Nurse Didn’t Know She Was Pregnant Until Surgeons Found a Baby Behind Tumor

In what medical professionals are calling a "medical miracle," doctors at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles successfully delivered a healthy baby boy while simultaneously removing a massive 22-pound ovarian tumor from his mother. This extraordinary case represents one of the rarest pregnancy scenarios in medical literature—a viable full-term abdominal ectopic pregnancy.

What Happened? 

Suze Lopez, a 41-year-old emergency room nurse from Bakersfield, California, had been managing a growing benign ovarian cyst for years, experiencing irregular periods and abdominal discomfort. After 17 years of trying to conceive a second child, Lopez was preparing for surgery to remove the cyst when a routine pre-surgical pregnancy test delivered unexpected news: she was pregnant.

"I was so shocked," Lopez told ABC News. "I had been trying for 17 years to have another baby. I was getting ready for surgery, and they called me and said, 'You're pregnant.' I said, 'That can't be right.'" Initially concerned about a false positive or potential cancer due to the cyst's size, Lopez's situation took a dramatic turn when she experienced severe abdominal pain during a Dodgers game with her husband Andrew.

Upon arriving at Cedars-Sinai, comprehensive imaging revealed something astonishing: an empty uterus with a nearly full-term baby positioned in her abdomen near the liver. The baby had developed outside the uterine cavity in what's known as an abdominal ectopic pregnancy—a condition that occurs in approximately 1 in 10,000 pregnancies, with viable births being exceedingly rare.

"This is almost unheard of," explained Dr. John Ozimek, director of Labor and Delivery at Cedars-Sinai. "Abdominal ectopic pregnancies rarely reach full term due to poor blood supply. The fact that both mother and baby survived is truly remarkable." According to medical literature, ectopic pregnancies typically represent life-threatening emergencies for mothers, with the pregnancy almost never viable.

About The Surgery

The surgical procedure required extraordinary coordination among approximately 30 medical experts at Cedars-Sinai's Level IV Maternal Care Hospital. The team included Dr. Michael Manuel, a gynecological oncologist, and anesthesiologist Dr. Michael Sanchez. Surgeons carefully navigated the complex anatomy, lifting the massive dermoid cyst to access and deliver 8-pound baby Ryu, who was born with a full head of hair.

Following delivery, Lopez experienced significant hemorrhaging, requiring 11 units of blood through rapid transfusion. 

Welcome Baby Ryu

Baby Ryu was admitted to the NICU but demonstrated remarkable resilience, having his breathing tube removed within 24 hours and meeting all developmental milestones. He was discharged after two weeks with strong lung function. Lopez also recovered swiftly, crediting nurse Carmen Chavez for exceptional care during her recovery.

The Lopez family has embraced their extraordinary journey. Andrew Lopez described both his wife and new son as "miracles" and a "gift from God," choosing the middle name Jesse for their son, which means "gift from God.”

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