LAKE ANDES, S.D. (AP) - The light shines through an open window, reflecting onto a tall cabinet in Amber Nelson’s kitchen.
Photographs of her 9-year-old son Elijah decorate the walls as she rocks back and forth on a wooden chair wearing a gray T-shirt decorated with pink ribbons.
This is Nelson’s favorite place to be - at home with her son and her husband, Jim. A simple luxury, but she finds comfort in being surrounded by family.
At 39 years old, Nelson has been diagnosed with breast cancer three times, once in 2013, again in 2016 and now in 2017, the Daily Republic reported . Yet Nelson continues to be resilient.
“I consider myself a fighter who will do anything because my son is my world and I do not want him to go through a world without a mom,” Nelson said.
Nelson, a member of the Yankton Sioux Tribe, was born in Wagner and has lived in Lake Andes since she was in seventh grade. Now, she’s a third-grade teacher at Andes Central Elementary School.
Nelson’s cancer story begins at the start of the school year in 2013, when she felt a sharp pain in her upper stomach. After a variety of scans and tests, Nelson received a call from her doctor that a lump found on her breast was cancerous.
“A lot of thoughts went through my head. I thought, ‘Am I going to die?’” Nelson said.
In October, she had surgery to remove the lump, but several complications occurred. What was supposed to be a four-hour surgery to remove the cancerous tissue turned into 10 hours.
Because she was on the operating table for several hours, she said she got an infection, which forced her to stay in the hospital an additional four days. Following the recovery, she underwent 16 weeks of chemotherapy.
“There were times I felt like I was rotting from the inside,” Nelson said. “The chemotherapy made me very sick. It took me a long time to even get out of bed.”
Six months later, Nelson’s doctors declared her cancer in remission, and she returned to teaching.
Almost two years later, Nelson was sitting in a weekly teacher’s meeting when she began to feel a sharp pain in her armpit.
She went to the doctor and received a call the day after Thanksgiving in 2016 that the cancer had returned.
“I was not nearly as emotional this time because I knew I had beat it once before, so I could beat it again,” Nelson said.
After another surgery to remove the lymph nodes on her side, 18 weeks of chemotherapy and five weeks of radiation, Nelson was again declared in remission. And it stayed that way until this year.
Recently, Nelson read a book to her third-graders about a mother who had cancer. She then asked the class if they knew someone with cancer.
“They all raised their hands,” Nelson said. “Cancer is one of those things that affects everyone.”
It especially affected Nelson, who in September received news that she once again had been diagnosed with breast cancer for the third time.
But, unlike the other two, the cancer is now on her lung and has since metastasized, rendering it inoperable. For now, Nelson is using a new trial drug, which is aimed toward helping her immune system fight off the disease.
And while she tries the new drug, she will rely on her family for support, as she has in the past. Nelson credits her family as one of the biggest supporters, she said, adding that her two younger brothers shaved their heads in support.
Nelson’s battle is well known in Lake Andes, where her co-workers started a fundraiser selling pink T-shirts. Nelson’s mother also sells baked goods to raise funds and awareness.
The regular doctor appointments, multiple surgeries and chemotherapy treatments left Nelson with costly medical bills.
Despite Nelson’s financial and medical concerns, those close to her say she continues to stay optimistic.
“Amber has this spark of fight in her,” said Kristin Dvorak, a pharmacist who lives in Lake Andes and met Nelson in 2005. “She knows the outcome of this round is not the greatest but she also knows miracles can happen and she won’t stop the fight.”
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Information from: The Daily Republic, http://www.mitchellrepublic.com
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