Fink's fight against aggressive colon cancer
by Trinity Gruenberg
trinity@inhnews.com
Cancer is a word no family wants to hear. Such is the case for Darcy Fink of Wadena who is fighting aggressive colon cancer.
“She’s doing alright. She’s holding on,” said her husband BJ.
The couple met around 2002 and moved to Wadena in 2007. BJ is a native of Wadena and Darcy is originally from Eagle Bend, the daughter of Floyd and Betty Brekke.
The mother of five was diagnosed in February of 2014 when she was 34 years old.
Darcy was ill for nearly three weeks with stomach pain and the inability to keep food down. She went to the hospital several times. She was taken to the emergency room in Perham on a Sunday morning.
“She knew something wasn’t right. We went to the emergency room and they did an x-ray of her abdomen and found there was air in it and that she needed immediate surgery,” said BJ.
She was transferred to Sanford in Fargo for exploratory surgery. Surgeons discovered a tumor that had perforated her colon. She underwent three more surgeries to remove tumors and to perform a colon resection. They put her in an induced coma for approximately 13 days. After 15 days in the hospital she was able to return home.
She had to undergo physical therapy to relearn how to walk.
“It’s amazing how the human body deteriorates after laying in bed. It was pretty crazy,” he said.
Doctors performed DNA testing to see if it was hereditary. It was not.
“We don’t know where it came from. Bad luck maybe. She was never a heavy drinker, never smoked or did drugs. We don’t know why she has it,” said Bj.
The cancer had metastasized to other areas of her body. She had a hysterectomy after the chemo failed to treat tumors on her ovaries. It has also affected her liver.
The chemo has slowed it down some, but it is not killing all of the cancer cells. The cancer mutates, making it difficult to treat.
Darcy continues to run her in home daycare. BJ works for the MNDOT Office of Statewide radio communication out of Detroit Lakes taking care of 30 radio towers and 16 weather stations.
This February will be four years since she was diagnosed, and she is still fighting it.
Darcy has had too many chemo treatments to count. Shehas tried every chemo treatment possible and is now waiting on a list to get into a trial.
“It’s a big waiting list. I hear about people with cancer going to trials. It never dawned on me you have to wait in line for that,” he said.
The trials will not be local. They will have to travel to the location and find a place to stay.
A benefit is being held in Darcy’s honor to help cover the future expenses she may encounter. It will be held on Saturday, October 21 at the Wadena Elks Lodge from 5-8 p.m. There will be a chicken marsala dinner for a donation. There will also be a silent auction which includes a weekend at the Shooting Star Casino, Wild tickets and more as well as a raffle. Tempus Fugit and Members of Black Stone Cherry will be performing.
Financial donations can also be sent to the Central Minnesota Credit Union made to Darcy Fink Benefit. You can also drop them off at Now and Forever Wedding Gallery in Wadena or Neighborhood Realty in Sauk Centre.