Thursday, January 31, 2013

Monday night's support group meeting was our largest yet even on a very foggy night. We were glued to our guest speaker as she told her personal cancer journey as a three time survivor and now a published author. Clearly she touched each of us in the room but especially one gal who is also a repeat survivor. It had to be difficult yet comforting for her to sit through the presentation.

I can't begin to share this story with  the feeling or energy which Lort presented it. Her visual aides, tea cups in incremental sizes, helped bring everything into perspective. Her energy, emotion and enthusiasm drew us close, almost as if we had been there at the time.

At the young age of 34 Lori was going about her daily routine of wife, biological mother of two, career woman, and future mother of an adopted Chinese daughter. She had no idea her life was about to change forever.  She pulled out a tiny little tea cup explaining how it represented her life at that time and how it never overflowed because God had not given her more than she could handle.

Soon she brought out a small tea cup. This represented her initial diagnosis. Lori fell ill one hot August afternoon while visiting the state fair. One thing led to another and what was originally diagnosed as a common illness quickly revealed a rapidly growing tumor on an ovary. Surgery was planned but the tumor had other plans and ruptured a few days prior to her scheduled surgery date.  Doctors soon confirmed ovarian cancer stage 2. The fact it was caught relatively early was great, however the fact the tumor ruptured complicated things. As the doctors explained the tumor had shared it's cancer cells all throughout Lori's abdomen. All her female parts were removed and she underwent aggressive chemo. It was nearly more than her body could handle.

Just after completing her rounds of chemotherapy her doctor asked Lori to undergo a colonoscopy as a precautionary measure due to some abnormal blood work. This simple test revealed more cancer-this time stage 4 colon cancer. Needless say this news was incredibly overwhelming!

As you can well imagine the size of Lori's tea cups kept growing as she spoke. Although feeling like giving up at times she was determined not to let the tea spill over onto her saucer.  Her colon cancer also required chemo, another devastating blow.  But through it all she persevered. Her husband made the trip to China over the Christmas holiday and returned home with their newly adopted beautiful baby girl. This was a great motivating factor as Lori knew this little girl really needed her new mother.

After a short remission Lori was again given bad news. Again she pulled out a larger tea cup. This time the news was a spot on her left lung. Surgery would be incredibly painful and recovery would be tough. Fortunately Lori's husband and family would not give up on her. The community and the church repeatedly came forward to help with meals, cleaning, child care, and financial needs. Although Lori felt her cup may eventually overflow it never did. She continued to persevere.

Eventually her story caught us up to the present. Looking at Lori's tiny blonde body you would have no idea she had endured such intense pain and suffering not just once but three times. You also wouldn't know that her mental and physical strength had been put to the ultimate test to the point she nearly didn't survive.  But maybe most importantly, unless you were fortunate enough to hear her journey in her own words, you would never know how it strengthened her faith and trust in God and made her even a better witness to Him!

Near the end of her presentation Lori explained that the doctors said she would have a 75% chance of recurrences. That is when she shared she is currently awaiting more test results.  That was almost more than I could bear to hear. Through all of this her tea cups grew, never once overflowing. Somehow she has managed to fill them to the brim with positive outcomes. She helps lead our local Community Cancer Network and she and her husband have adopted a little boy with special needs from another foreign country. Not only is Lori a three time cancer survivor but as I said earlier she is also a published author.

While purchasing her book I spoke with her one on one.  Although my experience pales in comparison to hers we still shared many things in common. She spoke on such a personal level so I asked if she was OK with being placed on my church's prayer chain. Of course the answer was "sure!" I must say she has risen to the top of my list of people I admire most.

I am again going to use my blog as a way to lift someone I know up in prayer. If you will all join with me  maybe this time Lori can beat the odds and maybe, just maybe, her test results will come back normal. That is certainly my hope and prayer for her and her family! In the meantime may God stay by her side and keep her strong enough to endure whatever news it is that she will receive in February. And thank you Lori and Todd for making the trek to Benton Co to share your amazing cancer journey with our small group!