“I was a labor and delivery nurse,” said Brier, 34. “So I knew it wasn’t all rainbows and sunshine when it came to pregnancy and birth.” But what happened next was a real surprise, even for the nurse. “Once I got the bearings, it all flipped,” she said.
Brier learned she had a rare complication known as a molar pregnancy.As Description of the Mayo ClinicMolecular pregnancies are usually caused by atypically fertilized eggs and come in two types: complete molars (when the fetus is absent) and partial molars (when the fetus is present but incompatible with life). Molecular pregnancies require treatment and monitoring because they can develop rare forms of cancer. Of her own experience, Briar said: Then she’s like, “Surprisingly, this is actually a molar pregnancy!” And I said, “Surprisingly, it’s cancer!” It was really hard. Here, Briar and her two other women talk about molar pregnancies…
Briar, 34
Dallas, Texas – Fort Worth
I found out I was pregnant in September 2018. Her husband was deployed three days later. My first OB/GYN visit went fine, but then I couldn’t find a fetal heartbeat around 11 or 12 weeks. It was devastating.
had D&C I bled quite badly. My OB/GYN suspected it might be a molar pregnancy and sent the tissue to pathology for analysis. However, the pathology results were negative for a molar pregnancy. The obstetrics and gynecologist said that I might not get my period for a while because I was bleeding, but if you still don’t get your period after 3 months, please make an appointment.
It’s been 3 months and I haven’t had my period. I was hospitalized again. She had a transvaginal ultrasound, which revealed a molar pregnancy despite her pathology report.We decided it was the best course of action another D&C and monitor my hormone levels from there. This second her D&C was expected to remove all remaining molar tissue and bring my hormone levels down to pre-pregnancy levels. it didn’t happen. My hormone levels actually spiked after my second D&C.
A gestational trophoblastic tumor was diagnosed. Basically, the molar tissue had become cancerous and required oncology treatment. A few weeks later I had my first dose at a cancer center. And finally, an attendant comes over and asks me a strange question. Ultimately, they revealed a big surprise: In essence, my cancer had healed on its own.
This type of cancer usually requires chemotherapy before it goes away, but mine went away on its own. I’m out of luck. The fact that a partial molar pregnancy turned cancerous was very rare to begin with. Partial said he had a 1% chance of getting cancer. Should I buy a lottery ticket because all these rare things are happening to me?
The whole thing was very unsettling. I had to have blood drawn over the next few months to keep my HCG levels from skyrocketing again. About a year after I first found out I was pregnant, I finally had all the clarity on the health side.
I soon became pregnant again. Especially in my first first trimester, I was very nervous waiting to make sure it wasn’t another molar pregnancy. But frankly, the idea of going through that and potentially having another molar pregnancy is really daunting.
Alison, 34
Athens, Georgia
Last summer my husband and I decided to stop birth control. I took a pregnancy test on New Year’s Eve and it was positive immediately. There are stories in movies and TV about women taking pregnancy tests and sitting there waiting for the results. So I took two more and they were positive too. The women in my family had such a hard time getting pregnant that I always thought that was my story too.
I had morning sickness and was exhausted. When I went to my OB/GYN at 9 weeks, they said they were going to do a vaginal ultrasound. The tech said he could send me a photo and text it to family and friends. I was so excited when I walked into that room for the ultrasound. oh my god we go see our babyThe technician was doing his job and suddenly said, “There’s nothing there.”
As soon as it came out of her mouth, I think she realized she shouldn’t have said it. I started sobbing. Her husband also cried. The technician left the room to call the doctor. It felt like the cruelest prank my body could play.
Since it was my first visit, I had never met the doctor. Thankfully she was incredibly kind and gracious.She was pretty confident it was a molar pregnancy which I had never heard of. I had blood work done to confirm and when it came back they scheduled me a D&C. No one knew what a molar pregnancy was, so it was difficult to tell people what happened. teeth Mayo Clinic webpage.
There was a fear that once I let go of my emotions, I would not be able to control them. So I was holding back a lot by just focusing on what I needed to do and where I needed to go. As she was leaving, she said, “I am so sorry you lost this pregnancy. I started crying again, and the nurse hurriedly said, “What’s wrong? Where does it hurt? It’s not physical.” “It’s emotional.”
Our friends and family were so wonderful. They supported us both by sending flowers and cooking meals. A friend texted me that she was so sorry to hear this news and was really looking forward to seeing us as parents. That text stuck with me.
I had full molars, so I had this weird impostor syndrome around my grief. When I told her friend about it, she said. I know you have a big imagination.
My doctor said there is a 15% chance of getting cancer if you have a total molar pregnancy. His 15% hot fudge coverage on your sundaes isn’t a lot, but when that number is cancer-related, it suddenly feels huge.
So I have weekly blood tests to monitor my HCG levels, the pregnancy hormone that spikes in molar pregnancies. , my hormone count nearly doubled, so I made an appointment with a gynecological oncologist.
Yesterday I received a formal diagnosis of gestational trophoblastic disease and will begin 4-6 weeks of chemotherapy. After this round, I have a 95% chance of going back to ‘normal’. So fingers crossed, it’s just going to be a bad month and my husband and I can move on (after 6 months of monitoring to make sure everything is going ). But we take things day by day.
Erika, 27 years old
Canada, Ottawa
My husband and I got married in 2019 and soon became pregnant with our son. By January 2021 she was ready to conceive with her second child and conceived quickly. My HCG levels were a little high and I gained weight quickly during my second pregnancy.
I had an 8 week ultrasound and there was a gestational sac but no embryo.They told me to come back in a week.When I was 7 weeks my son I was pretty hopeful since this happened to me. Nothing, but I came back 5 days later and was able to see the embryo.
My husband came with me for a follow up and I remember the poor technique looking so uncomfortable. I asked if there was a heartbeat and she just said no. she was overwhelmed.
After that, I left my doctor a voicemail asking for a prescription to hasten the miscarriage. The next day she called me back. I expected her to say “send her prescription”. Instead, she said, “Not only was I not pregnant, I actually had a tumor.” So I got a D&C and found out it was a total molar pregnancy. For me, it was reassuring because it actually meant I wouldn’t even have a baby.
I was pretty lucky as it only took 9 weeks for my HCG levels to return to zero. As soon as I tried, I got pregnant and now I have a girl.
Thank you to these women who shared their stories and sent big hugs to those who needed them today. XO XO
PS Learn more about infertility, including three women talking about miscarriages and how to help a friend struggling with infertility.
(Photo credit: BONNINSTUDI/Stocksy)
