A Quebec woman is fighting a fierce battle against metastatic cancer of unknown origin discovered shortly after the birth of her son, whom she hopes to see grow up.
“To give life, then to rub shoulders with death wondering how long you are going to be with your child, it is difficult”, sighs Marie-Eve Arsenault, contacted by The newspaper.
The 38-year-old expected to be blissfully happy when she gave birth last August. After she had an easy pregnancy, her son, Thom-Elliot, was born healthy.
Photo provided by Marie-Eve Arsenault
The 38-year-old new mum had just given birth to baby Thom-Elliot when she was diagnosed with an unknown cancer.
But a few weeks later, she had to be hospitalized for high fever and severe anemia. A situation that worsened rapidly, despite medication and blood transfusions.
“The click happened when I told them that I had to go see the physio for leg pain,” says the communications consultant.
It was then that the doctors took a scan and detected two masses, one of which was about ten centimeters in diameter.
Cancer unknown
Shortly, Marie-Eve Arsenault found herself under the knife to have her cancerous tumors removed. Unfortunately, the disease had already made its way into the lymphatic channel, creating metastases on the lymph nodes.
The doctors then ruled that it was a high-grade cancer, but they were unable to determine the type.
“When they removed the masses, they sent samples to an authority in Boston. And even he couldn’t put his finger on it,” explains the new mother.
Photo provided by Marie-Eve Arsenault
Marie-Eve Arsenault hopes that the DNA test she has to take in the United States will allow her to find a treatment to spend many years alongside her husband, Michaël Pelletier, and their child.
The latter specialist, however, was able to narrow the pool of potentially responsible cancers down to two broad categories: sarcomas and carcinomas.
A combined treatment of two chemotherapies was then quickly initiated to attempt a “broad spectrum” attack of the disease. But the results are far from guaranteed, in the impossibility of targeting the strain.
wind of hope
M’s last hopeme Arsenault lies in a DNA test that is only done in the United States and costs more than $10,000. A process that she will begin in the coming days, thanks to a fundraising campaign that has enabled her to raise nearly $21,000.
“In my case, we are not talking about the possibility of remission. But I could live with dormant cancer for years if we can target the right molecule,” she says hopefully.
“In the meantime, I try to see the bright side of things by telling myself that it allows me to spend more time with my son at home,” adds M.me Arsenault, who wants his fight to at least advance research for the next victims of his unknown cancer.
A whirlwind of events
- August 2022: Delivery of her son, Thom-Elliot
- September 2022: Intense fever and discovery of severe anemia
- October 2022: Discovery of the two masses and lymph node metastases. An operation to remove the two tumors in the leg is necessary.
- November 2022: Unable to find the type of cancer, Marie-Eve Arsenault has to undergo a combined treatment of two chemotherapies simultaneously.
- December 2022: Primary tumor cells sent to a US lab for DNA testing that may uncover the cancer molecule to attack
What is a sarcoma?
- Soft tissue or bone cancer
- There are more than 50 subtypes for soft tissue sarcoma.
- Nearly 300 people receive this diagnosis in Quebec each year.
- It accounts for 1% of all newly diagnosed cancers in adults.
What is a carcinoma?
- Cancer of the skin or mucous membranes
- It accounts for at least 40% of all new cancer cases in Canada
The most common types are:
- basal cell carcinoma, which starts in cells in the outer layer of the skin;
- squamous cell carcinoma, which is more likely to invade deep into the skin and spread.
Sources: Government of Quebec and Canadian Cancer Society