GREAT BEND - For seven years, she waited for two pink lines. She endured the disappointment, the prayers, and months that turned into years, wondering if the baby she wanted so desperately would ever come. Then the impossible happened - she was pregnant; but before she could begin to celebrate, she heard words that threatened to shatter everything she fought so hard to have. She had breast cancer.

At a time when she should be imagining first kicks, tiny fingers and the moment they would finally place that miracle baby in her arms, she was suddenly facing a future filled with uncertainty and waiting.

“I went in for a routine physical and my doctor found a little lump on the left side. Since my aunt had breast cancer, she wanted to go ahead and get it checked out,” Kaci Wells said. “In between that time, I found out I was pregnant.”

Wells thought her body was simply changing from the pregnancy. She went in for a mammogram on both side; and the left side where the lump was found, was clear. However, something was found on the right that the doctor wanted to biopsy.

“I got the call that it was benign – it wasn’t cancer,” she said. “I thought, ‘ok, great! I knew it! I’m pregnant; it’s not cancerous, and now I can concentrate on that!’

However, once again, Wells’ celebration was cut short after a phone call from the radiologist, asking to redo the biopsy. During a weekend trip to Kansas City with her husband, Wells received an email that her test results were available.

“MyChart is a great thing but it’s also not,” she said. “My husband ran into Kwik Shop and I decided just to open it so I could find out I was fine. He got in the car and I said, ‘Bryce? I think I have breast cancer.’”

Wells’ immediate concern was for what it would mean for the pregnancy for which she fought so hard.

“I didn’t know how to feel; there’s nothing but confusion,” she said. “You don’t know what all those words mean and you don’t know what it will mean for my pregnancy. It was very emotional.”

Wells’ doctor told her every diagnosis comes with surgery but hers had the added risk of pregnancy.

“We had to wait until I was out of the first trimester before they would do the lumpectomy, I had a scan of the baby before surgery,” she said. “Afterward, they listened for the baby’s heart, and thank God, it was still there.”

That was at 12 weeks. From then on, Wells made the trip back and forth to Wichita every week for additional scans to check on the baby. She once again waited for the results of the lumpectomy to determine a treatment plan.

“They removed the cancer and my lymph nodes in the hopes it wouldn’t spread. I got the results on my dad’s birthday,” she said. “They said your margins are clear; it’s not in your lymph nodes – the cancer is gone.”

The waiting continued, however, as the results were sent off to determine the type of cancer and whether or not she would need chemotherapy.

I found it soon enough that I didn’t need chemo during pregnancy,” she said. “I did take daily shots in my stomach for a blood thinner because the surgery caused a higher risk of blood clots.”

Wells was induced at 37 weeks.

“They encouraged radiation but I opted for a double mastectomy,” she said. “That was performed three weeks after I delivered.”

Wells’ daughter, Parker, was born in 2025.

“She’s great,” she said. “God gave me a really good delivery - no further complications than what I’d already gone through.”

Wells credits her family and faith, and especially her husband for getting her through the really difficult days.

“Surprisingly I had a really good outlook but I definitely felt better after that first lumpectomy just knowing the baby was okay,” she said. “That’s all I cared about; I just wanted to have this baby.”

Wells recently discovered another lump but testing and scans showed it wasn’t anything serious. However, she was told she could possibly need a hysterectomy soon, due to the medicine she takes to hopefully prevent the cancer from returning.

“My cancer was hormonal and the medicine I take also causes the lining of the uterus to thicken, meaning I’m at a higher risk for a certain type of cancer,” she said. “My doctor said the medicine is great for keeping the cancer away but recommends since I’m starting to have issues now, to just take it out.”

The same medicine, that must be taken for at least five years, is an estrogen modulator and isn’t without side effects. Wells also has some issues with the reconstruction she endured after her mastectomy.

“Reconstruction went great but I have some nerve damage from that,” she said. The medicine makes my joints ache and causes brain fog and hot flashes.”

Wells said all she’s been through puts into perspective just how short life is.

“There’s not enough time to worry about the silly things; although I should probably take that advice more often,” she said. “Sometimes I still struggle with letting the little stuff get to me but it definitely reminds you to take the chances.”

While she still lives with the constant anxiety the cancer will return, she said she refuses to let it rule her life.

“I’m hoping telling my story will give women hope and raise awareness to go get checked out,” she said. “My story would’ve been a lot different if I hadn’t found my cancer when I did because I never did feel a lump. I could’ve waited a year and let it spread.”