Journal entry by Dawn Onufrock —
New Years Greetings to you, dear family and friends!
"For the Lord is good and His love endures forever; His faithfulness continues throughout all generations." Ps. 100:5
One year ago, we were in Rochester. I had just had my HIPEC surgery and was declared cancer free. In some ways that feels like an eternity ago. Time has flown and so much has happened this year. This past week, on the 1 year anniversary of that surgery, I traveled to Mayo in Rochester for another scan to check for cancer. Originally we were scheduled to go down at the end of this month, but I had had some persistent symptoms in December that concerned me. We felt we should call and schedule an earlier time. Before cancer, many similar symptoms would have seemed like no big deal. Post cancer, every symptom seems foreboding. Trying to discern when to take action can be tough. For my peace of mind, I decided to move the appointments up to an earlier date.
We traveled on Monday, the 11th for labs and a CT scan and then meet with my oncologist early Tuesday morning. Praise God, there was no cancer detected! It was such a huge relief. But they did see a nodule in my trachea that had grown from the September scan. My oncologist assured us that there was no way it was a matastized cancer from my cancer and it was highly unlikely to be any cancer, but there was a possibility that it was a cancer. So, again for our peace of mind, we decided to proceed with a bronchoscopy.
We made our 3rd trip to Mayo on Wednesday night in order to have the procedure done early Thursday morning. Once in the room, it took about 15 minutes for the doctor to determine that it was just phlegm! This was the most expensive phlegm diagnosis ever! 😂 But what a relief we felt! So home we went rejoicing!
Thankfulness continues to fill Barry's and my mind. He has been SO good throughout this journey! When we think of our cancer journey, many of your faces appear in our minds. You were a part of this story in powerful ways! We also reflected on how blessed we have been to have had the Mayo staff only 1 1/2 hours from our home. Many travel hours and days to get there. But ultimately, we know that it is God who healed me. Today I am healed. In using doctors, medicine, surgeries, whatever path He put me on, it was all HIS healing. Being in all these different hard places enabled me to speak to many of my Father who "according to His great mercy has caused me to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus from the dead to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading kept in heaven for you(me!) I did not know if I would be healed. Had my cancer not been healed, what is waiting for me is so much better. So, in all things we are joyful! But make no mistake. We are SUPER happy that He has given me more time here!
So what is my focus now that cancer is not dominating my day? My sister in law told me a year ago, that "if God has healed you, then He has a purpose for your life. You need to ask Him to show you what that is and to fulfill it." Yes. Amen. I have been looking and its been a joy to be able to babysit grandkids, pray for other women going through cancer and walking with others who are experiencing hard hard things in life! I am excited about what else God may show me. May I honor Him and fulfill His purpose for my life.
May these coming days be filled with joy, hope and peace found through Christ for all!
"For the Lord is good and His love endures forever; His faithfulness continues throughout all generations." Ps. 100:5
One year ago, we were in Rochester. I had just had my HIPEC surgery and was declared cancer free. In some ways that feels like an eternity ago. Time has flown and so much has happened this year. This past week, on the 1 year anniversary of that surgery, I traveled to Mayo in Rochester for another scan to check for cancer. Originally we were scheduled to go down at the end of this month, but I had had some persistent symptoms in December that concerned me. We felt we should call and schedule an earlier time. Before cancer, many similar symptoms would have seemed like no big deal. Post cancer, every symptom seems foreboding. Trying to discern when to take action can be tough. For my peace of mind, I decided to move the appointments up to an earlier date.
We traveled on Monday, the 11th for labs and a CT scan and then meet with my oncologist early Tuesday morning. Praise God, there was no cancer detected! It was such a huge relief. But they did see a nodule in my trachea that had grown from the September scan. My oncologist assured us that there was no way it was a matastized cancer from my cancer and it was highly unlikely to be any cancer, but there was a possibility that it was a cancer. So, again for our peace of mind, we decided to proceed with a bronchoscopy.
We made our 3rd trip to Mayo on Wednesday night in order to have the procedure done early Thursday morning. Once in the room, it took about 15 minutes for the doctor to determine that it was just phlegm! This was the most expensive phlegm diagnosis ever! 😂 But what a relief we felt! So home we went rejoicing!
Thankfulness continues to fill Barry's and my mind. He has been SO good throughout this journey! When we think of our cancer journey, many of your faces appear in our minds. You were a part of this story in powerful ways! We also reflected on how blessed we have been to have had the Mayo staff only 1 1/2 hours from our home. Many travel hours and days to get there. But ultimately, we know that it is God who healed me. Today I am healed. In using doctors, medicine, surgeries, whatever path He put me on, it was all HIS healing. Being in all these different hard places enabled me to speak to many of my Father who "according to His great mercy has caused me to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus from the dead to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading kept in heaven for you(me!) I did not know if I would be healed. Had my cancer not been healed, what is waiting for me is so much better. So, in all things we are joyful! But make no mistake. We are SUPER happy that He has given me more time here!
So what is my focus now that cancer is not dominating my day? My sister in law told me a year ago, that "if God has healed you, then He has a purpose for your life. You need to ask Him to show you what that is and to fulfill it." Yes. Amen. I have been looking and its been a joy to be able to babysit grandkids, pray for other women going through cancer and walking with others who are experiencing hard hard things in life! I am excited about what else God may show me. May I honor Him and fulfill His purpose for my life.
May these coming days be filled with joy, hope and peace found through Christ for all!
Patients and caregivers love hearing from you; add a comment to show your support.
Help Dawn Stay Connected to Family and Friends
A $25 donation to CaringBridge powers a site like Dawn's for two weeks. Will you make a gift to help ensure that this site stays online for them and for you?
