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It was on Instagram that presenter Virgilia Hess, pregnant with her first child, announced that she had breast cancer. What support is recommended? When is a termination of pregnancy considered? The answers of Florence Coussy, gynecological oncologist at the Institut Curie.
Only a few months into her pregnancy, Virgilia Hess learned that she had HER2 positive breast cancer. Dark news, which she has chosen to share with her community, in order, she says, “to raise awareness”.
Cancer was detected “thanks to pregnancy”
While she was absent from the sets since October, Virgilia Hess decided to speak on Instagram this Wednesday, February 15.
“Summer 2022, 32 years old, I learned that I was going to be a mom for next spring, my life was going to change! This finally changed earlier than expected, a month ago, when I learned that I had HER2 positive breast cancer. A baby and cancer… I carried both life and disease. Two completely contradictory things…“, reveals the presenter.
If she assures live”the worst moments of all (his) life“, it was nevertheless thanks to her pregnancy that the cancer was detected: a HER2 positive breast cancer, more aggressive and more likely to spread than a HER2 negative breast cancer.
On this subject, Virgilia Hess does not want either “pity” or “compassion” from viewers.
“I think witnessing is important to raise awareness. Yes, it can happen at any age, to anyone“, she writes.
She also reveals that she is ready to fight, even if the hardest part is yet to come.
“I am in any case determined to heal and to fight with all my strength even if the fear, the physical and moral pain, the tears, the anger, the feeling of injustice, the very heavy treatments, the view of my body change (hair loss, among others) come to tarnish my daily life“.
Pregnancy and breast cancer: what treatment?
First important point: cancers diagnosed during pregnancy “are relatively infrequent”, specifies Dr. Coussy.
In France, it is estimated that there is approximately 1 breast cancer for 3000 pregnancies, which would represent 200 to 300 cases per year.
Another good news: in the vast majority of cases, cancers are treated optimally.
“Pregnant women with breast cancer receive exactly the same doses of chemotherapy as others. The only difference is that this treatment cannot be done at the beginning of pregnancy, because it is a source of fetal malformations. It is therefore necessary to wait until the second trimester to start chemotherapy.“, specifies the gynecologic oncologist. “Surgery can be considered at all stages of pregnancy. The only case that is complex is when the cancer is not operable, and chemotherapy cannot be performed in early pregnancy. In this situation, in order not to endanger the mother, termination of pregnancy is considered..”
As for radiotherapy, it is to be avoided throughout pregnancy – and is only prescribed after delivery.
“In the specific case of this woman, suffering from HER2 positive breast cancer, surgery and chemotherapy remain the indicated treatments. However, trastuzumab, a monoclonal antibody specific to HR2, cannot be administered because it can cause abnormalities in the fetus. This treatment should therefore be started after childbirth.“, emphasizes the expert. “The baby and the mother are also the subject of multidisciplinary care. The oncologist and the obstetrician work hand in hand, and these women – like their companions – are very well accompanied psychologically.”
A complete care therefore, which ensures the good health of the mother and the baby.
“There are no more fetal malformations in these patients“, concludes Dr. Coussy.