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Note: This article contains graphic content.
When Jessica Buck was 18 years old, she thought she might have been pregnant. Her reasoning, however, didn’t have anything to do with sex.
The Oxfordshire, England, native began to lactate. She told the Daily Mail:
“There was white, milky fluid coming from my breasts. I thought that was something that only happened to pregnant women.”
At the time, she had no idea what was going on, but there was a significant amount of fluid coming from her breasts:
“I had to put tissue in my bra. I was working part time as a retail assistant and kept going to the bathroom, realizing that my bra was damp.”
Being only 18, Buck said she didn’t initially tell her parents. However, it wasn’t long before she didn’t really have a choice:
“I started to put cotton wool pads or tissues inside my bra, which was embarrassing, as I was constantly trying to hide it. I spoke to my mum and asked, ‘Is this normal?’ She sent me straight to the doctor. I didn’t know what to think.”
She underwent several blood tests. However, the results weren’t giving doctors any conclusive answers.
She then received an MRI and was soon given terrifying news.
Buck was not pregnant; the reason she was lactating was because she had a brain tumor.
It developed in the part of her brain that controls multiple hormone glands, including the pituitary gland— otherwise known as the “master gland.”
Buck opened up about the moment she heard the news, saying she was utterly shocked:
“When I heard the words brain and tumor in the same sentence, I barely listened to anything else. I was thinking about something much more sinister, so I did get quite upset.”
Thankfully, however, the pea-sized tumor was not cancerous.
But rather than undergoing surgery to remove it, Buck opted to begin taking medication that would control her symptoms and keep the tumor’s size under control.
Now a 24-year-old woman, she’s no longer dealing with lactation, but she does still suffer from periodic nausea and headaches.
However, she told the Daily Mail she’s now beginning to question whether she should stay on the medication — which is known to affect women’s fertility — or not:
“A few months after the diagnosis, I was told that [medication] can cause fertility problems. I was so young when I was diagnosed that babies weren’t really on my radar, but I have always wanted to be a mum. It is something that is so important to me.
I was told that we would cross that bridge when we came to it. [But] I have looked online and lots of people have said that they have the condition and have gone on to have kids, which is great.”
But before Buck begins to seriously consider childbirth, she’s been focusing on living life to the fullest:
“I quit my job last summer and I haven’t looked back. I went to the US for a month by myself and did all sorts of high energy stuff like white water rafting in Colorado, flying in a helicopter over the Grand Canyon and speed boating in Miami.”
Although she’s focused on enjoying life, she did tell the Daily Mail she’s had a few days when she “didn’t feel great.”
For now, Buck is attempting to visit 25 countries before her 25th birthday in January and, thanks to her medical team and supportive family, she’ll have the chance to try.
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