Pregnant Woman Goes for Scan, Then Comes Terrifying Two-Word Diagnosis - Newsweek

A routine growth scan took a heartbreaking turn when TiLiyah Dawson, preparing for motherhood, received a diagnosis that changed everything.

The 22-year-old from Georgia had only just graduated from Swainsboro High School in 2023 when she learned she was pregnant.

"My life after school has literally been parenting," Dawson told Newsweek.

Dawson grew up in a large family with five siblings, meaning she had a strong support network behind her. That support made all the difference after an ultrasound technician spotted an abnormality during what was supposed to be a routine growth scan.

At a follow-up appointment, Dawson received devastating news.

"They informed me that my daughter was developing what's called a teratoma tumor," she said.

Teratomas are rare tumors that arise from germ cells and can contain a variety of tissues, including bone, muscle, and hair. While many are benign, large tumors diagnosed before birth can pose serious risks to the mother and baby. The condition is rare, affecting roughly one in every 35,000 to 40,000 babies born, though it is the most common tumor diagnosed in newborns.

Hearing the diagnosis left Dawson in shock.

"When I first found out about it, I immediately became worried," she said. "I was shaky, I was hurt, and I was scared, but my mom always reassured me that everything was going to be okay."

The day Dawson welcomed her daughter, Tyra, into the world was a difficult one.

"I had gone in for an ultrasound with my mom and my little sister," Dawson said. "When I sat up after the ultrasound, I felt severe back pain so intense that I felt like I couldn't walk."

Dawson was sent to a hospital in Statesboro.

"I was extremely high-risk, and the doctors there confirmed that my daughter was trying to come, but I could not push," she said.

By that point, Tyra's tumor had grown significantly. Attempting a vaginal delivery could have caused severe internal damage. Instead, Dawson was transferred to another hospital in Augusta, where she was placed under anesthesia so her daughter could be delivered safely through a cesarean section.

"I didn't get to see her or hold her after she was born," Dawson said. "I had to wait until the next day to go to the NICU, and I just remember being so hurt."

When she and Tyra's father finally met their daughter for the first time, Dawson said they were stunned by her condition.

"We just stood there," she said. "I think he was just as shocked as me, seeing her lying on her side with such a big tumor under her neck."

Doctors were able to remove the tumor, but Tyra was not out of the woods yet.

"It caused her airways to become floppy, which led to them giving her a tracheotomy to hold her airway open and a feeding tube to help her eat," Dawson said.

During this process, however, Dawson received welcome news—the tumor was not cancerous.

Tyra is now 2 years old and has already undergone a host of complex medical procedures.

"There was surgery to place the trach and to place her feeding tube," Dawson said. "A lot of times she had to be put under anesthesia so doctors could place a camera inside her trachea to see how everything looked and check on her lungs."

As a new mom, Dawson said it was "extremely hard" to watch her daughter go through so much, but she never lost hope of a happy ending.

"She's been through so much," she said. "Seeing my baby made me keep going. I woke up every day and walked to the NICU while I was in a completely different city, with no car, barely eating, and not even healed from my C-section, just to see my baby. I'll never regret a second of it."

That happy ending now appears to be within reach. Tyra has had both her tracheostomy tube and feeding tube removed. In January, she underwent surgery to close the small opening in her neck, and she's also beginning to learn how to talk.

"She's doing great now, still has some checkup appointments and speech therapy, and the hole in her neck is still open, although it's small and will be closed soon," Dawson said. "Life changed a lot for me. I've never gone through so many emotions in such a short period of time."

Dawson decided to share Tyra's story in the hope that it might help someone else facing a difficult situation.

"I hope people take from my baby's story that not everything has a bad ending," she said.

The dream now is to see Tyra happy and healthy while pursuing her own goals.

"I hope to become a NICU nurse one day," Dawson added. "Being there with my daughter has really inspired me to work in that field."

Contact Newsweek editors for this story: Marc Vargas and Anthony Murray.