At 22 weeks pregnant, a young mother’s worsening symptoms were initially dismissed as routine pregnancy complications — until a scan revealed a large brain tumor. After two brain surgeries, the birth of her premature son, and a devastating diagnosis of stage 4 metastatic melanoma, Jenney Bitner began immunotherapy that led to a remarkable and rapid recovery and remission within months. Supported by her family, community, and care team, she now shares her story to offer hope — grateful for a life she once feared she might not live to see.
When Something Wasn’t Right
Jenney Bitner was 22 weeks pregnant on a family vacation when she became so sick she could barely get out of bed.
Two separate urgent care visits sent her home with nausea medication, both attributing her symptoms to pregnancy.
But this felt different.
She was having uncharacteristic, excruciating headaches — so severe that her husband worried about the pressure change on their flight home.
Jenney doesn’t remember that flight.
What she does remember is vomiting on the drive home and falling without reason. The pain was so intense that her husband filmed one of her episodes, hoping it would help doctors understand what she was going through — and take it seriously.
After another fall, he refused to wait any longer and brought her to the hospital.
A scan revealed the unthinkable.
Two Brain Surgeries and a Birth
Jenney was rushed by ambulance to a larger hospital. The scan had shown a large tumor in her brain.
“I had just turned 38, so because I was young and I was pregnant, it got a lot of attention,” Jenney recalls. “I immediately had an oncologist, a neurologist, and a neurosurgeon.”
Everything moved quickly.
At 24 weeks pregnant, Jenney underwent brain surgery to remove as much of the tumor as possible. Because she was pregnant, the surgical team had to balance her safety with her baby’s, removing only what they could without causing harm.
She recovered quickly and tried to return to normal life with her family.
Her son was born at 34 weeks.
Just before delivery, her symptoms returned.
A scan confirmed the worst: the tumor had grown back to its original size.
Days after giving birth, Jenney underwent a second brain surgery. This time, the surgeon was able to remove the entire tumor.
She went home the same day her son was released from the NICU.
A Treatment that Changed Everything
While the tumor in her brain had been removed, testing revealed that it was stage 4 metastatic melanoma. The cancer had spread to her lungs, pelvis, and back. Doctors were never able to identify the primary tumor.
The immediate crisis had passed — but the cancer remained.
Somewhere along the way, her medical team identified a marker that made her eligible for immunotherapy.
Jenney began treatment with ipilimumab (YervoyⓇ) and nivolumab (OpdivoⓇ).
I just remember sobbing during that first infusion. The reality of it was, I don’t belong here. I just had a baby. I have four young kids. I’m in my 30s.
Then something remarkable happened.
After just one dose, tumors in her back began to disappear. By her fourth infusion, she felt well enough to drive herself to treatment.
But the therapy came at a cost.
About a month after her final infusion, Jenney developed severe stomach pain and lost 30 pounds in a single month. She was diagnosed with enteritis, a rare side effect, along with encephalitis — another uncommon but serious complication. She could no longer continue treatment.
Doctors needed to reassess, scanning her to see what the next step could be.
But that scan revealed something miraculous.
In October 2020 – just eight months after her diagnosis and after only four infusions – Jenney had no evidence of disease.
In January 2021, she was officially declared in remission.
She has remained so to this day.
Held Up by Love
Jenney credits the people around her for carrying her through.
“The community rallied behind me,” she says. “They set up a meal train, and people were bringing us food constantly — almost for a whole year.”
Friends, neighbors, and even strangers stepped in — caring for her children, preparing for her newborn, and supporting the family in ways both big and small.
She’s especially grateful for the support her husband received.
Everybody thinks about the patient, but not always about the people behind the scenes trying to keep everything going.
Her husband became her anchor.
He and Jenney’s mother took shifts at the hospital and at home, caring for both Jenney and her newborn son, Marcus — named after the neurosurgeon who saved her life.
Much of that year is a blur for Jenney. Many of the details she knows today come from a book he later wrote about the experience, Learning Your Children’s Names Again — a story she describes as “a memoir of love and brain surgery and all the miracles that happened in between.”
Living the Life She Almost Lost
At one point, Jenney wasn’t sure she would live to see her children grow up.
I was pretty sure that I was going to die. I did not think I’d get to see my baby grow up.
She began writing letters to her children — words she hoped they would carry with them if she wasn’t there.
“I wrote all the things I wanted them to know, so that if I should not be there a year later, they could at least have those.”
Because of her care team, her community, and immunotherapy, her children will never need to read them.
Today, Jenney shares her story whenever she can, especially within young adult cancer communities. She knows how rare her outcome is — and how many others are still searching for hope.
A woman of deep faith, she feels a responsibility to show others they are not alone.
“I feel like I am still here for a reason. If I can take away even a little bit of someone’s fear, or just listen, that’s a good reason to still be here.”
Her perspective on life has changed completely.
“This journey helped me appreciate everything — the time with my kids, the fresh air, the little things I used to take for granted. Because I know now it could all be gone.”
Jenney once prepared for a future where she wouldn’t be there to watch her children grow up.
Today, she’s living a life she wasn’t sure she’d get to have — one filled with school days, milestones, and everyday moments that mean everything.
And for Jenney, that’s the greatest gift of all.
