Hours After Giving Birth, The Mum Had 3 Weeks To ʟɪᴠᴇ So Now She’s Just Celebrated 6 Months With Her Daughter.
Hours after giving birth to her daughter, Karyn Love sat ᴅɪɢᴇsᴛɪɴɢ the news that she was about to be wheeled from the maternity ward, to the palliative care ward.
Billi had arrived via ᴀɴ ᴇᴍᴇʀɢᴇɴᴄʏ C-sᴇᴄᴛɪᴏɴ at 29 weeks, because of what doctors ᴏʀɪɢɪɴᴀʟʟʏ ᴀssᴜᴍᴇᴅ ᴡᴇʀᴇ ᴘʀᴇɢɴᴀɴᴄʏ ᴄᴏᴍᴘʟɪᴄᴀᴛɪᴏɴs. Doctors went on to ᴅɪᴀɢɴᴏsᴇ ᴛʜᴇ ɴᴇᴡ ᴍᴜᴍ ᴡɪᴛʜ Sᴛᴀɢᴇ 4 ᴍᴇᴛᴀsᴛᴀᴛɪᴄ ʜᴏʀᴍᴏɴᴇ sᴇɴsɪᴛɪᴠᴇ ʙʀᴇᴀsᴛ ᴄᴀɴᴄᴇʀ ᴛʜᴀᴛ ʜᴀᴅ sᴘʀᴇᴀᴅ ᴛᴏ ʜᴇʀ ʙᴏɴᴇs ᴀɴᴅ ʟɪᴠᴇʀ. “ʜᴏʀᴍᴏɴᴀʟ ᴄʜᴀɴɢᴇs ᴅᴜʀɪɴɢ ᴘʀᴇɢɴᴀɴᴄʏ ᴄᴀɴ ᴀFFᴇᴄᴛ ᴛʜᴇ ᴄᴏᴜʀsᴇ ᴏF ʜᴏʀᴍᴏɴᴇ sᴇɴsɪᴛɪᴠᴇ ʙʀᴇᴀsᴛ ᴄᴀɴᴄᴇʀ ᴀɴᴅ ᴄᴀɴ ʀᴇsᴜʟᴛ ɪɴ ᴛʜᴇ ᴄᴀɴᴄᴇʀ ɢʀᴏᴡɪɴɢ ᴀɴᴅ sᴘʀᴇading, Her daughter was ᴡʜɪsᴋᴇᴅ ᴀᴡᴀʏ ᴛᴏ NICU, Karyn was told she had three weeks to ʟɪᴠᴇ. I wasn’t given a lot of hope, said Karyn. A few days after [I gave birth] I was being ᴘʀᴇᴘᴀʀᴇᴅ Fᴏʀ ᴇɴᴅ ᴏF ʟɪFᴇ.”
Being a tiny, premmie baby Billi [had to be] fed round the clock and as the days rolled on, I saw Karyn Fᴀʟʟ ɪɴᴛᴏ ᴜᴛᴛᴇʀ ᴇxʜᴀᴜsᴛɪᴏɴ ᴀs sʜᴇ ᴄᴀʀᴇᴅ for her daughter alone 24 hours a day while ᴜɴᴅᴇʀᴛᴀᴋɪɴɢ ᴅᴀɪʟʏ ᴄʜᴇᴍᴏᴛʜᴇʀᴀᴘʏ ᴛᴀʙʟᴇᴛs ᴀɴᴅ ᴍᴏɴᴛʜʟʏ ɪɴ-ʜᴏsᴘɪᴛᴀʟ ᴄʜᴇᴍᴏ ɪɴᴊᴇᴄᴛɪᴏɴs,” Karyn’s friend and Natural Mᴇᴅɪᴄɪɴᴇ Pʀᴀᴄᴛɪᴛɪᴏɴᴇʀ Camilla Chaplin wrote in a GoFundMe raising money for the young family.
“I set out to find support for her. Surely there was government funding to ᴀssɪsᴛ sɪᴄᴋ ᴍᴜᴍs look after their babies? Surely large ᴄᴀɴᴄᴇʀ Fᴜɴᴅʀᴀɪsɪɴɢ ᴏʀɢᴀɴɪsᴀᴛɪᴏɴs ʜᴀᴠᴇ ᴇɴᴏᴜɢʜ Fᴜɴᴅɪɴɢ ᴛᴏ sᴜᴘᴘᴏʀᴛ ɪɴᴅɪᴠɪᴅᴜᴀʟ ᴄɪʀᴄᴜᴍsᴛᴀɴᴄᴇs like this? What about NDIS? Sadly no. Sick Mums fall through the ᴄʀᴀᴄᴋs. While there is some support it’s absolutely not enough to make a real impact,” she wrote.
Local mums of Queensland heard the ᴄʀʏ Fᴏʀ ʜᴇʟᴘ ᴀɴᴅ ʀᴀʟʟɪᴇᴅ, forming a makeshift village around Karyn. They cooked her meals, helped in the evenings with feeds and housework, and drove around Brisbane on her behalf picking up ᴅᴏɴᴀᴛᴇᴅ breast milk. Due to her ᴍᴇᴅɪᴄᴀᴛɪᴏɴ, Karyn couldn’t breastfeed Billi herself.
In August 2021, three months after giving birth and getting her ᴅɪᴀɢɴᴏsɪs, Karyn received a phone call from her doctor on her birthday.
“I had a call from ᴍʏ ᴏɴᴄᴏʟᴏɢɪsᴛ and she is ᴀsᴛᴏᴜɴᴅᴇᴅ at how far I’ve come with my ʜᴇᴀʟɪɴɢ journey. She said, ‘do you want to have a good birthday present?’ I said ‘I’m ready’,” a smiling Karyn told me
Karyn was told her ᴄᴀɴᴄᴇʀ was ʜᴇᴀʟɪɴɢ.
“[She said] the ᴛᴜᴍᴏᴜʀ ɪɴ ᴍʏ ʙʀᴇᴀsᴛ is gone, the liver [ᴄᴀɴᴄᴇʀ] has gone down, and she said we can barely see it, and the ᴄᴀɴᴄᴇʀ all through my bones, she said we can just sᴇᴇ ᴛʜᴇ sᴄᴀʀʀɪɴɢ of where the ᴄᴀɴᴄᴇʀ was but not where the ᴄᴀɴᴄᴇʀ is. So basically my body is responding, I am celebrating this amazing, amazing, amazing day. It’s the most perfect birthday present of all.”
In a statement the hospital explained, “ʜᴏʀᴍᴏɴᴇ sᴇɴsɪᴛɪᴠᴇ ᴄᴀɴᴄᴇʀ ɪs Fᴜᴇʟʟᴇᴅ ʙʏ ʜɪɢʜ ʟᴇᴠᴇʟs ᴏF ʜᴏʀᴍᴏɴᴇs, ᴛʜᴇʀᴇFᴏʀᴇ ᴛʀᴇᴀᴛᴍᴇɴᴛ is likely to be ᴇFFᴇᴄᴛɪᴠᴇ ᴡʜᴇɴ ᴛʜᴇsᴇ ʜᴏʀᴍᴏɴᴇs ᴀʀᴇ ʙʟᴏᴄᴋᴇᴅ. The ᴇFFᴇᴄᴛɪᴠᴇɴᴇss ᴏF ᴛʜᴇ ᴛʀᴇᴀᴛᴍᴇɴᴛ ɪs ᴅᴇᴘᴇɴᴅᴇɴᴛ ᴏɴ ᴛʜᴇ ᴘᴀᴛɪᴇɴᴛ’s ᴀʙɪʟɪᴛʏ ᴛᴏ ᴛᴏʟᴇʀᴀᴛᴇ ᴛʀᴇᴀᴛᴍᴇɴᴛ.”
It’s now been six months, and although Karyn says her doctors don’t give her “a date, a time, a number,” they’ve been amazed by her recovery so far.
“Ms Love has responded to treatment and will continue her current treatment indefinitely, or until it ceases to work. She has ʀᴇᴄᴏᴠᴇʀᴇᴅ to a level where she is able to self-care and care for her baby, though with the added physical, psychological and emotional strains of a ᴄᴀɴᴄᴇʀ ᴅɪᴀɢɴᴏsɪs,” the hospital told
Karyn is still in a lot of pain. She has good and bad days, but she says none of that matters because she’s “grounded in love.”
