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Facing the Challenge of Breast Cancer
One Woman's Story of Breast Cancer Survival
By Gwen Morrison
Caldwell was also concerned about how her stomach would handle the growing responsibility of holding a child. The reconstruction process included taking one of the stomach muscles and all of the fat and some skin on the stomach and then re-attaching it to the chest wall.
"No one ever told me not to get pregnant," she says. "I just don't think anyone held out hopes that I'd be able to. The opinion of the doctors was initially that I'd probably go into menopause with the chemotherapy. So when I did go into menopause for a couple months, I thought it was for good – one more loss to mourn. I was so happy and beside myself when I got my first period after that."
Caldwell became pregnant twice and had two miscarriages. Then she became pregnant a third time. "I just passed my first trimester with flying colors," she says. "We heard the baby's heartbeat, and we are scheduled for an amniocentesis soon to check out the baby to ensure all is well."
The doctors have assured Caldwell that breastfeeding is possible. She is thrilled that all is going well and appears to be normal.
Caldwell's future looks bright. She plans to do some ice climbing, trek in Nepal, visit New Zealand and spend as much time as she can with her growing family. When asked how the events of the past five years have changed her life, Caldwell is enthusiastic. "I'm more likely to do things that make me happy first," she says. "I was a worrier, but I've learned to seek things that make me happy. I've never felt more alive."
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