Komen For The Cure: Conceiving After Chemotherapy
MIAMI (CBS4) - A breast cancer diagnosis is heartbreaking enough, but for a young woman still building her family, that diagnosis can shatter dreams of a house full of kids.
Valerie Bunt is every bit the happy mom to her daughter Alyssa an adorable and active toddler.
"I think she's kind of like my driving force, she makes it easier on me," said Bunt.
Valerie has breast cancer. She's had a double mastectomy and she's just 26 years old.
"I'll begin chemo in a few weeks and then I'll have radiation therapy and then I'll go on hormonal therapy," said Bunt.
For 5 years doctors have told Valerie that could end her hopes of having another child.
"And that hurt, you know, ten times, a hundred times, more than finding out that I had cancer," recalls Bunt.
Other doctors, like Maricer Escalon, tell women like Valerie not to lose hope.
"There are newer methods that we're developing to try and preserve fertility in women who have chemotherapy," said Dr. Escalon.
That's just what Valerie is counting on.
She and Alyssa's father want to freeze her eggs so they aren't affected by chemotherapy.
But it's not cheap.
Valerie got quotes of over $12,000.
"I cried and I cried and then I was like there has to be another option," said Bunt. "So I found it."
They found some grant money and a fertility doctor who would negotiate the cost and work quickly before Valerie had to start her treatment.
"The end goal is I would want to see my daughter grow up you know," said Bunt. "If I freeze my eggs to not be here in the future to use them, or to see my daughter grow up, then that's pointless."
Valerie's doctor was able to harvest several eggs before she had to start her chemo.
If you want to find out more about breast cancer in young women, or the organization that helped Valerie finance her fertility treatment, visit:
Breast Cancer Issues for Young Women
The organization that helped Valerie negotiate price of fertility treatment.
