‘Sweet’ mum, 33, dies after refusing cancer treatment so she could give birth to her baby boy she’d always wanted
A MUM-TO-BE made the impossible decision not to have chemotherapy to protect her unborn baby’s life.
Azzurra Carnelos was 33 years old and pregnant when she found out the breast cancer she thought she’d beaten had returned.
The senior financial analyst decided to go against her doctor’s advice to start chemotherapy so that she could carry her baby to term.
“The son she’d longed for,” according to her mum, called Antonio, was born in August 2023, but sadly Azzurra died eight months later.
The young Italian first discovered she had breast cancer in 2019 after dreaming her grandmother Nori – who had died from the disease years earlier – told her to get checked.
After her diagnosis, she began treatment, which put her cancer into remission.
In February 2022, Azzurra and her partner, Francesco Favero, tied the knot and started to make plans to start a family.
The very same month, the couple discovered they were pregnant.
Five months into the pregnancy, the mum received the heartbreaking news the cancer had returned.
Azzurra resumed her treatment last summer, but by then, it was too late.
She passed away in her home in Oderzo, Italy, on April 13.
She was “strong, sweet, and kind until the end,” the family told local media.
“She was a great mother and wife,” they added.
Cancer in pregnancy is rare – statistics suggest around one in 1,000 cases of breast cancer appear in pregnancy.
Data published in the British Medical Journal last year showed the average risk of dying from breast cancer in the five years after a diagnosis has fallen from 14 per cent to 5 per cent since the 1990s.
Chemo during pregnancy
Sometimes, cancer patients are required to start chemotherapy quickly to control the disease.
In this situation, a doctor may feel that it is best to end the pregnancy.
In early pregnancy, this might mean a termination while in the later stages this can mean might mean delivering the baby early.
Research shows that giving certain chemotherapy drugs after 14 weeks will not harm the baby.
During pregnancy, the placenta is like a barrier between the mum and the baby, according to Cancer Research.
Some drugs can pass through the placenta, and other drugs can’t.
The most up-to-date studies show that after 14 weeks, children exposed to chemotherapy don’t have any more problems than those who aren’t exposed.
The baby will have longer follow-ups to monitor their progress and check for any other possible risks.
What are the signs of breast cancer?
BREAST cancer is the most common type of cancer in the UK.
The majority of women who get it are over 50, but younger women and, in rare cases, men can also get breast cancer.
If it’s treated early enough, breast cancer can be prevented from spreading to other parts of the body.
Breast cancer can have a number of symptoms, but the first noticeable symptom is usually a lump or area of thickened breast tissue.
Most breast lumps aren’t cancerous, but it’s always best to have them checked by your doctor. You should also speak to your GP if you notice any of the following:
- a change in the size or shape of one or both breasts
- discharge from either of your nipples (which may be streaked with blood)
- a lump or swelling in either of your armpits
- dimpling on the skin of your breasts
- a rash on or around your nipple
- a change in the appearance of your nipple, such as becoming sunken into your breast
Source: NHS