When cancer stares you down, you don’t walk alone

My 44 yr old sister, Nicole VanDeWalle, has always taken care of others in her personal and professional life. When I say that she has always put others needs before her own, is an understatement. As a nurse, she has always made sure that a patient’s care far exceeded standard practice. And as her older sister, watching her succeed in her profession has made me so proud. My sister’s world was torn, twisted, flipped and turned upside down in 2023 when she started experiencing increasing discomfort from a hernia (old pregnancy) and her medical experiences told her she needed to address it, she had no idea the journey she was about to face. A standard hernia surgery would forever change the course of her life and save it too. From coming out of a hernia surgery, being told that she needed to contact her gynocologist, to being told that her uterus is enlarged in reference to being 5 months pregnant with fibroids, one the size of a football, needing to re-cut through the hernia incision to bag and test the fibroids (which would have led to another hernia repair), to days just before her scheduled hysterectomy, being awakened to the most terrifying, pain, shooting pain in her left breast, resulting into an inverted nipple, to contacting doctors, the hysterectomy immediately being put on hold, to many tests and quickly being told you have Stage 3 Cancer- Invasive Inductal Carcinoma, Estrogen and Progesterine Postive, HER negative.And this diagnosis came during her (oldest) daughter’s high school graduation -summer 2023. Chemo started June 15 2023 and she underwent 6 months of chemo. Did I mention, she had to work the entire time of receiving chemo, she carries her family’s medical insurance. Fast forward to December 20 2023, my sister underwent 11 hours of surgery….yes you read correctly 11 HOURS in surgery for a double masectomy. After surgery, we met with the lead doctor, where she informed us that her sentinel nodes were positive,so she had to remove the axillary lymph node dissection, pathology later confirmed that 8 out of the 21 lymph nodes were positive. The doctor in front of me, my mom and brother in law, simply said your sister is unlucky, she should have never had this and it is environmental. We were so grateful to see her in recovery and awake after those 11 hours. Emotions poured out to say the least. The weeks following this surgery have been rough but you will never hear her complain. Multiple visits per week to check drains, removal of drains, compression-suture checks, all while dealing with nerve pain, swelling, discomfort. She will need physical therapy to gain mobility and use of her left arm. Next week she starts daily radiation treatments. She will continue chemo treatment too and along with that, she will start a hormone blocker. She is looking at years of preventive medication to stop the reoccurence after she is finished with treatments. Dont forget, she has to have a full hysterectomy when she has recovered from treatments. (She could possibly face another hernia repair ,after the hysterectomy, if the hysterectomy incisions are needed in the original hernia repair site.) These fibroids when removed will be tested and we are praying for negative results..

I understand that everyone, during these times, are working hard to survive. I’m hoping that this story reaches many. Nicole would never ask for help, but I ask of you, please consider donating, any amount, to help her with expenses she is faced with now and in the future. My sister is scheduled to go back to work next week in order to keep her medical insurance. I’m not sure how this is going to happen. I want to thank everyone for taking the time to read my sister’s story.