to Maggie.[1]
- She was afraid of heights.[2]
Gallery[]
Episodic[]
Episode Stills[]
Appearances[]
| Grey's Anatomy, Season 13 | |||||
| #01 | "Undo" | #09 | "You Haven't Done Nothin'" | #17 | "Till I Hear It From You" |
| #02 | "Catastrophe and the Cure" | #10 | "You Can Look (But You'd Better Not Touch)" | #18 | "Be Still, My Soul" |
| #03 | "I Ain't No Miracle Worker" | #11 | "Jukebox Hero" | #19 | "What's Inside" |
| #04 | "Falling Slowly" | #12 | "None of Your Business" | #20 | "In the Air Tonight" |
| #05 | "Both Sides Now" | #13 | "It Only Gets Much Worse" | #21 | "Don't Stop Me Now" |
| #06 | "Roar" | #14 | "Back Where You Belong" | #22 | "Leave It Inside" |
| #07 | "Why Try to Change Me Now" | #15 | "Civil War" | #23 | "True Colors" |
| #08 | "The Room Where It Happens" | #16 | "Who Is He (And What Is He To You)?" | #24 | "Ring of Fire" |
| Grey's Anatomy, Season 18 | |||||
| #01 | "Here Comes the Sun" | #08 | "It Came Upon a Midnight Clear" | #15 | "Put It to the Test" |
| #02 | "Some Kind of Tomorrow" | #09 | "No Time to Die" | #16 | "Should I Stay or Should I Go" |
| #03 | "Hotter Than Hell" | #10 | "Living In a House Divided" | #17 | "I'll Cover You" |
| #04 | "With a Little Help From My Friends" | #11 | "Legacy" | #18 | "Stronger Than Hate" |
| #05 | "Bottle Up and Explode!" | #12 | "The Makings of You" | #19 | "Out for Blood" |
| #06 | "Everyday Is a Holiday (With You)" | #13 | "Put the Squeeze On Me" | #20 | "You Are the Blood" |
| #07 | "Today Was a Fairytale" | #14 | "Road Trippin'" | ||
| Grey's Anatomy, Season 19 | |||||
| #01 | "Everything Has Changed" | #08 | "All Star" | #15 | "Mama Who Bore Me" |
| #02 | "Wasn't Expecting That" | #09 | "Love Don't Cost a Thing" | #16 | "Gunpowder and Lead" |
| #03 | "Let's Talk About Sex" | #10 | "Sisters Are Doin' It for Themselves" | #17 | "Come Fly With Me" |
| #04 | "Haunted" | #11 | "Training Day" | #18 | "Ready to Run" |
| #05 | "When I Get to the Border" | #12 | "Pick Yourself Up" | #19 | "Wedding Bell Blues" |
| #06 | "Thunderstruck" | #13 | "Cowgirls Don't Cry" | #20 | "Happily Ever After?" |
| #07 | "I'll Follow the Sun" | #14 | "Shadow of Your Love" | ||
References[]
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