(CLEVELAND CLINIC) - Mallory Wehage, who is a mother of three, reflects on the difficult journey she faced after doctors at Cleveland Clinic found a golf-ball-sized aneurysm on her brain.
“It was in the back portion of my head. It was pushing on my spinal cord which was causing a lot of other issues,” said Mallory.
Doctors wasted no time determining the best treatment plan, but there was a big factor they had to consider, her unborn baby. Mallory was pregnant at the time with her third child.
“We did this procedure minimally invasively. We were able to work inside the blood vessels using catheters, wires, and other tools like that,” explained Peter Rasmussen, MD, a neurosurgeon with Cleveland Clinic. “So we were able to lay her on her back and were able to narrow the field of radiation exposure to limit it really just to Mallory’s head, and we were able to spare the baby any kind of radiation.”
Mallory said she doesn’t remember much from before or after the surgery, but there is one moment that still makes her emotional.
“The first thing I asked was am I still pregnant because that was the greatest fear,” she said while tearing up.
Mallory went on to give birth to her baby boy with no complications. And now the whole family is together again, getting ready to celebrate the holidays with a lot to be thankful for.
“I was in really good hands and am so appreciative of the care that I received,” she said.
Mallory continues to go in for routine checkups. She also encourages other parents out there not to ignore any concerning symptoms. She said looking back she probably should’ve sought out care sooner.
