Renee has conquered cancer three times. We're raising funds to help her with daily living expenses as she continues bi-weekly treatments.
Subscribe to follow campaign updates!
Do you believe in super heroes? Growing up we all wanted to believe that super heroes existed. What I’ve discovered is that you don’t need to fly or read minds to be powerful. Renee Sendelbach has what you could describe as super human abilities. At age 30, she was diagnosed with stage 1 breast cancer for the first time, 13 months after the birth of son first child. After suffering through, chemotherapy, radiation and a lumpectomy she was deemed free and clear. Her ability to overcome has been her rock. But in 2008, it was only the beginning.
It was two years ago that Renee went in for her routine scan that discovered the breast cancer had spread to her lymph nodes, a few rib bones, and her lungs. This classified her as stage 4. She began another round of chemo, which was unsuccessful. And in July of that same year she started a new “cocktail” with two chemo drugs and a trial drug. By her October scan everyone was ecstatic to learn that her scans were completely clear! Her doctor then decided to keep her on full out chemo to be as sure as possible, but her body could take no more and her blood counts became too low. After some hard realizations, she decided to just continue with the twice weekly trial drug. It was a nice reprieve as it only left her minimally tired and slightly nauseous compared to the chemo. Then another bombshell hit.
In September of 2012, after a seizure struck her while she was shopping with her 5 year old son they found a golf ball size tumor in her brain. She was admitted a week later and underwent brain surgery to remove it . A week later she was scared, but laughing with her best friends and making jokes. Her husband, mother, sister, her in-laws and her friends all banded together to create a force of help and hope. But, once again, by November the stubborn tumor was growing back and had to be removed once more. This final surgery left her without the function of her right side and it left her memory a little blurry at times. She had to learn to walk again because she had lost feeling in her right foot. With the aid of a wheel chair and later, a cane, she was able to stand tall once more.
Renee is a super hero. She has leaped over mountains, carried the world on her shoulders and managed to do it all with a huge, amazing smile. Currently she undergoes chemo twice weekly of her trial drug, MRI’s every 4 weeks, and PET scans every 3 months. A routine she will be enduring for the rest of her life. For now she is walking and driving again, taking her son to and from school daily and taking herself to her oncologist. According to her, “The whole experience has been enlightening in its own way each leg of the journey. I am truly grateful every day that I wake up, every time I get to kiss and hug my husband and son, that I can walk again, that I have such a great support system and so much more. I am still learning to accept the fact that I can’t do it all by myself and to say “yes” to help.”
In honor of Renee Sendelbach and her family, her friends and neighbors will be hosting a Costume Fun Walk at Klattenhoff park April 20th, 2013 at 10 a.m. We have appreciated all the calls, texts, and facebook messages asking what everyone could do to help. Here is your chance. Renee’s daily routine is jogged full of obstacles and we would like to help her and her husband with monetary donations to lighten the load. We hope you’ll pull out that dusty Halloween costume and come walk around the park a few times. We’ll have hot dogs and goodies and everyone can stop and say hello to a super hero.
Sign in with your Facebook account or email.