[Pregnancy and chemotherapy; an apparent contradiction]

Two women aged 34 and 32, were diagnosed with cancer during pregnancy. The 34-year-old woman with breast cancer diagnosed during the first trimester of pregnancy, had just undergone breast-conserving surgery. She chose to have an abortion before adjuvant chemotherapy was started. A year after chemotherapy ended she became pregnant again and gave birth to a healthy child. After 3 years there were no signs of metastases. In the 32-year-old woman with a malignant lymphoma diagnosed during the third trimester of pregnancy, chemotherapy had to be started because she developed V. cava superior syndrome. The dyspnoea disappeared and a week after the first treatment she gave birth to a healthy child. A year after completion of treatment she was in complete remission and her child was developing well. Pregnancy is not always a contraindication for starting chemotherapy. However, in order to reduce the risk to mother and child as much as possible, the duration of the pregnancy as well as different groups of cytostatic drugs have to be taken into consideration. A multidisciplinary approach to mother and child is essential.