A Co Fermanagh woman has opened up on her recovery from a skin cancer diagnosis as she prepares to take on a marathon challenge next month.
Denise Kavanagh from Enniskillen was diagnosed with melanoma last year during lockdown and has since had to give up her role as a classroom assistant at a local primary school.
The keen runner told of her shock when she was first given the diagnosis which came as she was training for the Dublin Marathon last year. Speaking to MyFermanagh , Denise said it was news she never expected to get.
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“During lockdown I found a lump on my arm and I went to see a skin specialist in Enniskillen. She told me on 11 October I had malignant melanoma,” Denise said.
“It had gone in to my lymph nodes so I was rushed to Derry for an appointment to talk about it that evening. The whole thing was a bit fast and came as a real shock.
“Just the day before I had been training for a marathon and had got up to 18 miles ahead of the Dublin marathon. To go from 18 miles to the next day being told you’ve got cancer really took me aback.
“It all came like an ocean after that going for every appointment under the sun. I had my operation on the 15 December.
“I had gone to watch the Belfast marathon and just thought to myself about how I never got to finish my own. So from then I decided I needed to be able to finish that.
Although Denise is now in recovery, she has lost the use of one of her arms. That meant she had to give up the job she loved - working as a classroom assistant at nearby Holy Trinity Primary School.
“I’m still under the care of the cancer specialists to make sure it doesn’t come back on me,” Denise added.
“To go from running 18 miles to not being able to run at all was a bit stressful. You never think it’s going to land on your doorstep.
“When it does you just have to deal with it and move on. When you work full time for 20 years and then all of a sudden you can’t go to work it’s not easy.
“It was the first time I cried. It was a decision that I didn’t make and it still hurts a lot.
“It is sad because I do love working with the children. To me it was a lovely rewarding job that I had done for the last 20 years.
“Life has thrown a direction for me now though and you never know what could come out of it.”
Denise will take to the St Michael’s running track on Sunday 3 July to complete her marathon. She will be joined by friends and family as they raise funds for local cancer support group SWELL.
“I want to give back to the people who helped me along the way because the support SWELL have provided me has been so helpful.
“The running club here in Enniskillen is still a huge part of my life here. It keeps a lot of people going and it’s good for the head.”
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