I was 28 when I first felt an unusual lump in my right breast along with pain and swelling. As the symptoms got worse, I knew something was not right. So without delaying any further, I went on to get myself tested. The results confirmed I had breast cancer (stage 2). The doctor suggested I begin treatment at the earliest to ensure cancer does not spread beyond the breast tissues.
Coping with a cancer diagnosis was hard – but there was more to it. Considering I was young and had recently got married, the doctor inquired if we were looking to have children in the future because treatment could affect my reproductive health, leading to difficulty in conceiving or carrying a pregnancy to full term. We were advised to look for options to preserve fertility before treatment began. That’s when we reached out to a fertility specialist.
Having gone through my medical reports, our doctor suggested Egg Freezing – a procedure wherein eggs harvested from the ovaries are frozen and stored for future use. The first cycle lasted 10-14 days, starting with the first day of medication and ending with the egg retrieval. Once the eggs were collected, I was advised to wait around for a couple of weeks before starting treatment for cancer.
Recovery post treatment was slow. It took me around a year to prepare myself for pregnancy. Once I was ready, the frozen eggs were fertilized and implanted into the uterus – and my pregnancy journey began. Throughout the journey, my doctor was by my side to motivate and support me emotionally. Finally, in October 2021, I gave birth to a healthy baby boy. Holding him in my arms, it felt like all the struggle was worth every bit of it.
The last two years have been taxing – both physically and emotionally – but in the end, cancer could not suppress my spirits or take away my dream of motherhood.
