In a year that has been filled with doom and gloom for me so far this put a huge smile on my face last month.
Good mate of mine is Nicky and I am made up for the lad, I really am. I love happy endings:
With cervical cancer once again in the news, Janet Tansley speaks to a Wirral mum who faced the disease - and beat it for herself and her baby.
There was barely a chance to celebrate news of her pregnancy before Diane Mullineux was facing a devastating blow.
She had cervical cancer.
âOne minute we were so happy at the thought of the baby,â says Diane. âThen suddenly I was faced with a life-threatening condition.â
As doctors initially advised her to have a termination and a hysterectomy the 30-year-old year old feared she would lose everything: her baby and possibly, even, her life.
But experts from the Liverpool Womenâs Hospital gave Diane the miracle she had prayed for â her health and a beautiful baby girl.
âThe Womenâs gave me hope when there wasnât any,â smiles Diane from Moreton.
âWithout them I wouldnât have my daughter, Nancy, now.â
In a world first Womenâs surgeon, Jonathan Herod, consultant gynaecological surgeon/oncologist operated on Diane when she was 11 weeks pregnant to remove the tumour along with most of her cervix, to stop the cancer spreading â and save her unborn daughter.
This was followed by a laproscopic (keyhole) procedure to remove her lymph nodes.
Liverpool Womenâs is the first in the world to carry out these procedures so far into the pregnancy, says Diane.
And she adds: âI was warned that there was a risk of miscarriage during the operation and that, if the baby survived, I would have to have a radical hysterectomy as soon a it was safe for my baby to be delivered.â
Dianeâs ordeal began last August when she and her partner, Nicky Dures, were still celebrating news of the pregnancy.
But their joy was shattered when Diane received a call following a routine smear test carried out before she realised she was having a baby.
She had high grade cervical cancer.
Hairdresser Diane says she was advised at her local hospital that standard procedure was to have an immediate termination followed by a hysterectomy.
They pointed out Diane already had two children, Billy, eight, and three-year-old Sadie from a previous relationship.
But this pregnancy was to be a first child with Nicky, her partner for two years.
Desperate to keep the baby, Diane asked for a second opinion and was referred to Mr Herod at Liverpool Women's. He has pioneered fertility saving surgery for North West women with cervical cancer.
âHe was like a breath of fresh air. He gave me hope,â says Diane. âHe said that even though I was pregnant, he could operate to remove the tumour and, hopefully, stop the cancer spreading.
âBut there was a risk of miscarriage because they would be working so close to the womb.â
Diane had life-saving surgery on September 19 last year and her lymph nodes removed to see if the cancer had spread. âThat test came back clear but Mr Herod said there were still some worrying cells in my cervix. Because of that I would have to have a hysterectomy immediately after the birth.
âAnd I knew the cancer might come back while I was having the baby.
âIt was a very anxious time because I hardly had any cervix and might have needed a stitch to help me carry the baby. But I was scanned every two weeks and managed without.
âAll I wanted was for my baby to survive.â
Mr Herod says: âI had previously treated two women under similar circumstances and both had had excellent outcomes with healthy babies delivered and no evidence of any further problems related to the cancer.
âThose two cases were reported in an international medical journal and were the first cases ever reported of such treatment in the world. As Diane wanted to keep her baby I offered her the opportunity to have the same treatment. She agreed and underwent a cone biopsy of the cervix and a laparoscopic operation to remove her lymph nodes. The lymph nodes were all negative but there was more disease in the cervix.
âWe explained to Diane that there would be a risk that some of the disease might still be in the cervix but after consideration it was decided that we would go forward with the pregnancy and deliver her by a caesarean section once it was safe for the baby and carry out a radical hysterectomy at the same time.
âWe are delighted to say that there is no evidence of disease in tests done following her hysterectomy. Her baby is doing well and Diane is making an excellent recovery. She is a very brave and strong woman."
Diane got her wish on February 20 this year, two days after her 30th birthday.
Nancy was delivered by caesarean section at 33 weeks and five days at Liverpool Womenâs, weighing 4lbs 9oz.
âThe theatre was full of people when I went in,â says Diane. âThere was the caesarean team, the neonatal team and the hysterectomy team.
âI had an epidural so I could be awake for the birth. I saw Nancy for just a minute and then I was given a general anaesthetic for the hysterectomy. That night, even though I felt very tired, I asked to be taken to the neonatal unit in a wheelchair to see her.
âI felt overwhelmed when I saw her. We had been through so much together. I felt guilty that she had to be delivered early because of me... I wished she could have been born at the normal time.â
But she was here!
Diane found out only later that Nancy had stopped breathing soon after birth and had to be rushed to special care and be put on a ventilator.
Mother and daughter spent several weeks on the new transitional care unit which meant Diane could stay in the Women's with Nancy until her daughter was ready to go home instead of being discharged and having to visit her daily. âThat was brilliant,â adds Diane.
Partner Nicky, 38, says: âDiane is an amazing woman to have gone through all this. She was so positive and calm all the time. Even on the day of her operations she was very relaxed about it all and smiling. I am very proud of her.â
But Diane smiles: âI donât think I was particularly brave â and I certainly couldnât have done it without Nicky.
âHe loves Nancy so much. I think she is going to be a real daddy's girl.â
http://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/lifestyle/merseyside-mum-facing-beating-cervical-6847567
