A mum-of-two has been diagnosed with stage four cancer just weeks after the birth of her second child.
Suraya Jenkins, from the regional NSW town of Armidale, has cancer in both of her lungs, on her brain and in her bones.
The 36-year-old got the shock diagnosis shortly after she had baby Wren with her partner Shannon – the couple also have an older boy, Reef, aged two.
Ms Jenkins had back pain after Wren’s birth, which she initially thought was due to having had a caesarean, but then a local doctor found fluid in her lungs.
She had put other recent health symptoms down to being in her third trimester.
She had further tests done and was diagnosed with cancer at the start of July, when baby Wren was just five weeks old.
‘It happened so quickly,’ her cousin Jemah Schmidt, who has set up a GoFundMe for Ms Jenkins, told 9News.
‘It’s incomprehensible to have her world flipped upside down in an instant.
Mum-of-two Suraya Jenkins (pictured) has been diagnosed with stage four cancer just weeks after the birth of her second child
Suraya Jenkins is pictured with her son Reef, aged two, and new born baby Wren
‘That is the time when you should be putting all of your love and attention and joy into welcoming this new child.’
The specialists treating Ms Jenkins have not yet found where the cancer started, but she has now begun her treatment of chemotherapy and immunotherapy.
‘These therapies will be ongoing and can have some pretty unsavoury side effects,’ Ms Schmidt, 35, wrote on the fundraiser page.
She said any funds raised will go ‘directly towards helping this incredible family through the toughest of times’.
This will include medical bills, travel expenses to see doctors in Armadale, Tamworth and Coffs Harbour hospitals, household costs, supplements, recovery programs, mobility aids and breastmilk.
Due to her treatment, Ms Jenkins, a former travel agent who most recently worked in early childhood education, is unable to breastfeed.
Instead, it’s coming from Mothers Milk Bank charity, but because the family live in a rural area, it will cost up to $850 a week to transport the milk to her.
Ms Jenkins is pictured with her partner Shannon and their children Reef and Wren
The young mum is having more tests to see what other medicines she may be able to take to help in her fight against cancer.
‘At this point in time we believe it’s treatable, we are holding on to hope,’ Ms Schmidt said.
Local federal MP Barnaby Joyce shared a link to her fundraiser, saying ‘Suraya, you are in our prayers.’
Ms Jenkins said she was ‘humbled’ by all the support, with $46,000 raised by Wednesday afternoon.
