A Chicago woman was just weeks away from giving birth when A Annoying cough It led to a shocking medical discovery.
McKenna Lauterbach, 26, began having severe coughing attacks in the last three months of a year He carried her.
“The symptoms would be so severe that I would feel nauseous and nauseous to the point of vomiting,” she told Fox News Digital.
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Lauterbach, who lives on a farm in Washburn, IllinoisShe also began noticing shortness of breath while caring for her horses and goats.
“I give the horses hay every morning and I noticed how tired I was with the dry cough,” she said. “My body felt like I had only run two miles, when in reality, I had only walked to the barn and back.”
McKenna Lauterbach, pictured with her husband, Parker, and new baby, Colter, has been diagnosed with stage 3 melanoma. (northwestern medicine)
She said some doctors ignored Lauterbach's symptoms, repeatedly telling her: “It's because you're pregnant.”
Eventually, when coughing led to vomiting, doctors performed scans and discovered a large, grapefruit-sized tumor in the middle chest cavity and right lung, which was completely blocking the artery leading to the right lung.
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“It is extremely rare to see this type of tumor invading the major blood vessels of the heart,” said Chris Mehta, MD. Cardiac surgeon With the Northwestern Medicine Bluhm Cardiovascular Institute specializing in complex heart reconstruction – in a press release.
“It is extremely rare to see this type of tumor invading the major blood vessels of the heart.”
“We might see something like this once every few years.”
The tumor caused Lauterbach – and her child – to suffer respiratory distress.
“In real trouble”
Lauterbach was airlifted to Northwestern Memorial Hospital in Chicago, where a large medical team was waiting for her.
“McKenna was in real trouble, and we had to act quickly — this was not something that could wait until Monday morning,” said Lynn Yee, MD. Maternal-fetal medicine Specialist at Northwestern Medicine, in this edition.
Although he was born three weeks early, little Coulter is today a thriving, happy baby. “For me, I'm still recovering emotionally and physically,” Lauterbach said. (McKenna Lauterbach)
“When you're pregnant with a baby who's due to term, your lungs aren't working at their full capacity, and when you add a huge tumor on top of that, you run the risk of respiratory collapse and cardiac arrest.”
The baby was not tolerating the contractions well and Lauterbach's contractions blood pressure He was backing down.
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The team performed an emergency caesarean section, and on Easter Sunday, a healthy baby boy, named Colten, was born.
“Shocking news”
After giving birth, it is time to treat the tumor.
“The tumor was located above McKenna's heart and extending into the right lung, affecting all three lobes and the entire main trunk of the pulmonary artery,” said Calvin Long, MD, a thoracic surgeon at Northwestern Medicine Canning Thoracic Institute. release.
Doctors performed a biopsy and diagnosed Lauterbach's condition Stage 3 skin cancer.
The Lauterbach family lives on a farm in Washburn, Illinois. McKenna Lauterbach first experienced severe coughing attacks and shortness of breath when caring for horses and goats. (McKenna Lauterbach)
Doctors believe she may have had skin cancer at some point, and that “a cell or two escaped” and began growing inside her body.
“It was really amazing news,” Lauterbach told Fox News Digital. “When I first got the diagnosis, I had an experience Roller coaster of emotions“.
“I was grieving the birth plan I had spent months preparing, while also dealing with the news of my unexpected diagnosis.”
After initially being relieved to get an answer, she said she felt a little angry that her symptoms had been ignored earlier. Then there was the fear of Cancer itself.
“Because of the tumor, the birth went very quickly,” she said. “I was grieving over the birth plan I had spent months preparing, while also dealing with the news of my unexpected diagnosis.”
“My condition was serious, and while I was there Clinical team “I was working on a treatment plan for my cancer, and it was comforting to know that the NICU nurses (at Northwestern) were taking such wonderful care of our son.”
Take life-saving measures
The team at Northwestern recommended Lauterbach submit Three courses of immunotherapy Before surgery, which helped shrink the tumor by 30%.
Dr. Long and Dr. Mehta removed Lauterbach's entire right lung, parts of the main pulmonary artery, and lymph nodes.
Pictured are the Lauterbach family, from left to right, Dr. Calvin Long, registered nurse Mary Schussler, and Dr. Lin Yi. (northwestern medicine)
“The surgery was risky compared to other cancer surgeries because of the need for cardiopulmonary bypass and the need to repair the main artery to both lungs, but it was performed under very safe conditions and with well-tried techniques,” Dr Long said. Fox News Digital.
“We were worried that even with Extent of surgeryHe continued: “We will not be able to completely remove the tumor.”
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If the tumor has grown a little further into the main artery to the lungs, or if it has already occurred Involves the heartThe result would have been different.
But the surgery was successful, and Lauterbach's latest scans showed no evidence of metastatic melanoma.
Coulter Lauterbach is photographed with Santa before his first Christmas. (McKenna Lauterbach)
“Her outcome was very good,” Dr. Long told Fox News Digital. He added: “She has recovered almost completely from the surgery, and her main problem is shortness of breath, resulting from the presence of only one lung.”
“In terms of the cancer prognosis, we expect it to be very good, given that the entire tumor responded to the virus Immunotherapy “She received.”
“New normal”
Today, even though he was born three weeks early, little Coulter Lauterbach is a happy, thriving baby.
“For me, I'm still recovering emotionally and physically,” McKenna Lauterbach said. “My lung capacity is approaching a new normal for me and I'm finally starting to get back into some sort of normal routine.”
“There are some days when bad memories and the unknown haunt my thoughts.”
Looking ahead, Lauterbach will continue immunotherapy for a year, and doctors will continue to do so CT scan monitoring To ensure that the cancer does not return.
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Doctors say her cancer is currently considered “stable,” meaning no new tumors have appeared.
The new mother, who turned 27 in October, said she was looking forward to the birth of her son First birthday On the farm.
McKenna and Parker Lauterbach pictured with their son Colter after he was born by emergency cesarean section. (McKenna Lauterbach)
“Emotionally, I do my best not to let reality affect me, but there are some days when bad memories and the unknown haunt my thoughts,” she said.
“Coulter and my amazing husband Parker are the ones who gave me the strength to get through everything.”
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For other women, Lauterbach emphasized the importance of “Know your body“.
“If you know something is wrong, don't take 'I don't know' for an answer. Find someone who will take your concerns seriously and prefer to do additional testing just in case, rather than pass up the opportunity,” she advised. “Something life-threatening.”
