A brave young woman who was told she would never conceive a child after cancer treatment has given birth to a baby girl called “miracle”.
Annmarie Bowen was just 21 when she was diagnosed with stage three breast cancer and underwent gruelling chemotherapy.
Hairdresser Annmarie, from Abertysswg, even made a film of her recovery – showing a time-lapse of how she went from completely bald to sporting a head of dark curly locks.
The chemotherapy was expected to leave her infertile – but Annmarie was finally given the all-clear in March.
And now she is celebrating the birth of her first child – a 7lb 9oz baby girl called Pollyanna Mireille Williams – the middle name meaning “miracle”.
Annmarie, now 27, said: “These last six years have been a rollercoaster but I’m over the moon to have finally found such amazing happiness.
“Her middle name, Mireille, means miracle in French. She really is our little miracle.
“My family and friends have been so supportive throughout it all – I honestly couldn’t wish for a better family.
“Motherhood is the best thing in the world. It’s amazing how you can love something so little so much.”
Doctors say Annmarie should never have conceived because she was taking a hormone blocking medication called Tamoxifen to prevent her cancer returning.
She said: “Never in a million years did I expect to be told those four words: ‘Sorry, you’ve got cancer’ – especially at such a young age.
“I’d discovered quite a large lump and doctors kept saying I was too young for cancer and that it could be a cyst.
“But I was persistent and eventually the diagnosis came.
“It’s worrying to think what might have happened if I hadn’t kept calling. I’m so glad I trusted my instincts.”
Annmarie was referred for a mammogram, and a biopsy in May 2011 confirmed she had cancer.
She underwent a lumpectomy and started chemotherapy almost immediately to try to prevent any spread of the growth.
Annmarie said: “Chemo was the hardest and scariest part of having cancer. I felt so unwell, my hair fell out.
“And I was told that chemotherapy would very likely spoil my chances of ever having a child of my own.
“I was offered the option to freeze my eggs for the future but I was told it would delay my treatment for three months – another risk I wasn’t willing to take.
“I was told my tumour was growing very fast, so during that moment I had to put my own health before anything else.
“My only option was to hope, wish and pray that everything would be okay and work out for the best.”
She was praying to have a baby – but in 2015 Annmarie was dealt another devastating blow.
She had fallen pregnant with twins but sadly suffered a heterotopic pregnancy and lost both babies as well as one of her fallopian tubes.
Annmarie said: “It was a miracle I’d fallen pregnant. I was so happy.
“But then it felt like the odds were stacked against me again.
“Having one fallopian tube left gave me even less chance of conceiving.”
Then in March 2016 Annmarie was given the all clear from cancer.
And just a couple of weeks later she and boyfriend Lee Williams discovered she was pregnant again.
Annmarie said: “At first I found the pregnancy scary. I worried a lot because it was a miracle that me and my partner Lee got pregnant in the first place.
“Lee has been incredible, he knows everything about my past and has been so supportive.”