A Fight Worth Every Moment: My Cancer Journey while Pregnant with my Baby Girl

Two Heartbeats, One Fight.

I had an idea to write this blog after going through some challenges and thought this would be a good way to reflect on my journey and potentially help anyone else who is also facing challenges in their lives.

In September of 2023, I noticed a swollen, painless lymph node above my left collarbone with no other symptoms. Within three weeks, a biopsy confirmed that I had an aggressive blood cancer called DLBCL. Fortunately, even though I was considered stage 3, with immediate treatment a cure was probable. Looking back, I feel like I never had time to process what was going on, so that whole period seems like a bad dream.

Even more than the cancer diagnosis, the possibility that the cancer treatment might impact my future fertility was perhaps the hardest thing to overcome. George and I have always wanted a big family, but we accepted that maybe that wasn't a gift in God’s plan for us. Two days after the diagnosis, I was scheduled for a bone marrow biopsy to rule out stage 4 disease. Before starting the procedure, a nurse walked in trembling and told us they had to cancel the procedure because the routine pregnancy test was positive, I was pregnant! This was a bit of light for us during a dark moment in our lives, for which I am deeply thankful.

Although not the ideal situation, knowing that my baby was going to fight this with me helped me stay positive mentally and feel God’s hand around me. The next few days were the hardest of my life. We called around and consulted with many oncologists who told us that chemo must be started immediately within 1-2 weeks to prevent further spread 'without the pregnancy’. We both strongly believed we owed our child a chance to fight, even if it meant facing "imperfections" along the way. We learned that second-trimester chemo is relatively safe, so our goal was to either somehow wait seven weeks or find a doctor willing to do chemo during the first trimester and ask God to protect our baby.

I felt an unfamiliar sense of peace through these weeks, which I can only believe is due to the prayers from family, friends, priests, sisters, doctors, and even strangers from all over the world. While we continued searching, one of our friends had searched through a Catholic medical association directory and, through the grace of God and various doctors in other states, connected us to our oncologist, who happened to be one of the leading oncologists in the country. I have no doubt that God literally placed this man into our lives to hold our hands through the road ahead. I remember he called us one morning and told us that he would do what he could to take care of both me and my baby. Just hearing him say "baby" instead of medical jargon gave us a sense of trust. We immediately knew he valued my child as someone worth saving and trying to protect.

The treatment I received could not have been better. They ran tests multiple times a week to monitor the progression and made off-protocol adjustments to get my daughter to the second trimester. Chemo went surprisingly well, except for a few rough patches along the road. I finished treatment in April with all signs pointing to full remission. On June 28th, our Lucia Rose Francis was born as healthy as can be. I had a PET scan in September and we got the great news that I was in REMISSION!

Throughout this journey, I was able to lean on and appreciate the value of my vocation as a mother, which I deeply cherish. I also learned to appreciate life day by day rather than feeling entitled to my plans or expectations. As I look into my daughter’s eyes today, I can’t help but be marveled at the gift of life.

With all my love,

Blessy