My mixed-media work is in alcohol ink and acrylic pen, on 8X10 Yupo. As I push on during treatment for follicular non-Hodgkin lymphoma, so does my creativity. This piece was done as I was going through immumo/chemotherapy.

One of the chemotherapy side effects I was vaguely warned about but unprepared for was medical menopause. I knew chemotherapy could affect my fertility, but I wasn&#39;t prepared for exactly what going through menopause in my 30s would entail. I didn&#39;t know what to expect, how my functions would change and what would make the transition easier. I felt alone in the experience at first, since many of the changes were delicate topics that were hard to discuss.

Medical Menopause

I was diagnosed with small cell lung cancer in January 2014. A year-and-a-half later when I was in thick of treatment, I drew this cartoon because I could find no words to express the frightening, unknowable future that was before me. My work in gouache, ink and pencil is 5 inches by 7 inches and was created in New York, New York on July 15, 2015.

Pushing Through the Frost

By Michelle McDermott

February 4th, 2020

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