An Indian mother who was suffering from cancer gave the ultimate sacrifice for her unborn child on Christmas day.
Sapna Tracy, 43, of Pavaratty, Thrissur, India, died Monday after battling breast cancer for several years, Manorama Online reports.
The mother of seven children, Sapna refused chemotherapy about two years ago while she was pregnant with her youngest daughter, Philomina, according to the report.
Her doctor had suggested an abortion at the time so she could begin chemotherapy; but Sapna bluntly refused.
“Just like me, the baby in my womb too has the right to live,” she told her doctor.
Her daughter now is 1 ½ years old. Sapna also leaves behind her husband and six other children up to age 15.
Here’s more from the report:
Sapna, who hailed from the Punnothu family in Thalayolaparambu, was working as a senior nursing officer at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences in Delhi when she was diagnosed with cancer. Soon, she went on a long medical leave and returned to her native place.
According to the relatives, despite her hectic schedule and the demanding nature of the job, Sapna always took good care of her children.
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She was a recipient of the Pro-Life award instituted by Faridabad Eparchy as part of the church’s anti-abortion campaigns.
Up until November, her family said she remained active. However, she became bedridden for the last month of her life, according to the report.
Earlier this year, an American mother also lost her battle with cancer after she refused treatment while pregnant with her unborn daughter. Carrie DeKlyen, 37, was diagnosed with glioblastoma, a terminal brain cancer, in April. Not long after that, she and her husband, Nick, discovered that they were pregnant with their sixth child, a baby girl.
WOOD TV reports Carrie refused to participate in a clinical trial that could have prolonged her life because doctors said she would have had to abort her unborn baby. Earlier this summer, she had a stroke and suffered major brain damage; she was in a coma and unresponsive when she gave birth to Life Lynn.
She died on Sept. 9, just two days after Life was born.
British mom Chelsea Nally and her unborn son both lived after she was diagnosed with cancer and refused abortion. Nally was diagnosed with breast cancer early in her pregnancy. Her doctors initially discussed abortion as an option for her unborn baby boy, Finley, but she refused. Later, when tests revealed that her cancer was limited to her left breast, the doctors did not push the idea, and Nally said she felt relieved.
She gave birth to a healthy baby boy on March 19. Nally believes her son saved her life because the pregnancy helped doctors detect the disease early.
“Holding him in my arms for the first time I felt like my biggest battle was over,” she said. “I couldn’t believe we had both survived pregnancy and chemo. He is my hero, even before he was born he had saved my life.”
