The 22-year-old emerging star for the Sydney Sixers shares her terrifying cancer diagnosis, her time spent apart from her family during Sydney's COVID-19 lockdown, and how her teammates and cricket helped her overcome and heal.

Lauren Cheatle is lapping up touring life with her colleagues in South Australia, relishing the chance to just be a cricket player, after a bizarre, difficult, and occasionally terrifying few months. She is a cricket player who gets to do what she loves, which is tear in and bowl quickly for the Sydney Sixers, rather than a player who is on the injury list or doing rehabilitation. And that's precisely what she has been doing; the left-arm fast bowler, who missed the first few games of the Weber WBBL|07 season, has taken 10 wickets at an average of 8.80 in only six games, making her the Sixers' top wicket-taker. Given everything she has gone through last year and everything she still has to cope with, her triumphant homecoming is all the more amazing. And since she first spotted an odd bump on her shin in early June, Cheatle has been driven by her love of the game and her desire to participate in it rather than watch it from the sidelines. It was a freckle that quickly altered, becoming darker and painful to the touch. Skin cancer in its early stages was the diagnosis. The timing of her action was crucial.  Naturally, the left-arm fast bowler had not expected this kind of news! 

Takeaway from the Case Study ~ 

• A cancer diagnosis is devastating to the patient's friends and family. It is quite normal for people to become pessimistic and to view things negatively. Your mental conflicts will play a major role in your struggle with cancer; if you prevail in them, your chances of recovery will increase! The first thing you'll have to work on is maintaining your optimism until this violent storm passes. 
• Faith is the cornerstone of optimism and hopefulness; you need to have a deep trust in God and your caregivers. There won't be another day like this. Act as a boon. Act as a companion. Motivate someone. Give it some thought. Let your remarks do good rather than harm. God promised strength for the day, consolation for the tears, and light for the path—but He did not guarantee days without suffering, joy without sadness, or rain in the sun.
• Receiving a cancer diagnosis does not guarantee that your life will end. It indicates that you are about to engage in a novel and distinct kind of combat that calls for mental toughness and concentration. The will to battle and live is a powerful motivator for mental toughness. Numerous cancer treatment plans might be difficult on their own. You might doubt your ability to handle them all as you work through them. When your motivation to fight and survive is strong enough, you'll stick with each therapy.

“Hope is the ability to hear the music of the future. Faith is the courage to dance to it today.'' - Peter Kuzmic