Suffering from cancer, a pregnant mother chooses to have her leg amputated to save the unborn child

Kathleen Osborne told the moving story of how she had to have her leg amputated in order to give her baby a chance to survive.

Kathleen, 28, was diagnosed with cancer for the third time, but she was also four months pregnant at the time, though she doesn't know it.

After undergoing an MRI, doctors told her she had two options, either abort her baby so she could start chemotherapy or have her leg amputated.

A day later, Kathleen, after careful consideration, decided to have her entire right leg amputated to get rid of bone cancer.

The operation was a success and Kathleen gave birth to baby Aida-May eight weeks earlier, by caesarean section. 

Kathleen says, "I'm glad I made the decision to lose my leg because it gave me my daughter.

"If I hadn't had my leg amputated at that time, I would have lost it and undergone chemotherapy that might not even have saved my leg in the end anyway.

"I wouldn't have it if I didn't, so it was worth it."

The mother of three was first diagnosed with cancer when she was just 11 years old – after a painful bump on her right leg turned out to be osteosarcoma in 2005.

Kathleen underwent chemotherapy for bone cancer and most of her patella was removed, along with two metal rods inserted into her leg.

Then, 11 years later, she discovered that cancer had returned in 2016 – this time to her lungs.

After treatment, Kathleen was given the green light in March 2017 – but three years later, another painful lump appeared on the top of her right leg.

It was then that the mother discovered that she was pregnant for the third time.

Kathleen, was already a mom to nine-year-old Hayden and five-year-old Leo, but says she's thrilled to now have a daughter too.

She says, "I've always wanted a little girl after first having my two boys and now she's here so I'm glad I did.

"They had also always wanted a sister, so it worked for the best, to be honest. I am always very happy with my decision.

"I told the boys that the Transformers are building me a new leg that they love, they keep asking when my Transformer leg will arrive and they think it's very cool."