Alex Sansom has gone through the hardest three weeks in her life, but she's full of gratitude and hope.
"We strongly believe our unborn baby has saved my life," said Mrs Sansom, of Warners Bay.
"If I hadn't fallen pregnant, who knows how long I would have gone without a diagnosis."
Mrs Sansom, 38, was diagnosed in late July with stage four bowel cancer that had spread to her liver.
She had surgery at Newcastle Private Hospital yesterday to remove part of her bowel, along with a quarter of her liver. The surgery went well.
She will meet with her oncologist in three weeks to discuss chemotherapy options.
"We don't know exactly what the road ahead looks like, but we're staying really positive and taking things one step at a time," she said.
"Our two little girls need their mummy, and that's what we're focused on."
She said her husband Luke Sansom had been "incredible".
"He's been to every appointment," she said.
The couple has two daughters, Sophia, 1, and Freya, 3.
"I know how much I need my mum. The thought of not being there for them is not an option," she said.
Mrs Sansom discovered she had cancer after having genetic testing on her unborn baby. She is 20 weeks pregnant.
"The baby came back fine, but my DNA indicated maternal malignancy. My obstetrician worked tirelessly to get to the bottom of it. We didn't know where to start," she said.
"We did a range of tests and a colonoscopy picked up the bowel cancer. Further testing found it had spread to the liver," she said.
Friend Erin McCallum has started a GoFundMe for the family.
"As Alex begins the fight of her life, her husband Luke has stepped away from work to be by her side," Ms McCallum said.
"They are doing everything they can to care for their two beautiful young daughters while preparing to welcome their third child."
Mrs Sansom works in human resources and Mr Sansom is a supervisor in the construction industry.
"While we have certainly been impacted financially, our employers have been incredibly supportive and generous, doing everything they can to support us," Mrs Sansom said.
"We feel incredibly lucky to have the support of our family, friends and medical team."
She said one of the hardest parts of having cancer was seeing how much it hurt the people she loved.
"It's not the natural order for my parents to watch me go through this. I can't imagine what they are going through," she said.
She said her husband, two kids and future child were a huge motivation to overcome cancer and heal.
"I've gone through absolute shock and lots of tears, but now I'm in a mindset of 'we'll get through this'," she said.
"According to my colorectal surgeon, those who have surgery followed by chemotherapy have a 60 to 65 per cent chance of no recurrence within five years.
"I'm only two to three weeks into this process. I'm no expert on bowel cancer, but I keep hearing over and over in my appointments how bowel cancer in young people is skyrocketing and they don't know why.
"Looking back I probably did have symptoms, but I put them down to being pregnant. If you have signs or symptoms, get them checked."
Bowel Cancer Australia says the risk of being diagnosed with bowel cancer before age 40 has more than doubled since the year 2000.
Research suggests diet, gut bacteria and inflammation may be factors.
