Cancer can be treated safely during pregnancy, says maternal-fetal specialist

Elyce Cardonick, a maternal-fetal medicine physician and founder of the Cancer and Pregnancy Registry, argues that pregnant cancer patients are often urged to terminate their pregnancies even though many cancers can be treated safely during gestation.

She recounts two cases of ovarian cancer diagnosed in pregnancy. One woman carrying twins received immediate diagnostic imaging and chemotherapy while pregnant; both twins are now adults and the mother remains healthy. The other woman’s treatment was postponed until the third trimester, and she died shortly after her child’s second birthday.

Cardonick stresses that clinical guidelines and research support managing cancer without automatically ending a pregnancy. She urges doctors to base decisions on evidence rather than a knee-jerk approach, allowing patients to consider both their health and their pregnancy.