news

"It's you or the baby": With those words, Laura was forced into the most agonising choice.

Laura Schram was 20 weeks pregnant when she heard the words no one wants to hear: ‘You have cancer’.

The Victorian mum was diagnosed with deadly stomach cancer just before Christmas last year.

Doctors advised the 27-year-old to have surgery to remove her aggressive and unpredictable stomach cancer immediately, forcing her to choose between her own life and that of her unborn child’s.

Image via Facebook.

"The [doctor] said, 'I think we need to look after you and move ahead with this surgery as soon as possible'" Laura, from Geelong, told 7 News.

"I just said, 'No, that's my baby'".

Laura - already a mum to Jasper, 3, and Ivy, 1 - knew that she was a carrier of the rare CDH1 gene, which gives her an 80 per cent chance of developing the deadly disease.

She and her fiancé, Cam Alford, made the heartbreaking decision to postpone her potentially life-saving surgery for three months, to give their new baby the best possible chance of survival.

laura ultrasound
Image via 7 News.
ADVERTISEMENT

Laura will be induced when her baby is 32 weeks. Her stomach will be completely removed in surgery just six days later, in little over a month.

"I made the decision to give the baby as much time as possible but not too much that I felt uncomfortable for my own health," she told 7 News.

Writing on her blog, The Gutsy Mummy, Laura admitted she is "devastated" for her baby.

Laura with her fiancé Cam and their two children. Image via Facebook.

"I’m devastated for you that your first few months of life will be so different to what they should have been. I’m frightened that you will be ripped out before you're ready," she wrote.

"I'm heartbroken that mummy can't keep you safe for longer. I'm saddened by the fact that I will have to leave you at the hospital. I'm terrified that I may not see you for a week. I'm scared that I won’t be there when you need me the most.

"I'm confused as to why this is happening now. I am worried that my decisions will impact you forever."

Her friends and family have set up a GoFundMe page to help the young family with medical bills and support during and after Lauren's surgery.

The fundraiser has so far raised over $7,000 of its $10,000 goal.