A pregnant mum-to-be due to give birth in a matter of hours has shared her heartbreak after her husband was suddenly diagnosed with terminal brain cancer.
Christina Lee, 33, and Eric Chartrand, 40, were overjoyed to be expecting a baby less than two years after marrying in a fairy tale wedding on Sydney Harbour.
But their world came crashing down when Eric was diagnosed with stage four glioblastoma just weeks before they welcomed their first child.
The inoperable and incurable form of brain cancer gives sufferers an average life expectancy of just 12 months.
Nine months pregnant Christina – who spoke to Daily Mail Australia between contractions two and a half hours into her labour – is desperate for the chance to make memories as a family.
Their hopes are pinned on an expensive experimental treatment at a clinic in rural Germany, where they plan to relocate with their newborn in February.
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Christina Lee and Eric Chartrand (pictured) were overjoyed to be expecting their first child, less than two years after marrying in a fairy tale wedding on Sydney Harbour
Their world came crashing down when Eric was diagnosed with stage four glioblastoma – an incurable form of brain cancer (pictured, the couple on their wedding day)
Eric started to complain about a stiff neck and fleeting headaches in July, but it wasn’t until October 3 that he suspected something sinister was at play when his left hand suddenly went numb while driving home from the beach.
Sensation returned after a few minutes, but two days later his vision went blurry and dots appeared in front of his eyes as he ate dinner at a city restaurant.
A visit to his GP provoked sufficient concern that Eric was referred for scans and further testing.
Just one week later on October 12, an MRI revealed the cause of his distress – grade four glioblastoma tumours, growing in three areas across the left side of his brain.
‘I can’t even describe how I felt that day,’ a devastated Christina said.
Christina says she will do ‘anything’ to get more time with her beloved husband (pictured together)
‘I can’t even describe how I felt that day,’ Christina said of Eric’s diagnosis (pictured, the mum-to-be heavily pregnant and taking a walk on Bondi Beach)
The couple were shopping at Bunnings, weeks before Eric’s diagnosis, when he spotted a ladybug-shaped sprinkler and held it aloft to his expectant digital marketing manager wife.
He told her it reminded him of childhood days playing with his father in the garden.
It seemed insignificant at the time, but the moment now plays on a reel in Christina’s head.
‘I want our baby to reach milestones and make memories,’ she said.
‘I want them to run around on a hot summer’s day with their dad. I don’t want to be greedy but if I could just get Eric to that point, it would mean the world.’
In the days after the earth-shattering news, Christina endured the ‘darkest period’ of her life, a mental low she ‘never thought’ she would experience.
‘At that point I didn’t even want to be pregnant,’ she said.
Nine months pregnant Christina (pictured) is desperate for the chance to make memories as a family
But in the weeks since, the brave mother-to-be has come to see her child as a ‘miracle’.
‘It’s a gift that we fell pregnant before this happened. It’s a part of Eric,’ she said.
The pandemic has robbed the couple of the support they would otherwise have had from Eric’s family, who live 16,000km west in his hometown of Montreal, Canada.
His 75-year-old father is ‘desperate’ to come over, but borders and the threat of the virus mean he has no choice but to watch his son’s heartbreaking battle from half way around the world.
‘It’s been devastating,’ Christina said.
In the days after the shattering news, Christina endured the ‘darkest period’ of her life, a mental low she ‘never thought’ she’d experience (pictured, the couple on their wedding day)
Eric has just started a six-week course of chemotherapy and radiation to shrink the tumours in preparation for treatment in Europe (pictured, Eric in hospital)
With the risk of removing the tumours too great, Eric’s hopes are now pinned on a clinic in Duderstadt, a small town of 22,000 in central Germany which offers experimental courses of immunotherapy designed to help the immune system to fight cancer by itself.
He has just started a six-week course of chemotherapy and radiation to shrink the tumours in preparation for treatment in Europe.
Facing an incredibly difficult road ahead, Christina launched a crowdfunding campaign to raise money for Eric’s care and their new life in a strange country.
‘I’m nervous because of Covid, the European winter, our baby being so young, all of it to be honest,’ she said.
Donations – which have surpassed $78,330 at the time of writing – will be used to pay for the immunotherapy which could prolong his life and give him the chance to make precious memories with his firstborn child.
A fit and healthy Eric is pictured after completing a half Iron Man challenge in March, weeks before the pandemic was declared
The initial course, which runs for four to six months, will cost the couple $80,000.
Follow-ups will set them back just over $8,000 per session and doctors predict that Eric will need four each year if treatment is successful.
There are no guarantees, but the chance of more time is a risk they are willing to take.
‘Hope is the most important thing,’ Christina said.
The couple’s hopes are now pinned on a clinic in Duderstadt, a small town of 22,000 in central Germany which offers experimental courses of immunotherapy designed to help the immune system to fight cancer by itself (pictured, the couple on a holiday)
Eric is one of roughly 1,879 Australian citizens diagnosed with a brain tumour each year, government health data shows.
Although annual figures for glioblastoma patients are not regularly recorded, a 2013 report lists 982 new cases in Australia.
Warning signs include headaches, fatigue and light sensitivity as well as nausea, vomiting, double vision and confusion.
But as Eric’s story shows, the disease can progress insidiously with scarcely any symptoms.
When glioblastoma has advanced to level four, patients are given a prognosis of just 12 to 14 months.
On that projection, Eric will not live to see his ‘miracle’ baby’s first birthday.
Facing an incredibly difficult road ahead, Christina launched a crowdfunding campaign to raise money for Eric’s care and their new life in a strange country
Christina (pictured with Eric in South America) urges others to take notice of changes in their bodies, no matter how insignificant they may seem
Christina believes the lack of progressive oncology treatments available in Australia highlights fundamental shortages in the country’s healthcare sector, primarily in allocation of government funding.
‘It’s really frustrating,’ she says of the limited experimental treatments available in Australia.
The first-time mum urges others to take notice of changes in their bodies, no matter how insignificant they may seem, and says the devastating experience of Eric’s illness has taught her to prioritise health over everything else.
‘If a doctor can’t figure it out, get a second opinion and push for more tests. Don’t take no for an answer,’ she said.
‘I was always the kind of person who pushed back appointments. You forget what’s important. Now every day more that we can get means the world to me.’
For more information on glioblastoma and other types of brain tumours, please visit the Australian Cancer Council or Brain Foundation.
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