A Chicago woman was just weeks away from giving birth when a torturous cough led to a shocking medical discovery.
MaKenna Lauterbach, then 26 years old, had been experiencing severe coughing attacks over the last three months her pregnancy.
“They would be so severe that I would feel dizzy 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 noticed shortness of breath while caring for her horses and goats.
“I give the horses hay every morning and noticed how unwell I became with the dry cough,” she said. “My body felt like I had just run two miles, when in reality I was just running to the barn and back.”
MaKenna Lauterbach, pictured with her husband Parker and their new baby Colter, has been diagnosed with stage three melanoma. (Northwestern Medicine)
Some doctors dismissed Lauterbach’s symptoms, she said, and kept telling her, “It’s because you’re pregnant.”
However, when the cough eventually led to vomiting, doctors performed scans and discovered a large, grapefruit-sized tumor in her middle chest cavity and right lung, completely blocking the artery to the right lung.
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“It is extremely rare for this type of tumor to invade the major blood vessels of the heart,” said Dr. Chris Mehta Heart surgeon with the Northwestern Medicine Bluhm Cardiovascular Institute, which specializes in complex heart reconstructions – in a press release.
“It is extremely rare for this type of tumor to invade the major blood vessels of the heart.”
“We see something like this maybe once every few years.”
The tumor had left Lauterbach – and her baby – in respiratory distress.
“In real trouble”
Lauterbach was flown to Northwestern Memorial Hospital in Chicago, where a large medical team was waiting for her.
“MaKenna was in real trouble and we had to act quickly – it couldn’t wait until Monday morning,” said Lynn Yee, MD, Maternal-Fetal Medicine Northwestern Medicine specialist, in the press release.
Although he was born three weeks earlier, little Colter is now a thriving, happy boy. “I myself am still recovering, emotionally and physically,” said Lauterbach. (MaKenna Lauterbach)
“If you’re pregnant with a baby that’s almost full term, your lungs are already not fully functioning, and if you add a huge tumor to the mix, you’re at risk of respiratory collapse and cardiac arrest.”
The baby didn’t tolerate the contractions and Lauterbach’s well Blood pressure was in descent.
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The team performed an emergency C-section – and a healthy baby boy, Colten, was born on Easter Sunday.
“Surprising news”
After delivery, it was time to treat the tumor.
“The tumor was located on MaKenna’s heart and extended into her right lung, affecting all three lobes and the entire main trunk of the pulmonary artery,” said Dr. Kalvin Lung, a thoracic surgeon at the Northwestern Medicine Canning Thoracic Institute, published the publication.
Doctors performed a biopsy and diagnosed Lauterbach Stage 3 melanoma.
The Lauterbach family lives on a farm in Washburn, Illinois. MaKenna Lauterbach first experienced severe coughing fits and shortness of breath while caring for the horses and goats. (MaKenna Lauterbach)
Doctors believe she may have had melanoma on her skin at some point and that “one or two cells escaped” and started growing in her body.
“It was really surprising news,” Lauterbach told Fox News Digital. “When I was first diagnosed, I went through one Roller coaster ride 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 feeling relieved by the response, she said she was somewhat upset that her symptoms had previously been dismissed. Then there was the fear of it the cancer itself.
“The delivery happened so quickly because of the tumor. I was grieving the birth plan I had spent months preparing while also dealing with the news of my unexpected diagnosis,” she said.
“My situation was serious, and while my clinical team As I worked on a plan to treat my cancer, it was reassuring to know that the NICU nurses (at Northwestern) were taking such wonderful care of our son.”
Take life-saving measures
The Northwestern team recommended that Lauterbach undergo an evaluation three cycles of immunotherapy before surgery that helped shrink her tumor by 30%.
Dr. Lung and Dr. Mehta removed Lauterbach’s entire right lung, part of the main pulmonary artery and her lymph nodes.
Pictured is the Lauterbach family with (from left to right) Dr. Kalvin Lung, the trained nurse Mary Schuessler and Dr. Lynn Yee. (Northwestern Medicine)
“The operation was risky compared to other cancer surgeries as it required cardiopulmonary bypass and repair of the main artery leading to both lungs. However, it was carried out under very safe conditions and using proven techniques,” said Dr. Lung Fox News Digital.
“We were worried that even with Extent of the operation“We wouldn’t be able to completely remove the tumor,” he continued.
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If the tumor had grown just slightly further into the main artery leading to the lungs, or if this were the case the heart involvedit would have been a different result.
But the surgery was a success and Lauterbach’s final scans showed no evidence of metastatic melanoma.
Colter Lauterbach is pictured with Santa Claus before his first Christmas. (MaKenna Lauterbach)
“Your result was very good,” said Dr. Lung told Fox News Digital. “She has almost completely recovered from the operation and her main problem is shortness of breath, which is due to the fact that she only has one lung.”
“As far as the cancer prognosis is concerned, we think it is quite good, assuming that the entire tumor has responded to the cancer.” Immunotherapy treatment she received.”
“New Normal”
Although he was born three weeks earlier, little Colter Lauterbach is now a thriving, happy boy.
“I myself am still recovering, emotionally and physically,” said MaKenna Lauterbach. “My lung capacity is approaching the ‘new normal’ for me and I’m finally starting to get back to some sort of normal routine.”
“There are days when the bad memories and the unknown haunt my thoughts.”
Looking forward, Lauterbach will continue immunotherapy treatments for another year, and doctors will continue to do so Monitor CT scans to make sure the cancer doesn’t come back.
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According to doctors, her cancer is currently considered a “stable disease,” meaning that 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 Christmas on the farm.
MaKenna and Parker Lauterbach are pictured with their son Colter after he was born via emergency cesarean section. (MaKenna Lauterbach)
“Emotionally, I try my best not to let reality weigh me down, but there are days when the bad memories and the unknown haunt my thoughts,” she said.
“Colter and my wonderful husband Parker gave me the strength to get through anything.”
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For other women, Lauterbach emphasized the importance of “Know your body.”
She advised: “If you know something is wrong, don’t take ‘I don’t know’ as an answer. Find someone who will take your concerns seriously and do additional testing just in case rather than miss something life-threatening.”
