No More Ovary-Acting

Some people might say Austin and I started growing our family young and having a baby at 23 isn’t everyone’s idea of how you should spend your twenties, but it was ours and thank God it was! If you are following along, you may know my cancer was found during my emergency c-section so I say that Hudson literally saved my life. Before all of this chaos we had dreams of multiple children and close together in age. Unfortunately, cancer took away my ability to carry any more children.

My cancer is in my reproductive system and extended into my abdomen. It is also fueled by estrogen and grows rapidly when estrogen is present. The first step in my treatment process was going in to remove the tumors and do a complete hysterotomy to try and slow the production of future ones. That being said, menopause at 23 years old is a real pain in the hot flash!

The original scans showed 5 medium to large tumors scattered all about however during surgery they discovered a total of 8 large tumors and multiple “tumor seeds” scattered in my peritoneum. All of the large tumors were able to be removed through the surgery and I have a belly full of scars to show for it. To treat the “seedlings” chemo was the next step.

Trying to process having a brand new baby fresh out of the NICU, a new cancer diagnosis, and now not being able to have any more children is more than I would wish on anyone. Truthfully, I don’t think I have fully come to terms with it and am more or less pretending I am at peace with it. Fake it till you make it, right? I don’t know what is worse- pregnancy hormones, post partum hormones, or none at all! It has been a never ending emotional rollercoaster in this house!

Due to the fact that my cancer is fueled by estrogen, hormone replacement therapy is not an option for me. For now, I will just make the most of the hot flashes and irritability while praying for a LOT of patience for my husband!