SoCal man asks wife to renew wedding vows on her last day of chemo

PERRIS, Calif. -- A Perris man got down on one knee in a hospital waiting room and asked his wife to renew their vows - on her last day of chemotherapy.

Freddy Lopez and Reyna Castellanos of Perris have been through quite a lot. The couple shared their story with ABC7 using #abc7eyewitness.

"You feel like your life is taken away from you, from one day to another," Lopez said.

For 12 years, the couple lived a relatively normal life with their three small children. But in early 2016, Castellanos discovered a small lump on her breast. At first, doctors didn't seem too concerned.

"They said it was nothing and let's leave it at that," Castellanos said.

The lump, which was 4 centimeters wide, grew to 10 centimeters. Castellanos had a biopsy done in July 2016. Castellanos was diagnosed with stage 2 breast cancer, which was later determined to be stage 3 breast cancer.

"When they tell you that you have cancer, the first thing I think of is - I'm going to die," Castellanos said.

The lowest point was on Thanksgiving Day last year. Castellanos had finished another round of chemo and was lying on the couch in pain, watching the rest of the family trying to enjoy the holiday.

That is when she confided in her husband about her desire to end the battle. She said if she were to stop the chemotherapy, it would at least reduce the pain.

"I told him I want to give up on this whole treatment," Castellanos said.

She said she did not know how much time she had left but would rather have her kids happy and see her happy.

Lopez told her to keep fighting.

"I would tell her think about her kids, think about your family," he said. "They're your daughters. They're going to need you. I'm going to need you."

Despite the struggle, the chemotherapy worked. After 12 treatments, Castellanos is in remission. Lopez surprised her with a gathering of friends after the last treatment.

There was also another surprise.

He got down on one knee and, for the second time, asked Castellanos to marry him and, for the second time, she said yes.

The two had always wanted to renew their wedding vows, but those plans were put on hold after the diagnosis.

The couple will renew their vows on July 14, 2018 which marks the two-year anniversary of her diagnosis.

"We just want to get rid of that bad memory when she was diagnosed and replace it with this new beginning," Lopez said.