Being pregnant is hard enough on its own, but being pregnant and finding out you have cancer sounds like a complete nightmare. This is one mom’s scary reality–Kim Vaillancourt was recently diagnosed with glioblastoma, which is an aggressive, fast-growing malignant tumor affecting the brain or spine, when she was was 20 weeks pregnant.
The mother of five claims being pregnant actually saved her life, however. When she was feeling sick in December, she initially attributed her symptoms to the flu. Since she was unable to keep food down, Kim decided to go to the hospital, because she didn’t want to harm her baby. Instead, she found out she had two tumors–experts have since stated the tumors could have killed her. Her husband told WGRZ:
“If it wasn’t for the baby, she probably would’ve never gone to the hospital. With her severe headache and nausea…she would’ve laid in bed thinking it was the flu, and she would’ve possibly not been here today.”
After having surgery to remove the two tumors, Kim is refusing to undergo follow-up radiation and chemotherapy in order to preserve the development of her unborn son, Wyatt Eli, according to Associated Press. Kim has stated that because her baby saved her, it’s “my turn to save him.”
This takes incredible amount of fortitude, strength, and patience to wait until the end of her pregnancy to undergo the remaining treatment. As of now, Kim undergoes MRI scans every two weeks and recent scans showed that she is cancer free. After her son’s birth, she plans to begin treatment.
A GoFundMe page has been set up for the family in order to cover the medical costs. We sincerely hope Kim stays cancer free.
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