ROYAL OAK, Mich. (WXYZ) — A nurse practitioner at Corewell Health Children's Hospital in Royal Oak helped a patient navigate cervical cancer treatment while preserving her ability to have another child.
Watch Christiana Ford's video report:
Malaika Samuel couldn't be happier holding her 1-year-old daughter Journi.
"She is my miracle baby," Samuel said.
As a mother of four already, Samuel always wanted a large family.
"I always wanted a super big family," Samuel said.
But the path to her fifth child presented unexpected challenges when she received devastating news during in vitro fertilization (IVF) treatments.
"That's why I named my baby Journi, because this has definitely been a journey and an experience that I never thought I would have to go through," Samuel said.
Samuel was diagnosed with cervical cancer at 35 years old.
"I was shocked, I was 35 and I was like this can't be me," Samuel said.
"Didn't have any health issues, never had any problems, and you're saying now I have cervical cancer," Samuel said.
The diagnosis raised serious questions about her ability to become pregnant again, especially since treatment typically involves removing the cervix.
"I thought my chances of trying was over," Samuel said.
That's when nurse practitioner Kristen Davis from Corewell Health Children's stepped in, becoming what was like a guiding light for Samuel during a confusing and frightening time.
"She reassured me that if I wanted to push through and try to conceive again, that I would be able to," Samuel said.
Davis provided both medical expertise and emotional support throughout the process.
"She understood the cervical cancer aspect of it, but she also was there to hear the emotional part like how I was feeling like I'm sad, I'm depressed, this is, I don't know what's my next steps and I don't know what the outcome looks like, and she was there for it all," Samuel said.
Davis helped Samuel understand a non-traditional surgical approach that could preserve her fertility.
"We were able to remove just the tumor, the cervix, and then connected the organs back so she can have a safe pregnancy, get pregnant, and then have a safe pregnancy and delivery after that," Davis said.
Samuel believes Davis went above and beyond by advocating for her as a patient.
"I think just being a woman myself and wanting children in the future, um trying to put myself in her shoes, you know, not many years between us, so trying to picture what I would want for myself and what I would want my provider to say to me and to ask me and to advocate for me, I think that really helped me connect with her," Davis said.
The care continued well beyond the initial treatment.
"Not just I need to see if the cancer is back or how this week- she checked on me," Samuel said.
Dr. Zaid Al-Wahab, who performed Samuel's surgery, says Davis represents the often-unrecognized contributions of nurses.
"They provide the support when the physician is not available and even when the physician is available," Al-Wahab said.
For Davis, this level of care is simply part of her daily commitment to patients.
"I wouldn't say a hero. I mean, this is what I do every day, and I enjoy doing it. It's just what I think is right," Davis said.
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