Cherono moved into the senior ranks in 2016. She was runner-up in the 5000 metres at the Kenyan Championships, but did not replicate that form at the Kenyan World Championships Trials, ending up in eighth. She began to compete on the professional circuit that year, coming second at the Cross de l'Acier. A shift up to longer distances saw her career take off. She was runner-up to world champion Hellen Obiri at the 2018 Kenyan trials for the 2018 Commonwealth Games and finished seventh at the competition in Gold Coast, Australia. She served as a pacemaker for the 2018 European 10,000m Cup before debuting on the European track circuit, competing at the London Grand Prix and British Grand Prix meets plus pacemaking duties at the Weltklasse Zürich final for the 2018 Diamond League. She ended the track season with new personal bests of 8:41.69 minutes for the 3000 metres and 15:09.42 minutes for the 5000 metres. She also had victories over 10,000 metres at the Leiden Gouden Spike (32:34.03 minutes) and the Singelloop Utrecht (31:17 minutes). She closed the year with a win at the Cross Internacional de la Constitución.