Leah Hecht was diagnosed with breast cancer when she was 32. A few years after completing treatment, Leah became pregnant with her first child, and like most moms, started thinking about what breastfeeding would look like.
But having had a lumpectomy and radiation on her affected breast, Leah wasn’t sure what was possible.
“I was told I wouldn’t be able to breastfeed out of that breast,” she recalled. “Beyond that, I didn’t receive any more information. I looked up some things online, and I wanted to try to nurse but wasn’t sure what that would really look like.” 
Leah went to a childbirth class at Summa Health, but she was left wondering how the general breastfeeding advice given at the class applied to her unique situation.
“Should I try to feed out of the radiated side? Would that work? Could I pump with that breast?” she wondered, adding that she wasn’t sure her baby would get enough milk from only one breast. She bought formula to supplement, just in case.
Then she met Dr. Carly Dulabon, director of breastfeeding medicine at Akron Children’s. Dr. Dulabon is one of 100 physicians in the United States board-certified in breastfeeding and lactation medicine. She is also board-certified in pediatrics and is an International Board-Certified Lactation Consultant® (IBCLC®).
“I wasn’t sure what to expect because [my situation] is pretty specialized,” Leah said. “But meeting with her was so helpful.”
Unlike the general breastfeeding advice provided in childbirth classes, Dr. Dulabon gave Leah specialized treatment recommendations.
Before seeing Dr. Dulabon, Leah did what most of us do when we have questions about a health situation: She went online. Based on what she read, she briefly considered that maybe she could feed from her radiated breast, but Dr. Dulabon advised her to leave that side alone.
“She said [that breast] may end up leaking, and it did a little bit,” Leah explained. “If I had not met with her, I probably would have, been like, ‘Oh, I’m getting some milk from that side. Maybe I should try [to feed from that side].’ That was so helpful.”
Dr. Dulabon advised Leah to start pumping right away – to help stimulate supply in the unaffected breast – which helped Leah start a freezer stash of milk. Dr. Dulabon also gave Leah a feeding schedule to follow every few hours.
Her pumping schedule allowed Leah to create an oversupply of milk in her unaffected breast, which was enough to give her daughter, Ari, the nutrition she needs.
Ari ate well from Leah’s unaffected breast and met her weight gain milestones.
“It’s been incredibly successful. It’s been really gratifying,” Leah said of her breastfeeding journey.
Leah was grateful for Dr. Dulabon’s expertise, noting she couldn’t get that information from other providers.
“[Other providers] were able to give general recommendations. But Dr. Dulabon – with her background and knowing how radiation can affect milk production – gave me specific recommendations based on my history rather than general guidelines.”
Social media and the internet can make breastfeeding seem easy, and if you’re struggling, it can be difficult to understand what’s normal and what’s not. Leah wants other breastfeeding people to know that if they’ve tried general resources and tips and aren’t seeing improvement or still have questions, reach out to someone specialized like Dr. Dulabon.
“[Meeting with her] was truly critical to having this be successful, and I don’t know what it would have looked like with without her,” she said. “Just knowing that not only is there support out there, but there’s support that can take your specific situation into account and help.”
A cancer diagnosis can make someone feel like their body betrayed them, and Leah felt that way, too. Getting pregnant and being able to successfully breastfeed, helped her feel like she could start to trust her body again.
“Getting pregnant and then being able to feed Ari, it was just this moment of, ‘I feel like my body’s doing what it’s meant to do, and not trying to sabotage me,’” she said.
Leah hopes to continue her breastfeeding journey as long as her daughter will do it.
Dr. Dulabon sees breastfeeding patients virtually or in-person, and the baby doesn’t have to be an Akron Children’s patient to be seen. You can schedule an appointment with Dr. Dulabon online or by calling 330-543-4500.
