Pregnant Mom Says Prenatal Care Helped Catch Her Breast Cancer Early

New York mom Stephanie Schmidt was eight weeks pregnant with her second baby when she had routine prenatal care with her OBGYN, Dr. Deepak Nanda, who worried about the mass on her breast. Following a biopsy, the doctor confirmed that the mom was positive for breast cancer.

Schmidt, 30, said that the prenatal check-up was an eye-opening experience as no one in her family had a history of the disease. She also didn't have any genetic markers or mutations for cancer.

Speaking with Good Morning America, the mom said she sought multiple opinions from the experts since she doesn't know anyone who had cancer while pregnant. She was also going to have to decide on the course of treatment that will be safe for the child growing inside of her.

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Breast Cancer Can Occur in Pregnant Women

According to the National Cancer Institute, breast cancer may manifest in one in 3,000 pregnancies or in breastfeeding moms in their 30s. Sometimes, it may be difficult to detect cancer because pregnant and breastfeeding mothers have larger, denser and lumpier breasts due to their changing hormones.

The experts also said some breast changes while pregnant may actually delay a breast cancer diagnosis. Schmidt said that when she learned of her cancer, she was a month into weaning her firstborn from breastfeeding. She didn't feel anything different aside from the lump so this diagnosis was quite a shock to her.

Schmidt is still grateful that her breast cancer was detected early as her doctors were able to tailor-fit a treatment plan that prevented the spread. Most cancer treatments are safe for pregnant moms and the baby but the doctors will also have to consider factors like the size of the tumor and the overall health of the patient.

But on the 35th week of her pregnancy, Nanda recommended for Schmidt to be induced so her cancer doctors could get started with another round of chemotherapy. Apparently, the first treatments have not significantly reduced the tumor.

"We were balancing the fact that my cancer was most likely growing," the mother said. "I needed to get to the next stage of chemo and treatment as soon as possible."

Ten days after giving birth to her second child, Wesley, Schmidt started more aggressive chemo treatment.

Her Pregnancy Saved Her

Schmidt had her last chemotherapy a month before Wesley turned a year older. She considers her second pregnancy as the reason she's still alive today and winning against her cancer battle. If she were not pregnant, she would not have gone to the doctor to have her prenatal care and in turn, her doctor would not have detected the mass on her breast.

Nanda stressed the importance of having regular prenatal check-ups so that mothers can work with their OBGYN as soon as possible for any potential problems with their pregnancy and their health. The experts noted that pregnant moms who skip prenatal check-ups are three times more likely to have babies with low birth weight and five times more likely to have a stillborn child, per the Office of Women's Health.

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