Former Alone Australia winner Gina Chick diagnosed from breast cancer just days after checking out she was pregnant. She describes in his last book her experience with chemotherapy and what got here after it.

Fortunately, cancers diagnosed during pregnancy and in the 12 months after delivery are rare. But such cases are becoming more and more common in parts With world, including Australia. Scientists aren’t entirely sure why.

Here’s what scientists know thus far and treatment options.

How rare is this?

New South Wales test found that in 1994, for each 100,000 women giving birth, roughly 94 cancers were diagnosed during pregnancy or inside one 12 months of birth. In 2013, this number increased to around 163 per 100,000. Although these statistics are over a decade old, they’re the latest and most rigorous data available in Australia.

Swede from 2023 test pregnancies in the years 1973–2017 showed similar results.

Both studies found that a couple of quarter of pregnancy-related cancers are diagnosed before birth, with the rest diagnosed a 12 months after birth.

What variety of cancer are we talking about?

First in the UK comprehensive assessment cancer during pregnancy – a review of diagnoses from 2016–2020.

This study, the NSW study and others found that breast and skin cancer (often melanoma) are the most typical cancers related to pregnancy. In this group, there was also a high percentage of thyroid cancer, gynecological cancer (especially cervical and ovarian cancer) and blood cancer.

A UK study found that around 92% of cancers were recent diagnoses and around 82% had symptoms. The majority (81%) were treated with curative intent, and roughly 82% of pregnancies related to a cancer diagnosis resulted in a live birth.

However, 20% of the moms died before the end of the five-year study period. Gastrointestinal cancers were particularly concerning. They were characterised by the highest mortality rate of roughly 46% and were related to diagnosis at a more advanced stage of cancer.

This could also be because lots of the symptoms of gastrointestinal cancers, resembling abdominal pain, fatigue and acid reflux disorder, overlap with those of pregnancy. In other words, some cancer symptoms may be confused with pregnancy symptoms, “masking” or delaying the diagnosis of cancer.

Why are there more and more such cases?

The big selection of cancers that occur during and after pregnancy suggest that there are various aspects involved.

In countries with high socioeconomic status, women have children later in life, and the biggest risk factor for a lot of cancers is age. However, the evidence that age is a serious risk factor for pregnancy-related cancers is inconclusive. This may explain some, but not all, cases.

Another factor could also be increasing usage prenatal genetic testing in early pregnancy. They analyze DNA from the mother’s blood to detect chromosomal abnormalities in the developing fetus. But these tests may also provide details about the mother’s chromosomes. This has led to the diagnosis of Hodgkin’s disease, breast and colorectal cancer in pregnant women without symptoms.

Estrogen and progesterone are two hormones essential for the growth and development of breast tissue and supporting other points of a healthy pregnancy. They may also contribute to cancer developmentespecially breast cancer. However, it is unclear whether this is related to the increase in pregnancy-related cancers.

Other cancers, resembling skin cancer, have been linked to environmental aspects resembling exposure to UV radiation. Of note, melanoma was the leading pregnancy cancer in the New South Wales study, reflecting the high rate of skin cancer in the local population. Other environmental aspects, resembling smoking and human papillomavirus, have been linked to cervical cancer. Again, we will not be sure whether such aspects are related to the increase in the incidence of pregnancy-related cancers.

What happens after the diagnosis is made?

Pregnancy complicates the diagnosis of cancer because any potential treatment for the mother may jeopardize the health and viability of the fetus. So some points of treatment may require adjustment.

Surgery can often be performed in any trimester of pregnancy, depending on the location of the cancer.

Radiotherapy requires careful planning because the effects of radiation on the fetus rely upon the developmental stage at which radiation is administered to the body and on the dose.

Chemotherapy must be avoided in the first trimester of pregnancy on account of its potential toxic effects on the fetus. It can often be given in the second and third trimester of pregnancy. Chemotherapy must be avoided inside three weeks of birth to cut back the risk of bleeding and infection in the newborn, who might also have a weakened immune system consequently of chemotherapy.

More targeted immunotherapies are typically given to the mother after delivery. Depending on her treatment, she could also be advised to not breastfeed. This is because the medicine can pass from mother to baby through breast milk.

What’s happening to the children?

Reassuringly, data from New South Wales showed no increase in the rate of perinatal deaths given to moms with pregnancy-related cancer.

However, there have been more planned premature births. This is because women are offered induction of labor and/or cesarean section to make it easier for the mother to undergo cancer treatment while also reducing the risks of treatment for the unborn baby.

There was also the next percentage of babies born with low birth weight and low Apgar scores (indicators of a baby’s condition soon after birth), which were probably related to premature birth.

What do researchers need to know?

We have lots to study why pregnancy-related cancers are rising and what women diagnosed with this cancer can expect.

We also have to mix cancer and obstetrics data in national databases. This would allow us to find out which areas must be prioritized for further research, provide clinical guidelines for cancer screening during and after pregnancy, and help assess responses to screening programs or therapies in the future.

Kitty Ca$h is breaking latest ground. The DJ and producer, best known for her collaborations with artists across genres resembling Rico Nasty, 6lack, Kiana Lede and Denzel Curry, recently released her electronic EP titled in collaboration with New York gallerist Hannah Traore, adding an interactive element to the premiere enabling face-to-face meetings.

“The work took many forms until I landed in the space of these mini collectible boxes,” Ca$hz shares with ESSENCE. “It was really a question of: What do I do to process my emotions? How has music had a healing effect on me? And how I took this radical approach to taking responsibility for my self-love, how I came to say, OK, I actually think I can do this on a larger scale, because if I have these feelings consistently, I’m working on it every day. I’m sure other people have the same questions within themselves. This way I can take responsibility for taking care of myself as much as I always ask other people to do.”

In a quiet a part of the Hannah Traore Gallery, tucked away in New York’s bustling Lower East Side, Ca$hi Traore drew inspiration from the ceremonial mail room to ask participants to share their feelings, deepest desires, and private hopes. Across from a row of mailboxes, two sets of headphones, a pen and branded paper with a logo encouraged visitors to hearken to Kitty’s soothing sounds while reflecting and writing down their thoughts. Guests were then asked to “send” these expressions as “emotional mail” by placing their sheets in considered one of the mailboxes.

“If it were a candle, you wouldn’t be able to see through it,” says the Los Angeles artist. “So I wanted to give people a sense of privacy, and if you open it, you can see it. I wouldn’t do it, but many people did. Will people respect privacy or will everyone seek confirmation that someone else is going through the same thing? How honest is the other person? Am I really being honest?”

Ca$hi Traore have joined forces to push the boundaries of art and exhibition, breaking the fourth wall, inviting viewers to interpret the work in a different way. Art spaces can seem intimidating to many, especially those that don’t engage in art regularly. Creating an area where people could be vulnerable and actively participate makes the exhibition more accessible and dynamic, because the works of art tackle latest forms through the interaction of every viewer. In the exhibition, some cards face outwards; some face inwards, each with a novel handwriting and different numbers in each mailbox, offering a fresh experience each time someone steps inside.

Beginning her debut in visual art with the assistance of curator and gallerist Hannah Traore, it can be crucial to notice that Ca$h’s works function a public diary for people and encourage introspective considering, while also being a type of research for the artist. As a DJ, she uses crowdsourcing quite a bit, in order she does so, she sees what works and what doesn’t, with the hope that she’s going to give you the chance to take it to other institutions and cities.

“We need to continue these conversations in places where people can actually receive them,” Ca$h explains. “This is a point that has strengthened my self-confidence, as well as my own artistic vision, for which I am very grateful. There will be a part two, honey. We don’t stop here.”

When Demeatria Boccella enters a room, there may be a magnetic aura that draws your attention. She also embodies a quiet confidence with a touch of charm that makes you adjust your posture whenever you see her approaching, which is strictly what happens once we meet at Ice House Studios in Pittsburgh’s Lawrenceville neighborhood. Boccella, founder AFRICAN fashion The organization arrives wearing a full-length Comme Des Garçons trench coat, an oversized white shirt and black trousers by Maison Margiela. Her signature shaved head can be a key accessory. The multi-hyphenate is a walking embodiment of effortless elegance and style.

Boccella describes her fashion aesthetic as layered minimalism. This phrase perfectly describes the FashionAFRICANA studio, which is a handful once we enter. Only a 6-meter gold Afro pickaxe, a 2-meter Yoruba mask and a large number of striking portraits of Mario Epanya’s beauties scattered throughout the room give a touch of the royal wealth related to Demeatria’s idea. Guests can have the opportunity to experience these details as they walk through the doors of the gala, which can happen on November 21, during the second edition of the edition AFRICANISM Gala. There can be a world celebration of culture, heritage and creativity.

As founder and executive director of FashionAFRICANA, Demeatria has made it her mission to raise Black designers by making them accessible to Pittsburgh’s artistic landscape. She founded the organization 23 years ago. What began as a street fashion show in 2001 grew right into a series of exhibitions and in-person events that put the Pittsburgh fashion scene on the map. Some previous exhibitions include a presentation by Mario Epanya and Cedric Mizero. But as the visionary answerable for bringing the Paul Tazewell exhibition to Pittsburgh and presenting the world with the first Ruth E. Carter costume retrospective, Boccelli’s influence now extends far beyond the city limits, reaching across the ocean to the shores of Africa.

At last yr’s inaugural gala, Cameroonian couture designer Imane Ayissi, costume designer Paul Tazewell and visual artist Charly Palmer took center stage. It is price noting that Tazewell and Palmer were Africana Icon recipients. Tazewell is generally known for his performances directed by George C. Wolfe and Lin-Manuel Miranda.

In the conversation, Boccella explains that FashionAFRICANA’s mission is to create a bridge between Black artists here in the United States and people on the continent. “Through our initiative, we not only create intercultural connections, but we create a platform for the presentation of artists, while providing opportunities that close [artist] equity gap,” she shared.

It’s the type of exposure and involvement that Boccella did not have access to but desperately needed as a young black girl growing up in Pittsburgh’s Glen Hazel neighborhood. She says she is a born creative person, but she also credits her mother for her appetite for fashion.

“I remember I was a little kid, maybe a four- or five-year-old kid. And my mother tied these scarves on her head,” Boccella tells ESSENCE. “It was like that in the Seventies [tie] scarves in every single place, around the chest, in every single place around the head. I remember when she tied those scarves and did those flowers on the side and did all those things, she looked stunning.

Demeatria dreamed of sooner or later becoming a model and dealing in the fashion world. But those dreams were quickly dashed when she didn’t see women with strong African features and dark skin like her on TV or in the magazines she devoured as a toddler. This frustration, combined with the teasing she experienced as a darker-skinned child, destroyed her perception of beauty and self-esteem. “At one point my depression was so bad that I cut up every photo of myself,” she recalled.

The founder says because of this she is so enthusiastic about creating secure, creative spaces for young people, in addition to supporting FashionAFRICANA. She is motivated by the incontrovertible fact that she doesn’t want the younger generation to feel different, as she felt when she was younger. “When you walk into these rooms, you will see a positive reflection of yourself. “I want them to be proud of who they are,” she said. Here she notes that part of her journey towards self-love and acceptance was learning about her African heritage through art and fashion. “I feel like it kind of saved my life, so [this] she was my driving force.”

During the second AFRICANISM gala, guests will feel as in the event that they have been transported to a black utopia, said Darnell L. McLaurin, co-founder and inventive director of FashionAFRICANA. He added that it’ll be an area immersed in the celebration of the African diaspora. There can be performances by rappers Mayce Tomlin and Che “Rhymefest” Smith and a dinner honoring Tony Award-winning artist Kenny Leon. In addition, the fashion festival will present the works of visual artist, designer and former journalist Dion Dewand Marcia Lafalaise from Côte d’Ivoire. Guests can be treated to a night stuffed with splendor.

The theme of this yr’s gala is titled or . In Boccelli’s words, the universe selected the subject. He explains that since that is the first time they can be inviting their followers to their studio, it seemed appropriate. When deciding on the designer and artist-in-residence, Boccella noticed that Lafalaise introduced the story of her latest collection with the message “Welcome Home.” “[I] I knew it wasn’t a coincidence,” she added.

Whether by probability or fate, it was Lafalaise’s mastery of cowrie shells and Afrofuturism sewn into each of her works. The ancestral bonds woven throughout each bit drew the team to her aesthetic designs.

The visual artist shared that her latest work, “Abondance,” was inspired by the powerful symbolism that our ancestors nurtured and the deep-rooted connections that lots of us have with our heritage. “It combines a touch of modern aesthetics with the essence of our culture. As creators, we reached beyond the physical to create something extraordinary, guided by the symbolism of the cowrie shell,” explains Lafailase.

Here, the artist explained that the shell is a representation of creation, source, divine feminine and strength. “My work honors the creativity and collaboration of artisans from across Africa, from fabrics from Zimbabwe and Senegal to the crafts of Madagascar, all centered in its place of origin, Côte d’Ivoire.”

Introduced into the mainstream by Lupita Nyong’o, Beyoncé and Agojie of , Lafalaise high fashion has gained wide recognition. And the pioneering designer guarantees that she is going to present something fresh in her gala debut. He describes it as “a spiritual journey rooted in heritage.”

Lafailaise assures that the upcoming celebrations can be greater than a conventional fashion show. Instead, it’ll be an inventive performance “that celebrates the act of creation, the divinity and artistry of Africa,” he declares. Through the collection, he wants to interrupt boundaries and open latest dialogues. He hopes that every one this can contribute to a deeper understanding and admiration between continents. Lafailaise says this can be a moment to keep in mind that we’re all inextricably connected. “I hope this experience wakes up [a] a way of unity in all,” he adds.

The upcoming festival can be greater than just a night of fun. All proceeds from the gala may also support the goals of FashionAFRICANA, which provides arts and cultural education to middle and highschool students. Mary McKinney Flaherty, co-chair of this yr’s event, said in an email that the evening can be a chance to showcase the band’s commitment to a younger generation of creators. He also notes that they do that yr-round through programs like The Art of Design and Storytelling and the August Wilson New Voices Competition through the Bill Nunn Theater Outreach Project. Each of them helps nurture the next generation of artists and leaders while empowering young Black Pittsburghers to search out and develop their voices.

One of the principal programs necessary to Boccelli is the Next Narrative Monologue Competition, founded in 2007 by Todd Kreidler and Kenny Leon. Along with Atlanta and New York, Pittsburgh was one among the first cities to participate in the program because of Boccelli’s friend and mentor, Bill Nunny. When Nunn needed to withdraw as a result of a cancer diagnosis, Demeatria became managing director of the Pittsburgh branch in 2009. Since then, he has mentored monologue winners from the region to New York to perform on Broadway.

“The opportunity to witness the transformation of our young people through the words of August Wilson is life-changing,” he enthuses. “That’s why there are people like Denzel Washington, Samuel L. Jackson and Viola Davis who are so committed [Wilson’s] Work. When we host a monologue competition in New York, they and other legends volunteer to give master classes to our youth.” Boccella mentions that celebrity volunteers made a difference – noting that this chapter provides participants with exposure, knowledge and artistry from legendary artists. “Seeing this unfold is confirmation that I’m doing what I’m supposed to be doing.”

When asked what she expects from the guests of the AFRICANISM gala, Boccella recalls a quote from August Wilson. “There is an Africa in each of us that we need to connect with to understand our relationship with this society,” he says proudly.

She explains that she really likes this quote because when she first began FashionAFRICANA along with her team, she wanted everyone to feel included. This is the line from the organization to next week’s scandal. According to Boccelli, it was all about supporting the community.

Boccella hopes that participants can have the opportunity to see the fantastic thing about the city in addition to the African diaspora. “Art is an important tool for bringing people and communities together and for mutual learning. The only way we are able to change the beauty standards in this society is to ask them in.”