Local woman defies odds: Overcomes cancer – twice – and celebrates miracle pregnancy
From Geisinger media
What started out as a pain in her side and an appendix removal in 2016 turned into a whole lot more for Columbia County native Emily Artman.
“When I went back for my follow-up after having my appendix removed, they asked if I had brought anyone with me to my appointment,” said Artman. “I was confused because I thought we were just going to talk about my appendix removal.”
During the routine appendectomy, Artman’s surgeon found primary peritoneal carcinoma, a type of cancer that starts growing in the peritoneum and can sometimes spread to other organs. After a direct referral to Geisinger women’s health, the multidisciplinary team decided a hysterectomy would be the best option to prevent further issues later in life.
The morning of her hysterectomy, Artman’s surgery team discussed removing anything that looked suspicious but keeping everything they could so that the Artman and her husband Ben could still plan for a future family. Geisinger surgeons found nothing cancerous during the surgery, but her care team suggested that Artman still complete three rounds of chemotherapy to minimize the reemergence of cancer in the future. But the Artmans learned that chemotherapy’s toll on the body would also drastically minimize their chances of having a baby naturally.
With 2016 behind her and a clean bill of health post treatment, Artman relished getting back to the daily grind of life. But her body had other plans when Artman started to feel sick in 2017. Thinking it was just lingering kidney stones, she made a doctor’s appointment, where she was asked to take a pregnancy test. Given her past cancer treatment, the result was quite a surprise.
“I was shocked to find out I was pregnant,” said Artman, who was immediately sent to maternal fetal medicine because her previous diagnosis made her a very high-risk pregnancy. “But I didn’t think my health would drastically change over the next nine months.”
Throughout her first two trimesters, Artman attended regular check-ins with her OBGYN but continued to experience fatigue. At the start of the third trimester a rash that Artman called “angry” developed on her arm. Given her past fight with peritoneal carcinoma, Artman underwent bloodwork, which indicated something was wrong.
“Emily was referred to hematology in April 2018 for evaluation of abnormal findings in her bloodwork including anemia and peripheral blasts, which indicates abnormal cancer cells,” said Jamie Weeder, CRNP, of the Geisinger hematology/oncology team. “Emily was 30 weeks pregnant at the time and was evaluated and sent for a bone marrow biopsy due to concerns of the potential for acute myeloid leukemia (AML).”
Diagnosed on a Friday, Artman was admitted to Geisinger Medical Center by the following Wednesday because she was no longer medically safe outside of a hospital environment. “Everything happened so quickly. One day I was fine, and the next I was being told I had to be induced and would be having my baby within the next few days,” she recalled.
Virginia Artman was born April 20, weighing in at 4 lbs. 10 ounces and measuring 17 inches long. She spent the next 3 ½ weeks in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) at Geisinger Janet Weis Children’s Hospital for monitoring.
When Virginia was discharged, her mom remained at Geisinger Medical Center to finish her treatment for AML. “Seeing my baby head home while I had to stay in the hospital was one of the hardest things for a mom,” Artman said.
During her time in the hospital, Artman received a 7+3 chemotherapy regimen, which consisted of 7 days of Daunorubicin and 3 days of Cytarabine. The first 2 days of the regimen are given together, and the last 4 days Artman received the remaining doses of Daunorubicin. “This is an intense regimen, which causes profound cytopenia (low blood counts) that increases the risk of life-threatening infections and bleeding,” said Weeder.
Artman was discharged in early May, but continued to receive platelets and blood transfusions, and go for routine labs and bloodwork. On August 22, Artman received her allogeneic matched-unrelated-donor hematopoietic stem cell transplant. “The hardest part of the entire transplant was not being able to take care of Virginia. I’m fortunate we have the kind of community we have. They played a huge part in helping with Virginia and making sure we were supported before, during and after treatment,” she said.
Throughout the first year of Virginia’s life, Artman received the same vaccinations as her daughter because the treatment for AML completely wiped her system of the vaccinations she received as a child. She jokes that her and Virginia’s immune systems are only a few months apart in age.
Since her battle with AML ended and she was deemed cancer free, Artman hasn’t missed a beat. In 2019, just a year after her transplant, Artman completed her first 5k, pushing Virginia in a stroller the entire way. This fall, Virginia has joined her local cheerleading squad, and Artman is happily cheering her on from the sidelines
“Emily has fought cancer twice and while I am sure there are times of frustration and struggle, she has endured. I have seen her strength through the first moment I met her and has had a positive effect on so many individuals that she has met throughout Hematology/Oncology at Geisinger, including myself,” said Weeder.
