Lydia Dutcher and her husband, Matthew, were enjoying the early newborn days with their son, Theo, when she got an unexpected call from her doctor on Feb. 14, 2024.
Lydia, a nurse at UW Health, immediately worried there was something wrong with Theo’s newborn tests. Instead, her primary care physician, Dr. Danielle Hartwig, said testing of her placenta revealed a tumor from a rare, aggressive cancer, which can occur during pregnancy, called choriocarcinoma.
“It was crazy,” said Lydia, who was 28 at the time. “It was definitely not at all what I was expecting her to say.”
Choriocarcinoma forms in the cells that help an embryo attach to the uterus and form the placenta. It can spread to other areas of the mother’s body as well as to the baby. Signs of the cancer include unusual vaginal bleeding, pelvic pain, lung issues and higher levels of the pregnancy hormone HCG without a pregnancy.
This was the first time Hartwig, a family medicine doctor, had seen a patient with this diagnosis.
“It’s not something that’s common by any means,” Hartwig said. “I took some time to read everything [in scientific literature] I could find on it before I called Lydia so I could give her some answers about what next steps looked like.”
Additional tests and imaging showed that Lydia had multiple small tumors throughout her lungs. Luckily, Theo was healthy and cancer-free.
Lydia began her care with Dr. Lisa Barroilhet, a gynecologic oncologist at UW Health | Carbone Cancer Center. Lydia’s case was unusual because she had a normal pregnancy and a healthy son. Patients are usually diagnosed with choriocarcinoma after a miscarriage or pregnancy complications, Barroilhet said.
“It’s less common after a healthy, normal pregnancy and birth,” she said.
Barroilhet and clinic staff empathized with Lydia, who should’ve been experiencing a joyful new chapter in her life instead of facing cancer.
"She's a new mom. This is already such a hard time in her life," Barroilhet said. "She had this amazing pregnancy and has this amazing son and now is going to have to really derail what we all imagine our postpartum maternity time to be like — those hopes and dreams you have for that time.”
A difficult treatment for a new family
While it’s a highly curable form of cancer, the treatment is hard on patients, Barroilhet said.
She started Lydia on a regimen of five different chemotherapy drugs. Every other week, Lydia had to stay inpatient for one night to manage the effects of three chemotherapy drugs given at that time. The remaining two chemotherapies could be given outpatient the following week. Lydia also had to have injections to boost her immune system throughout the chemotherapy process.
Lydia was grateful Matthew and Theo could stay at the hospital with her during those overnight chemotherapy treatments.
“The hospital staff were so cute. They made up a bassinet for us every time,” Lydia said. “It was really sweet.”
Lydia’s treatment lasted 10 weeks, and though she is considered cured, she continues to be monitored monthly for any new growth. While Lydia is at a slightly elevated risk of recurrence with future pregnancies, it’s still unlikely she will develop choriocarcinoma again, Barroilhet said.
Support, celebration and perspective
Lydia and Matthew said they were blessed with strong support from their family and friends as they navigated newborn care and cancer treatments.
“When they say ‘it takes a village’ for a baby, that’s true. But with a baby, and with cancer and chemo, and my husband still having to work — we had so much help — and I could not have gotten through any of it without all of our people,” Lydia said. “I’m just so thankful for everyone.”
The couple celebrated Theo’s first birthday and Lydia’s good health this past February, including a big birthday party with family and friends and a special family vacation to Florida. Lydia felt many emotions as she reflected on her and Theo’s milestones.
“While cancer was the hardest thing I’ve ever had to go through, it’s given me a new perspective,” she said. “I’ve learned to appreciate the small things and to find gratitude in every situation.”