Know that you will be the mother of quadruplets conceived naturallyWithout fertility treatments or some kind of medical intervention, it is definitely something that leaves any woman surprised.
Receiving the news a month after it seemed that he had won the battle against cancer is undoubtedly something that causes happiness, amazement and of course, hope. This is exactly what happened to Kayla Gaytan, a Hodgkin lymphoma survivor. However, upon reaching six months of pregnancy, they noted that the cancer had reappeared.
What is Hodgkin lymphoma?
Also known as Hodgkin's disease, it is a cancer of the lymphatic tissue It mainly affects the lymph nodes, and can expand to the spleen, liver, bone marrow and other organs.
The chance of curing Hodgkin lymphoma It is high if detected early. Even unlike other types of cancer, it is curable even in its late stages.
Among the main symptoms of this disease are:
- Fatigue
- Fever and intermittent chills
- Itching or unexplained itching throughout the body
- Inapetence
- Abundant cold sweats
- Swollen lymph nodes in the neck, armpits, or groin
- Unexplained weight loss
- Cough, chest pains or respiratory problems if swelling occurs in the lymph nodes of the chest
- Reddened and hot skin
The treatment for this type of cancer is the chemotherapy or radiotherapy, and its intensity or frequency will depend on various factors.
Kayla's case
Kayla, 29, with a residence at Fort Campbell in Kentucky, was already mother of two children when he started having the first symptoms of Hodgkins lymphoma.
An inexplicable itch was the first thing that caught his attention, however, for a year and a half they failed to give him a correct diagnosis, until one day in January when he had to be taken to emergencies for an episode of intense cough. They did an x-ray and they found tumors that occupied a third of their thoracic cavity, in addition to having enlarged lymph nodes.
He immediately started treatment with strong chemotherapies, occasionally requiring blood transfusions for five months. For June the treatment seemed to have worked and there were no signs of lymphoma.
The news: four babies are on their way
Kayla couldn't believe it when her doctor told her she was Waiting for quadruplets just a few weeks after finishing your chemotherapy treatment.
"It was more than a total shock, but it is also a blessing"said Kayla."I remember being in the doctor's office and seeing the four bags and being amazed. There in front of me were four healthy babies with their four beats."
Conceiving quadruplets naturally is something that will always be both exciting and scary, the probability of this happening is 1 in 700,000.
During her pregnancy, Kayla did everything possible for her children to develop healthily, but upon reaching six months of gestation, lymphoma symptoms returned and after doing a biopsy in November, it was detected that the cancer had returned.
Now they not only had to see for the health of the babies and her for the pregnancy, but they had to take measures so that she could return to take her treatment to fight Hodgkins lymphoma as soon as possible.
Kayla's goal before detecting the cancer again was to arrive at 34 weeks to have a C-section. But nevertheless, the quadruplets were born in week 30 as it was urgent for her to start over with her chemotherapies. The four babies, Michael, Victoria, Charles and Lillian, were born healthy and weighing between 2 and 3 pounds each on December 30.
Because they are very small, babies will remain in the neonatal intensive care unit for about a month, but fortunately all are stable.
For her part, Kayla will begin her chemotherapies in mid-January and then receive a stem cell transplant and continue with another 16 months of chemotherapies. Doctors tell you that you have a 50% chance of surviving the next five years.
No doubt what this mother is experiencing is a very difficult stage full of bittersweet experiences, but she says that having her babies keeps her motivated to keep fighting to beat cancer so she can see them grow.
Hopefully medical research will continue to find treatments that are compatible with pregnancy, as this is not the first case of a pregnant woman who must fight cancer.
