When Jaclyn Hayes Lin was pregnant with her first child, she craved nachos and all things spicy. Her second pregnancy felt nothing like the first. She had no appetite, no cravings, and her weight stayed unchanged. “My OB said every pregnancy is different,” recalls Lin, now 37, from River Edge, NJ. “But deep down, I knew something was wrong.” Her instincts were right. After three emergency room visits with fever, severe back pain, and flu-like symptoms, Lin learned she had stage 4 pancreatic cancer — while 26 weeks pregnant. Today, she volunteers with PanCan (Pancreatic Cancer Action Network), pushing for better access to clinical trials that could help extend her life for her two young daughters. When Symptoms Don’t Add Up In June 2023, a sharp pain pierced the right side of Lin’s back while she was in the car with her husband. That night she developed a high fever and flu-like symptoms, prompting a trip to the hospital. Her pain was dismissed as pregnancy-related, and doctors treated her for a suspected UTI. She recovered temporarily, returning to her job as an IT analyst and caring for her toddler. But by mid-July, the fever and flu-like symptoms returned. Again, doctors couldn’t explain her illness. A month later, she was back in the ER — this time with severe chills, intense body aches, and crippling back pain that left her unable to move. The following morning, before her husband could arrive, doctors delivered the news: a CT scan showed a large mass on her pancreas, and an ultrasound revealed cancer in her liver. “I was a deer in headlights,” she remembers. “Nobody in my family had ever been diagnosed with cancer during pregnancy.” A Critical Decision — and an Early Delivery At roughly 32 weeks pregnant, Lin’s doctors initially suggested performing a biopsy while she was still carrying her baby. But during the procedure preparation, the anesthesiologist deemed it unsafe. Lin transferred her oncology care to Robert Wood Johnson Barnabas Health in New Brunswick, NJ, where a coordinated plan was formed. Instead of waiting until her September 21 due date, doctors scheduled her to be induced at 37½ weeks. But the baby had her own timeline. When Lin arrived for the induction, she was already in labor. Her daughter was born on August 23, 2023 — a healthy 5 lbs., 8 oz. Despite her early arrival, the delivery was smooth and fast. “For 72 hours, it was all about her,” Lin says. “I needed to stay focused so I could start treatment. I was like a machine doing what needed to be done.” Shortly after birth, imaging revealed Lin’s liver was three times its normal size — leaving barely any room for the baby inside her abdomen. A liver biopsy followed four days later. A Confirmed Diagnosis and the Start of Treatment Results confirmed pancreatic adenocarcinoma, the more aggressive form of pancreatic cancer. With metastases already present, Lin was not a surgical candidate. Six days later, debilitating pain landed her back in the ER. On September 2, 2023 — the anniversary of her mother’s death — she began her first inpatient chemotherapy session. “I felt like my mom was with me,” she says. “The chemo started working right away.” Recovery was slow. For months, she barely interacted with her newborn because she was attached to a portable chemo pump and constantly nauseated and exhausted. Her husband stepped in for late-night feedings, bedtime routines, and every chemo visit. Fighting the Odds — and Finding a Rare Mutation Hearing that the five-year survival rate for stage 4 pancreatic cancer is just 3% was crushing. But her husband refused to give up. At Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, genomic sequencing revealed Lin carries an extremely rare NRG1 mutation — one that can respond to precision medicine. Her husband connected with others across the country who also carry the mutation. Many were young parents like her. For nearly two years, chemotherapy kept the cancer in check. Lin endured 44 rounds between September 2023 and May 2025 before her body stopped responding. A Breakthrough Treatment In June 2025, Lin started a newly approved medication called BIZENGRI (zenocutuzumab-zbco), which had recently completed clinical trials. “It was a complete 180 from chemo,” she says. “No nausea, no exhaustion. Just a one-day infusion, and I bounce back the next day.” The improvement allowed her to spend the summer at the beach, in gymnastics classes with her daughters, and enjoying daily life again. Her latest scans show a 40% reduction in tumor size. She isn’t officially in remission, but her doctors are hopeful. “I don’t seem like someone with stage 4 cancer,” she says. Living Life in Three-Month Increments Lin undergoes CT scans every three months, monitoring whether her treatment continues working. Between those appointments, she stays focused on her two daughters — now 4 and 2. She never returned to work. Instead, she shifted entirely into motherhood. “If I didn’t have them, I don’t know what my purpose would be,” she says. “They give me joy every day.” She’s determined to be a model of resilience: “I want my girls to see that no matter how hard life gets, you can still push through.” Choosing Joy — and Fighting for the Future Her guiding philosophy is simple: schedule joy. Between medical appointments, her family makes time for trips to the beach, Disney, or nights at home playing. Having lost her own mother at age 13, Lin feels an urgent drive to stay alive for her daughters. “I know what it’s like to grow up without a mom,” she says. “I want to be here for their milestones — each one I can reach.” With cancer research funding facing cuts, she volunteers with PanCan to advocate for the clinical trials that gave her another chance at life. “Clinical trials saved me,” she says. “We have to keep funding them.” A GoFundMe has been created to support the Lin family.
U.S.

Mom, 35, Diagnosed with Stage 4 Pancreatic Cancer While Pregnant: ‘I Cry Every Time I Talk About It’

Thomas Smith
By Thomas Smith
8 Min Read

When Jaclyn Hayes Lin was pregnant with her first child, she craved nachos and all things spicy. Her second pregnancy felt nothing like the first. She had no appetite, no cravings, and her weight stayed unchanged. “My OB said every pregnancy is different,” recalls Lin, now 37, from River Edge, NJ. “But deep down, I knew something was wrong.”

Contents
When Symptoms Don’t Add UpA Critical Decision — and an Early DeliveryA Confirmed Diagnosis and the Start of TreatmentFighting the Odds — and Finding a Rare MutationA Breakthrough TreatmentLiving Life in Three-Month IncrementsChoosing Joy — and Fighting for the Future

Her instincts were right. After three emergency room visits with fever, severe back pain, and flu-like symptoms, Lin learned she had stage 4 pancreatic cancer — while 26 weeks pregnant. Today, she volunteers with PanCan (Pancreatic Cancer Action Network), pushing for better access to clinical trials that could help extend her life for her two young daughters.

When Symptoms Don’t Add Up

In June 2023, a sharp pain pierced the right side of Lin’s back while she was in the car with her husband. That night she developed a high fever and flu-like symptoms, prompting a trip to the hospital. Her pain was dismissed as pregnancy-related, and doctors treated her for a suspected UTI.

She recovered temporarily, returning to her job as an IT analyst and caring for her toddler. But by mid-July, the fever and flu-like symptoms returned. Again, doctors couldn’t explain her illness.

The Lin Family in December 2023. Courtesy of the Lin family

A month later, she was back in the ER — this time with severe chills, intense body aches, and crippling back pain that left her unable to move. The following morning, before her husband could arrive, doctors delivered the news: a CT scan showed a large mass on her pancreas, and an ultrasound revealed cancer in her liver.

“I was a deer in headlights,” she remembers. “Nobody in my family had ever been diagnosed with cancer during pregnancy.”

A Critical Decision — and an Early Delivery

At roughly 32 weeks pregnant, Lin’s doctors initially suggested performing a biopsy while she was still carrying her baby. But during the procedure preparation, the anesthesiologist deemed it unsafe.

Lin transferred her oncology care to Robert Wood Johnson Barnabas Health in New Brunswick, NJ, where a coordinated plan was formed. Instead of waiting until her September 21 due date, doctors scheduled her to be induced at 37½ weeks.

But the baby had her own timeline. When Lin arrived for the induction, she was already in labor. Her daughter was born on August 23, 2023 — a healthy 5 lbs., 8 oz. Despite her early arrival, the delivery was smooth and fast.

James and Jaclyn Lin in August 2025. Courtesy of the Lin family

“For 72 hours, it was all about her,” Lin says. “I needed to stay focused so I could start treatment. I was like a machine doing what needed to be done.”

Shortly after birth, imaging revealed Lin’s liver was three times its normal size — leaving barely any room for the baby inside her abdomen. A liver biopsy followed four days later.

A Confirmed Diagnosis and the Start of Treatment

Results confirmed pancreatic adenocarcinoma, the more aggressive form of pancreatic cancer. With metastases already present, Lin was not a surgical candidate.

Six days later, debilitating pain landed her back in the ER. On September 2, 2023 — the anniversary of her mother’s death — she began her first inpatient chemotherapy session.

The Lin Family in May 2025.Courtesy of the Lin family

“I felt like my mom was with me,” she says. “The chemo started working right away.”

Recovery was slow. For months, she barely interacted with her newborn because she was attached to a portable chemo pump and constantly nauseated and exhausted. Her husband stepped in for late-night feedings, bedtime routines, and every chemo visit.

Fighting the Odds — and Finding a Rare Mutation

Hearing that the five-year survival rate for stage 4 pancreatic cancer is just 3% was crushing. But her husband refused to give up. At Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, genomic sequencing revealed Lin carries an extremely rare NRG1 mutation — one that can respond to precision medicine.

Her husband connected with others across the country who also carry the mutation. Many were young parents like her.

For nearly two years, chemotherapy kept the cancer in check. Lin endured 44 rounds between September 2023 and May 2025 before her body stopped responding.

A Breakthrough Treatment

In June 2025, Lin started a newly approved medication called BIZENGRI (zenocutuzumab-zbco), which had recently completed clinical trials.

“It was a complete 180 from chemo,” she says. “No nausea, no exhaustion. Just a one-day infusion, and I bounce back the next day.”

The Lin Family, two days after their youngest daughter was born. Courtesy of the Lin family

The improvement allowed her to spend the summer at the beach, in gymnastics classes with her daughters, and enjoying daily life again. Her latest scans show a 40% reduction in tumor size.

She isn’t officially in remission, but her doctors are hopeful. “I don’t seem like someone with stage 4 cancer,” she says.

Living Life in Three-Month Increments

Lin undergoes CT scans every three months, monitoring whether her treatment continues working. Between those appointments, she stays focused on her two daughters — now 4 and 2.

She never returned to work. Instead, she shifted entirely into motherhood. “If I didn’t have them, I don’t know what my purpose would be,” she says. “They give me joy every day.”

She’s determined to be a model of resilience: “I want my girls to see that no matter how hard life gets, you can still push through.”

Choosing Joy — and Fighting for the Future

Her guiding philosophy is simple: schedule joy. Between medical appointments, her family makes time for trips to the beach, Disney, or nights at home playing.

Having lost her own mother at age 13, Lin feels an urgent drive to stay alive for her daughters. “I know what it’s like to grow up without a mom,” she says. “I want to be here for their milestones — each one I can reach.”

Jaclyn and her youngest in September 2023. Courtesy of the Lin family

With cancer research funding facing cuts, she volunteers with PanCan to advocate for the clinical trials that gave her another chance at life.

“Clinical trials saved me,” she says. “We have to keep funding them.”

A GoFundMe has been created to support the Lin family.

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