Daughter-In-Law Of Cheng Pei Pei Diagnosed With Stage 4 Breast Cancer 5 Months After Having First Kid

Thanksgiving is a time to count your blessings, but host Harry Yuan and his wife Andrea Loeffler, son and daughter-in-law of Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon star Cheng Pei Pei, could not have received worse news. 

39-year-old Andrea, a chef and artist, was diagnosed with stage 4 breast cancer, just five months after giving birth to their first child Kai in June. 

Earlier this week, Harry, 38, took to Instagram to reveal the heartbreaking news, saying it came as a huge shock to them as they are both very health conscious.

It was also a particularly huge blow as they had just welcomed their son and had to wean him over a year earlier than expected.

Sharing snaps of Andrea breastfeeding to commemorate one of the last times Kai was able to be breast fed, Harry said they are thankful for the overwhelming support and love from the mums who have donated their milk to them.

For Andrea, the past few months have been a rollercoaster of emotions to say the least.

She had always longed to be a mother but “never thought it would look like this”.

“I never quite made it out of the postpartum period. I transitioned directly to something else… Everyone talks about getting your body back after having a baby. I got my body back but something unexpected was also there. And that something was breast cancer. And it was not small,” she said on Instagram.

The cancer is "fast growing" and has spread to Andrea's lymph system, and finding the right treatments has been a “rollercoaster ride”.

Andrea began treatment last month, integrating both western and eastern medicine.

Her family has since started a GoFundMe page to raise US$50,000 (about S$67,000) for her medical expenses.

At the time of writing, some US$44,000 (S$59,000) has been raised.

Andrea's family has a history of cancer.

Her dad died of pancreatic cancer when she was 10, and it is likely that she carries the same mutation that caused her father’s cancer.

Photos: Harry Yuan/Instagram, Andrea Loeffler/Instagram