In mid-August, Renee was walking across the parking lot at work and noticed she was winded as she walked. She felt like it may be a chest cold starting. Through the weekend she waited to see if she felt better, but by Sunday she wasn't so she decided to go into Mercy Hospital in Mason City. The doctors did a chest X-ray and determined there was fluid around her lung and sent her to the ER because they couldn't treat her in urgent care. While she was in ER they decided to admit her to run further testing because the fluid around her lung was a sign of something else going on.
Renee remained in the hospital for the next few days as many tests were done. They drained the fluid off of her lung and a test determined there were cancer cells present. From there, scans were done and there were spots found in her ovaries and abdomen. At that time they referred her to an oncologist in Iowa City.
Her meeting with the oncologist was the following week. In the meantime, the fluid on her lungs kept returning making it difficult to breath and she was very tired. Renee had to return to the hospital many times to get this fluid drained. The cancer present was causing this build up of fluid. It was time to meet with the oncologist in Iowa City and her two sons were with her. During this consultation, a game plan was set in place. The best treatment for Renee would be surgery to remove as much cancer as possible, followed by chemotherapy. The surgery and chemo would be done at the University of Iowa Hospital. A surgery date is set for September 13th. The doctors are hopeful that by removing the cancer, the fluid build up would subside, giving Renee some relief until chemo will be started.
The doctors, Renee and her family all remain positive. We believe she will have the best treatment and will be well taken care of through the University of Iowa. We appreciate your thoughts and prayers during this time. We will be updating this site after her surgery and continue to update through her treatment. Thank you all!
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