"She did have a disease but she died in a gun battle between her and four others (fall out related to a mission she and Gibbs had years ago in Russia). It could be agrued (and has) she would not have gotten into the fight the way she did if she did not know her time was short so . . . ."

I have seen this episode for the third time and am very satisfied with what you are saying, I would have understood to be a good surmise, because - kind of reading between the lines - this was obliquely suggested I think something like that came out between Jethroe and Ducky or Leon and Jethroe or that it was partly mentioned in both conversations

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