A Future Without Fear: Our IVF Journey

Our journey to growing our family has become something we never could have imagined.

When our son, Huey, was just 14 months old, our world was turned upside down when he was diagnosed with two rare cancers: choroid plexus carcinoma, a form of brain cancer, and adrenocortical carcinoma. What followed were months of chemotherapy, hospital stays, countless appointments, and moments no parent should ever have to experience.

Through his diagnosis, we discovered something that would forever change our family’s future. Huey has a rare genetic condition called Li-Fraumeni syndrome (LFS), which significantly increases a person’s lifetime risk of developing several types of cancer. Further genetic testing revealed that my husband, Hans, and our daughter, Ella, also carry this same genetic mutation.

In what felt like an instant, cancer became more than something our family had survived. It became something we would have to navigate for the rest of our lives.

Today, we are incredibly grateful that Huey has completed treatment and is doing well. Both of our children undergo lifelong cancer surveillance, including regular imaging and appointments, in hopes of catching anything concerning as early as possible. We are thankful for every clear scan and every ordinary day we get to spend together.

Despite everything our family has walked through, our hearts still have room for one more baby.

But growing our family naturally comes with the possibility of passing Li-Fraumeni syndrome on to another child. Each pregnancy carries a 50% chance of inheriting the mutation.

After speaking with genetic specialists and fertility doctors, we learned that IVF, combined with PGT-M, could give us the opportunity to have another child who does not inherit our family’s known LFS mutation.

For us, IVF isn’t about choosing the perfect baby. It’s about doing everything within our power to spare another child from the genetic cancer risk that has already changed our family’s lives.

Unfortunately, this opportunity comes with a significant financial burden. We have been quoted approximately $23,000–$27,000 for the IVF process, much of which we will have to pay out of pocket.

The funds we raise will go directly toward fertility consultations, bloodwork, ultrasounds, IVF medications, egg retrieval, embryo creation, specialized genetic testing for Li-Fraumeni syndrome, and hopefully an embryo transfer.

Every donation, no matter the amount, helps us move one step closer. Because IVF is largely self-pay, we must cover the costs of each stage before we can move forward. Your support will help make appointments, testing, medications, and treatment possible as we navigate this journey.

We know firsthand that there are no guarantees in life, and IVF itself comes with uncertainties. But we also know what it feels like to sit beside your child’s hospital bed, wishing you could take away everything they are enduring.

If we have the opportunity to give another child a beginning without this inherited cancer predisposition, we want to do everything we can to make that possible.

Whether you choose to donate, share our story, or simply keep our family in your prayers, we are deeply grateful.

Thank you for helping us turn some of our family’s hardest chapters into hope for a new beginning.

The Lehman Family 💛