MD Cervical Cancer Survivor Desperate To Be A Mom Blessed By Strangers: People Magazine

PRINCE GEORGE'S COUNTY, MD — With a successful job as a TV producer in Washington, D.C., Tamika Felder of Upper Marlboro focused first on her career. But she couldn't wait to become a mom. In fact, she'd been writing baby names in journals ever since she was a little girl, Felder told People.

However, her dreams of becoming a mom were derailed when, at just 25 years old, Felder was diagnosed with cervical cancer and needed a lifesaving radical hysterectomy. She underwent chemotherapy and radiation, but her fertility loss was heartbreaking, she told People.

"I never thought that the choice to have children would be taken away from me," she said.

Although she researched her fertility preservation options before the hysterectomy, her insurance wouldn't cover it and she ultimately ran out of time. But the cervical cancer survivor wouldn't abandon her dreams of becoming a mom and turned to complete strangers, including a fellow cervical cancer survivor who donated her frozen embryos and a fertility expert who offered free services. Eventually, after numerous hurdles, baby Chayton was born.

Read more about Felder's journey to motherhood at People.