Danelle Fights Cancer

From Danelle:

I had been receiving chemo monthly from November of last year through April. I took a break from treatments in May and June, so we could go on a family adventure to Europe.  Noah was interning with a church in Florida this summer, so the remaining four of us traveled abroad.  We had a wonderful time, and I didn’t want to come home 😁

Once we got home, I had chemo again starting the beginning of July. Chemo days are not my favorite. I don’t love all the pre-meds I have to take to prepare my body to accept the chemo.  The day goes by in what feels like a drugged stupor, and I don’t remember much of it. The days afterwards are a challenge because I don’t feel like  myself.  I have to slow down my normal pace until I am feeling better.

I was scheduled for the next round of chemo on 8/1, and I was dreading it. 

We have been watching my blood pressure over the past few months. It started rising as a reaction to one of the chemo medications I was on and was remaining high despite being on multiple medications and stopping the chemo medication in May.  Recently, my kidneys started to join in on the fun and have been acting up. 

When I went in to see the Oncology team on Friday for chemo, we decided to hold back on the treatment and wait for me to see a kidney specialist to see exactly what is going on.  I’m not crazy about dragging out chemo treatments, BUT I was excited to not worry about recovering from chemo this weekend (Huge praise!!)

Anyone who has ever waited to get in to see a specialist knows that it can be a painfully long wait.  I left the Oncology office at 10am Friday and was seen by a kidney specialist at 3p the same day! (another Huge Praise!!!)  They think the issues affecting my kidneys are still due to the chemo medication that was stopped in May. The plan is more lab work and scans, and then hopefully the kidney doctor will have the information they need to treat what is going on. 

Life after a cancer diagnosis has looked nothing like I imagined it would.  It is very much a roller coaster ride that I most desperately want to get off of.  But thankfully God is teaching me daily reliance on Him in all the ups and downs life brings.

I read a quote the other day that said something like ‘the hardest thing for Peter was not stepping out of the boat but keeping his eyes on Jesus.’  I understand that because it is my life most days. I do trust God and His promises, but when I get distracted by the circumstances around me and take my eyes off Him, that is when I stumble and struggle. I am thankful for His grace and that He never fails to give me more than I could ever ask or imagine.  

Thank you for all your prayers and checking in with us. We appreciate you more than you know. We ask your prayers for:

• wisdom for all the doctors involved with my treatment
• helpful information from kidney lab results and scan
• good scans checking on the cancer in the coming weeks.