Maternal and fetal outcomes of malignancies diagnosed during pregnancy: a single center's ten-year experiences

Purpose: The most common cancers seen during pregnancy in the present center, their treatment modalities, and effect of chemotherapy on mother and fetus were investigated. Materials and Methods: Eleven patients diagnosed with cancer during pregnancy. received treatment while they were pregnant or after birth were included and retrospectively analyzed. Results: The most common pregnancy-related cancer was breast cancer (36.3%), followed by hematological malignancies (27.2%), malign melanoma (9%), gastric cancer (9%), lung cancer (9%), and sarcoma (9%). Median age of the patients was 34 (21-48) years. Chemotherapy regimens were administered to six of 11 patients in the second and third trimesters. Half of these patients (n=3) were breast cancer, and the other half (n=3) were lymphoma patients. Three babies who had exposure to chemotherapy because of hematological malignity were born prematurely. also one of the babies had intrauterine growth retardation. Pregnant women with breast cancer had healthy babies at term. Malign melanoma patient did not received chemotherapy with her own wish during her pregnancy, again with her own wish she gave birth with cesarean section (C/S) at the 36(th) week of her pregnancy, and treatment was begun after birth. Pregnancies of a gastric cancer patient diagnosed at metastatic stage and a lung cancer patient were ended with prematurity. Chemotherapy was started after birth in these patients. Five of the patients had normal birth, and five had birth with C/S. Conclusions: No major maternal toxicities were observed in mothers who were received chemotherapy during pregnancy. No fetal malformations were observed in any of the babies.