Hoping for a Second Chance to Beat the Odds

This last week, my oldest sister, Trinada, has been faced with some very heavy news. She went into Centralia Providence Hospital this last Sunday evening due to severe back and stomach pain and mysterious bruising. After hours at the ER, a doctor let her know they had found cancer. If you know my sister at all, you know that she has had a wild ride at life already and has quite frankly, beat the odds at a lot of things. This time though, things are looking a little darker. A little scarier. And my sister, her fiancé, and our whole family could really use your prayers, love, and support.

Trinada was first diagnosed with ascites (abdominal swelling caused by an accumulation of fluid) in November 2019. While running some tests, doctors found she had ovarian cancer. The following month, she had surgery to remove the cancer, but that wasn’t where the bad news ended. Doctors discovered she had cirrhosis of the liver and gave her one year to live without a transplant. She began multiple paracenteses (minor procedure to drain the fluid) and at one point had 16 liters of fluid removed in one session. I can only imagine how painful that would feel. While fighting with the discomfort of it all, her body formed a hernia the size of a baseball. She got down to 115 pounds from the sheer fight her body was going through. After months of waiting for her body to be able to handle the surgery, in April 2021, doctors removed the hernia. They had to separate the muscles from her stomach wall and put it back together in three layers with mesh.

This is where there’s some good news. Without explanation, at one of Trinada’s doctor appointments, her liver mysteriously began working again. I mean miraculously. No one had any explanation as to how or why it started to function and heal itself, but it did and Trinada and all of us weren’t seeking an answer as to why, but just keeping the faith that this was part of the plan.

In the midst of Trinada’s mental and physical health being tested by so many forces, she had a lifelong friendship turn into the love of her life. This man, Wally, has known our family since he and Trinada were five years old. Talk about timing. Life took them on their own windy roads of experiences, heartbreak, and chaos that eventually led them back to each other. Trinada began healing. She was able to go back to work. She and Wally would make the 4.5-hour drive to see one another over the weekends. After months of the long-distance, they decided there was no point in wasting time. Life is too big a gift. She and Wally made the decision that Trinada would move to be with him, and they would start the next chapter of their lives together. In February of this year, Trinada got Covid, which was a little nerve-wracking with her medical history, but she worked through it. This is about the time Trinada feels her body start to change, but in March, she moved to Centralia to be with Wally. Before I knew it, I had my oldest sibling living five minutes down the road from me.

Things were looking up for my big sister. She found a job close to her new home. Her and Wally had been planning their wedding for this August. She lived closer to her daughter and son-in-law again, so she was going to be seeing them more.

I think we all know how life can be full of surprises. Unwanted, unsolicited, unwelcome surprises. This last Sunday evening, on May 29th, her strength would be tested again. After going to the ER for the severe pain she’d been dealing with for a couple of months now, and discovering she had cancer for a second time, the doctors contacted Swedish Hospital in Seattle, WA. She was transported there by ambulance in the middle of the night. As I write this, that is where Trinada still is. So far, we know that this round of cancer is entirely unrelated to the first, which is rare. Trinada has stage 4 colon cancer. It’s inoperable. She has cancer in her colon, rectum, and towards her bladder. Her liver is covered in tumors and there’s nothing that can be done about it. She will begin chemotherapy to treat the giant mass that’s blocking her colon, hopefully soon. Her ascites has come back, along with her kidney not functioning correctly. Another round of paracentesis will be done. She has had a tube placed through her back into her kidney to help with drainage. This will be replaced every 8 to 10 weeks. As soon as her kidney is functioning better, she will begin chemo. Her port was put in yesterday.

If you’ve read this far, thank you. My sister is one of the strongest people I know, and if you happen to know her too, you know this as well as I do. Trinada has had a lot thrown at her and always come out on top. Isn’t it crazy how we can grow up with the same childhood as, say our siblings or close friends and have our lives turn out completely different? My sister has fought through a lot of heartache in her lifetime. The loss of her daughter at three months old, anxiety, all sorts of phobias, and the first round of cancer. She deserves to live this last chapter with her future husband, Wally, with happiness surrounding her and contentment in her heart. She deserves to see her children become mothers and fathers, to be a grandmother. She deserves to watch her nieces and nephews grow up. She deserves a lot of things, but she definitely doesn’t deserve what’s been laid out in front of her. I guess if we all got what we deserved, life would look different for many of us.

That being said, I’m asking for help. We’re asking for help. Trinada and Wally’s wedding is now put on hold as she goes through chemotherapy. She will be unable to work for who knows how long. The driving back and forth for her treatments and appointments. The cost of treatment is unpredictable, but the day-to-day bills still need to be paid. Wally will continue to work until his duty to take care of Trinada becomes a full-time job in itself. The cancer is incurable, but any light we could shine along this dark path will help them immensely. Please share her story and follow along, as we will keep you all updated. Trinada and Wally will appreciate every donation, every prayer, every bouquet, every card, and every sign of faith you can send. We are all holding onto our faith a little tighter these days. And our families a little longer.