Mother chooses to have child 12 weeks early to undergo chemotherapy

A 33-year-old British mother of three has been forced to make the choice no parent would want to make: saving her own life or saving her unborn child’s.

The Mirror reported that Heidi Loughlin, of Bristol, in southwest Britain, has decided to have her labor induced 12 weeks prior to what would’ve been a full-term pregnancy so she may begin aggressive treatment for a rare form of breast cancer. Loughlin had been breastfeeding her son Tait, who is 15 months old, when she discovered the rash that would lead doctors to diagnose her with the disease in September.

Upon receiving the diagnosis of inflammatory breast cancer, Loughlin, who also has a 2-year-old son, Noah, opted to undergo a less intensive form of treatment that wouldn’t endanger her unborn child. But after that treatment failed, doctors recommended more aggressive chemotherapy— compelling her to give birth early to avoid potentially harming the child she is carrying.

“This is absolutely terrifying,” Loughlin told the Mirror of her induced pregnancy, which is planned for Friday.

Equally horrifying, she said, was if she had opted to stay pregnant until New Year’s Eve as originally planned, there would have been a good chance the cancer would have already progressed too much to be cured.

"Realistically I've got to make a decision that encompasses everyone. I absolutely need to be here for my children,” Loughlin, who has documented her cancer battle on her personal blog, told the news website. "But I'm scared to my core about a baby born so early,” she added. “I am also scared that I may not get through this. Mostly I'm scared of doing the wrong thing."