2026年7月11日 / 美国东部时间上午8:23 / 哥伦比亚广播公司新闻
作者：克里·布林 新闻编辑
克里·布林是CBSNews.com的新闻编辑。她毕业于纽约大学阿瑟·L·卡特新闻学院，此前曾在NBC新闻的《今日数字》工作。她负责报道时事、突发新闻以及包括物质使用在内的相关议题。
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珍妮·比特纳一直盼望着全家每年一次前往圣地亚哥看望母亲的旅行。对她的三个孩子来说，这是在祖母家度过的两周假期。对比特纳和她的丈夫来说，这意味着当华盛顿的家正经历二月的阴雨天气时，他们能在阳光下享受一段放松时光。
2020年的这次旅行比以往更让人期待：比特纳当时怀孕22周，她盼望着在怀孕后半段享受这段家庭时光。但仅仅过了一天，比特纳就病得无法下床。她头痛、恶心呕吐，走路也摇摇晃晃。
两家急诊诊所都认为她只是妊娠反应。比特纳觉得不对劲，但她想着即将到来的产科医生预约会给出答案。但当全家从圣地亚哥回家后，比特纳摔了两跤。她的丈夫坚持要送她去急诊室。
核磁共振成像显示她的大脑里有一个“巨大肿瘤”。医生安排手术尽可能多地切除肿瘤。对肿瘤组织的检测显示，比特纳患上了已扩散到大脑的IV期黑色素瘤。这让她十分震惊：黑色素瘤通常会出现斑点或病变，而比特纳从未见过类似症状。根据美国癌症协会的数据，当癌症扩散到这种程度时，患者的五年生存率约为35%。
“我刚满38岁，还怀着第四个孩子。我当时在想，‘我还这么年轻，不该遇上这种事’，”比特纳回忆道。“我当时在想，‘我根本撑不过这场病。我根本看不到这个孩子满一岁。’我吓坏了。”
![Jenney Bitner reads to her children after brain surgery. Jenney Bitner]
孕期癌症治疗
比特纳的医生建议采取积极治疗。第一次手术切除了大部分肿瘤，但她的神经外科医生无法在不造成永久性脑损伤的情况下完整切除肿瘤。进一步检查还发现比特纳背部有一个癌变结节，大到可以通过皮肤触摸到。
比特纳需要接受免疫治疗，但这对她未出生的孩子不安全。医生表示，可能需要提前分娩婴儿，以便开始治疗。经过数周的密切监测，医院决定在孕34周时为比特纳进行剖宫产手术。
在预定分娩的几天前，比特纳再次出现恶心和头痛症状。扫描显示，她的肿瘤在短短几周内又长回了原来的大小。除了免疫治疗，她还需要再次接受脑部手术。
“我已经有三个半孩子了，我的想法是，‘我看不到他们长大了’，”比特纳说。“我开始给他们写信，写下所有我想对他们说的话，因为我不认为我能在他们身边亲口说这些。”
![Jenney Bitner after brain surgery. Jenney Bitner]
5月4日，比特纳的儿子出生了。他们给他取名马库斯，以纪念她的神经外科医生。他体重3磅12盎司，需要在新生儿重症监护室待一段时间，但比特纳的丈夫在网上分享的日记中将他描述为一个“斗士”，“已经很有劲头了”。
一周后，比特纳接受了第二次脑部手术。这一次，她的外科医生成功完整切除了肿瘤。她又休养了一周。母子两人都被确认可以在同一天出院。在另一篇日记中，比特纳的丈夫说，全家终于团聚的时刻“充满喜悦”。他写道，大孩子们见到弟弟都非常兴奋。
“不眠之夜就此开始。我愿意熬这些夜，”他写道。
“相当惊人”的康复
2020年6月初，比特纳开始接受免疫治疗。这种药物的作用是增强她的免疫系统，让白细胞能够攻击她体内和大脑中的癌细胞。检查显示，她的肺部、大腿和大脑附近出现了新的可疑区域，这让她对治疗效果感到担忧。
但几天后，比特纳的丈夫注意到，他已经无法摸到她背部的癌变肿块。很快，她皮肤上的其他肿块也缩小了。扫描证实了她“相当惊人”的恢复情况。到最后一次免疫治疗时，比特纳已经恢复到可以自己开车前往医院。
她出现了罕见的副作用，包括过敏反应和脑炎。两次发作都让她住院治疗。但她说，当她的肿瘤学家在2020年10月告诉她体内已无癌症迹象时，一切都值得了。
癌症研究所（一家支持免疫治疗研究的非营利组织）的首席执行官艾丽西亚·周博士表示，比特纳是众多受益于尖端免疫疗法的患者之一。她说，这种治疗是该领域的“范式转变”，为像比特纳这样的患者提供了不仅存活下来，而且好好生活的机会。
![Jenney Bitner, her husband and their four children in 2021, after she was declared cancer-free. Jenney Bitner]
“在肿瘤免疫疗法出现之前，我们根本无法对这些IV期转移性癌症患者说‘治愈’这个词，但现在我们可以了，”周说。“这对这些患者来说，真的是彻底的改变。”
如今近六年过去了，比特纳为自己战胜了厄运感到自豪，她正致力于提高人们对新型免疫疗法研究的认识，并花时间陪伴家人。
“我觉得自这一切发生以来的每一天都是礼物。我本不该拥有这么多时间，所以我把每一天都视为珍宝，”比特纳说。“我家总是乱糟糟的。曾经有段时间我会讨厌这种混乱……但现在，这些我本以为永远听不到的声音，对我来说就像音乐一样。乱糟糟的房子很烦人，但这是我本以为永远不会拥有的乱糟糟的家。”
A mom’s headaches and nausea were dismissed as pregnancy symptoms. She had a brain tumor.
July 11, 2026 / 8:23 AM EDT / CBS News
By Kerry Breen News Editor
Kerry Breen is a news editor at CBSNews.com. A graduate of New York University’s Arthur L. Carter School of Journalism, she previously worked at NBC News’ TODAY Digital. She covers current events, breaking news and issues including substance use.
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Jenney Bitner always looked forward to her family’s annual trip to see her mother in San Diego. For her three kids, it was a two-week vacation at their grandmother’s house. For Bitner and her husband, it meant some relaxing time in the sun while their Washington home battled wet February weather.
In 2020, the trip was even more welcome than usual: Bitner was 22 weeks pregnant, and she looked forward to the family time amid the second half of her pregnancy. But after one day, Bitner felt too sick to get out of bed. Her head ached, she was nauseous and vomiting, and she felt unsteady on her feet.
Two urgent cares suggested she was just dealing with pregnancy symptoms. That didn’t feel right to Bitner, but she figured an upcoming appointment with her obstetrician would provide answers. But when the family got home from San Diego, Bitner fell twice. Her husband insisted on bringing her to the emergency room.
An MRI revealed a “giant tumor” in her brain. Doctors scheduled an operation to remove as much of the tumor as possible. Tests on the mass revealed Bitner had Stage IV melanoma that had spread to her brain. It was a shock: melanoma usually presents with a mark or lesion, and Bitner had never seen one. When the disease has spread this far, patients have a five-year survival rate of about 35%, according to the American Cancer Society.
“I had just turned 38, and I was pregnant with my fourth kid. I was thinking, ‘I’m too young for this to be happening,’” Bitner recalled. “I was thinking, ‘There’s no way I’m going to make it through this. I’m never going to see this baby survive to a year old.’ I was terrified.”
Jenney Bitner reads to her children after brain surgery. Jenney Bitner
Treating cancer during pregnancy
Bitner’s doctors recommended aggressive treatment. The first surgery had removed most of the tumor, but her neurosurgeon hadn’t been able to take out the entire mass without causing permanent brain damage. Further testing also found a cancerous nodule in Bitner’s back that was so large it could be felt through her skin.
Bitner needed immunotherapy, but that wasn’t safe for her unborn child. Doctors said the baby would likely need to be delivered early so treatment could begin. After several weeks of close monitoring, the decision was made to deliver Bitner’s child via C-section at 34 weeks.
Days before the scheduled delivery, Bitner again experienced nausea and headaches. A scan showed that her tumor had grown back to its full size in just weeks. On top of immunotherapy, she would need another brain surgery.
“I had these three and a half children, and my thought was, ‘I’m not going to see them grow up,’” Bitner said. “I started writing them letters, like, all these things that I was going to want to say to them, because I didn’t think I’d be there to say it to them.”
Jenney Bitner after brain surgery. Jenney Bitner
On May 4, Bitner’s son was born. They named him Marcus, after her neurosurgeon. He weighed 3 pounds 12 ounces and needed some time in the NICU, but in a journal entry shared online, Bitner’s husband described him as “a fighter” who was “feisty already.”
One week later, Bitner had the second brain surgery. This time, her surgeon was able to remove the entire tumor. She spent another week recovering. Both mother and son were deemed fit to go home on the same day. In another journal entry, Bitner’s husband said having his entire family together at last was “joyous.” The older kids were thrilled to meet their baby brother, he wrote.
“And so begins the sleepless nights. I’ll take ’em,” he wrote.
A “pretty remarkable” recovery
In early June 2020, Bitner began immunotherapy. The goal of the medication was to boost her immune system so her white blood cells could attack the cancerous cells in her body and brain. Tests had shown new areas of concern near Bitner’s lung, thigh and brain, leaving her anxious about how the treatment would go.
But within days, Bitner’s husband noted that he couldn’t feel the cancerous spot on her back. Soon, other lumps on her skin shrank. Scans confirmed her “pretty remarkable” progress. By her final immunotherapy session, Bitner felt well enough to drive herself there.
She suffered rare side effects, including an allergic reaction and a bout of encephalitis. Both incidents left her hospitalized. But it all felt worth it, she said, when her oncologist said in October 2020 that she had no evidence of disease.
Dr. Alicia Zhou, the CEO of the Cancer Research Institute, a non-profit that supports immunotherapy research, said Bitner is one of many patients who have been helped by cutting-edge immunotherapies. The treatments are “a phase shift in the field,” she said, and give patients like Bitner a chance to not just survive, but thrive.
Jenney Bitner, her husband and their four children in 2021, after she was declared cancer-free. Jenney Bitner
“Before immunoncology, we weren’t really able to say the word ‘cure’ for these patients who were suffering from Stage IV metastatic disease, and now we can,” Zhou said. “It’s really, truly transformational for these patients.”
Nearly six years, Bitner is proud to have beat the odds and is focused on raising awareness for new immunotherapy research and spending time with her family.
“I feel like every day I’ve had since all this has happened has been a gift. I shouldn’t have had all this time, and so I take every day as something precious,” Bitner said. “It’s chaos in my house all the time. And there was a time I would have dreaded it … but now those are sounds I didn’t think I was going to get to hear, so they’re music to my ears. The messy house is a pain, but it’s a messy house I didn’t think I was ever going to have.”