Receiving a cancer diagnosis can be the scariest moment of a person’s life. This article is part of a series that highlights how Nurse Navigators at the Dan L Duncan Comprehensive Cancer Center at Baylor St. Luke’s Medical Center guide patients through their cancer journey. 

Breast cancer survivor Nancy Strohmer insists Cathie Brown is a “miracle worker, an angel.” Cathie is an Oncology Nurse Navigator at the Dan L Duncan Comprehensive Cancer Center (DLDCC) at Baylor St. Luke’s Medical Center. She guided Nancy through successful treatment for stage two Her2 breast cancer in just a matter of weeks.

“It was just over two months from beginning to end,” Nancy recalled. “Cathie was one of my angels from the get-go. She put me on the fast track. She told me ‘You need to do this, this, and this.’” 

Cathie is part of a team that includes three Nurse Navigators and a Navigation Coordinator assigned to walk cancer patients through their treatment at DLDCC, from start to finish. “There is no scarier time than being told you have cancer,” Cathie explained. “The scariest part can be the unknowns like: Where do I go from here? How do I get my treatment? Can I afford all of this?’ They're not nearly as scared once they learn what to expect.”

Baylor St. Luke’s Breast Cancer Surgeon Dr. Elizabeth Bonefas treated Nancy’s daughter at DLDCC nine years ago. Nancy was so impressed she contacted her office immediately after her own diagnosis. Dr. Bonefas performed a lumpectomy just two weeks later and Oncologist Dr. C. Kent Osborne prescribed a course of radiation treatments. Her Nurse Navigator guided her every step of the way.

“We are here for you if you don't understand something, if you may not be able to get a hold of one of the physicians, or if you are just scared,” Cathie explained.   

A Nurse Navigator’s to-do list can be seemingly limitless. 

• Develop a relationship with a newly diagnosed breast cancer patient as soon as possible after diagnosis, usually within minutes of diagnosis.

• Review pathology reports to ensure the patient understands what they mean for her and what the next steps may be.

• Obtain medical reports like imaging and pathology reports for physicians prior to the patient's first appointment so that they are better equipped to provide a treatment plan as soon as possible

• Schedule appointments. If there is more than one, try and schedule them all on the same day and at times most convenient to the family, if possible.

• Explain what it's like to go through cancer treatment:

  • Educate the patient about the importance of nutrition by suggesting meal prepping a day or so before treatment and keeping a basket with light snacks and finger foods around to be able to eat when she is able to. Patients may not be able to tolerate a big meal, so peanut butter crackers or something similarly small is helpful.

  • Radiation treatment often causes fatigue so light exercise 3-5 times a week for 15 minutes a session can alleviate that.

• Provide info on resources for accommodations, co-pay and transportation assistance.

• Collaborate and partner with outside providers in the patient's own community, if they plan to see physicians closer to home or are coming in from another state.

• Assist with finding financial assistance and help with filling out the applications if requested.

• Work with Interpreter services to ensure patients are educated and have the opportunity to ask questions every step of the way

• Lend an ear - take the time to listen. If there is a barrier, try to resolve it.

Now cancer-free and enormously grateful to the Baylor St. Luke's Oncology Team, Nancy is sharing her heartfelt wish that all women undergo annual mammograms. “I didn't feel anything in my breast, and my oncologist did not feel anything. Without a mammogram, you may not detect a lump. Mine was stage 2. Had I not been in for my annual mammogram, the tumor would have been bigger and would have been caught later.”