Symptoms Dismissed as Pregnancy Pains Were a Rare Cancer: A Mom's AML Diagnosis One Day Before Giving Birth

For Sara Walton, the final weeks of her pregnancy were a mix of excitement and discomfort. In the sweltering heat of a Tennessee July, the symptoms she experienced—soaking night sweats and severe sciatic pain—seemed like a normal, albeit miserable, part of the journey to motherhood. She and her doctor attributed them to hormones and the simple reality of being 36 weeks pregnant.

But just one day before her scheduled induction, Walton's entire world was shattered. What she had written off as pregnancy pains were actually the warning signs of a rare and aggressive cancer. In a shocking turn of events, she was diagnosed with Acute Myeloid Leukemia (AML), forcing her into a fight for her life at the exact moment she was supposed to be celebrating a new one.

When Pregnancy Symptoms Mask a Deeper Problem

Looking back, the signs were there, but they were deceptive. «I began to have bed-soaking night sweats,» Sara tells PEOPLE. «I talked to my obstetrician about it and he determined it was my hormones, the heat and just the obvious: I would be having a baby soon!»

Soon after, a crippling sciatic pain developed, forcing her to start her maternity leave early. Believing relief would come with the birth of her daughter, she went to the Jackson-Madison County General Hospital a day before her induction, hoping to move the process along. It was there that routine lab work revealed a terrifying reality.

Her doctor returned with devastating news. «He proceeded to tell me that they believed I have some sort of cancer,» Sara recalls. «I could see his heart break.»

Understanding Acute Myeloid Leukemia (AML)

Walton was diagnosed with Acute Myeloid Leukemia (AML). According to the Cleveland Clinic, AML is a rare cancer of the bone marrow and blood. It is an aggressive cancer that progresses rapidly and can be life-threatening if left untreated. While it typically affects people over the age of 60, it can occur in younger adults and even children.

The diagnosis was a complete shock. «I sat there in complete disbelief! I was working 60 hours a week, managing a household, a salon, living life to the fullest,» she says. «HOW could this be? Aside from my sciatic [pain], I felt great and was ready to be a little girl’s mama! I had absolutely zero symptoms of someone with cancer.»

A Mother's Heartbreak and a Race Against Time

The medical plan was as swift as it was heartbreaking. Sara would deliver her baby girl, Elleott, spend just a few precious hours with her, and then be immediately life-flighted by helicopter to the Sarah Cannon Cancer Institute in Nashville, three hours away, to begin intensive treatment.

«My heart was shattered for my baby girl but never once did I panic or have fear,» Walton says, a testament to her incredible strength. After giving birth, baby Elleott was sent to the NICU, and Sara was flown to TriStar Centennial Medical Center to begin her fight.

The Gift of Life from a «100% Match»

Doctors determined that Sara's best hope for a cure was a full stem cell transplant. Then, they received incredible news: a donor had been found.

«My anonymous male donor and I were a 100% match, making my odds of relapse very small,» she explains. «I could never repay him for what he has done for my family. He gave me the chance at a new life, to be Elleott Ann’s mama and Holden’s wife. I will never take that for granted!»

On March 25, 2025, surrounded by her family, friends, and the medical team who had become like family, Sara Walton rang the bell at the Sarah Cannon Cancer Center, a powerful symbol signifying she was officially in remission.

A New Outlook: «Things Are a Little Sweeter Now»

Surviving cancer has fundamentally changed Sara's perspective on life. She credits her husband with helping her see the bigger picture. «My husband once said, 'Do you ever think that maybe you got sick simply to slow you down?' I hadn’t thought of it that way but it was true. I lived to work, rather than working to live. I, now, am more present and intentional in everything I do.»

While she has returned to work, she does so with a renewed sense of purpose, making time to enjoy life's blessings. «Though it may be an odd thing to say, I am thankful it happened,» she shares. «I have a new outlook on life altogether! Things are a little sweeter now. Elleott Ann is a miracle child and we celebrate her life daily.»