Jya Banks had just fallen pregnant when she discovered a lump on her neck.
She suspected it may have been a side effect from her In Vitro Fertilisation (IVF) treatment but, after two ultrasounds and two biopsies, she was diagnosed with Hodgkin’s Lymphoma.
“It was very scary, we obviously didn’t know what that meant for the pregnancy,” she said.
“But we met with a doctor and he said, ‘You can still get treated and keep the baby’. There were lots of tears.”
The 27-year-old began treatment in February, 15 weeks into her pregnancy, undergoing chemotherapy every second Friday with her wife Betha by her side.
Ms Banks gave birth to their healthy baby boy Harvey three weeks ago.
The pair has now celebrated another key milestone, completing Ms Banks’ final chemotherapy treatment at Sunshine Coast University Hospital.
“Harvey’s been so good, he was small – 2.2 kilograms – but he had all the tests and only had one night in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) when we were expecting it to be up to a week,” she said.
“We are so lucky and have been able to get some sleep.”
Ms Banks’ wife Betha said the pair remained positive throughout, but credited their family and friends for helping them through the hard times.
“The unknown was pretty bad. It was a bit of a rollercoaster,” she said.
“We have a saying: you can’t live a positive life with a negative mind.”
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Ms Banks will continue to have regular check-ups at SCUH and encouraged others to see their doctor if they suspect something isn’t right.
“When we were waiting for the results we were googling what it could be and it did mention cancer and we thought well it’s definitely not that,” she said.
“Definitely don’t ignore it. Get yourself checked.”
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Sunshine Coast Health Haematology clinical nurse consultant Alana Phillips said it was exciting to farewell their patient.
“Jya’s story is a real story of hope, not just for people receiving chemotherapy, but young people and young mums,” she said.
“It was really nice to see multiple departments come together and have a really tailored approach for both her and her family and ensuring her little man was safe during that process.”
