Infinite Hope: A Survivor Story

“My first thought was my boys. They were the only thing I could think about and what I needed to do to be here for them.”

Hope Palmer remembers vividly June 29, 2011, when what should have been a routine visit with her OB/GYN culminated in a breast cancer stage three diagnosis. Hope, now 50, and the owner of HD MKTG, a successful marketing consulting business in Ocean City, was at that time the mother of boys ages 1 and 3.

“I was 37, so I hadn’t started my annual mammogram screenings yet,” she shared during a recent conversation. “It definitely changes your perspective on life. Physically, I’m doing well now but emotionally, it’s still a battle that I have learned to take one day at a time.”

That’s not to say it’s been an easy road for Hope, who admits the difficulty and personal guilt at times of putting her own health ahead of her family and the daily fight to still be the mom she wanted to be. “There were many days and nights, exhausted, that I cried silently alone, praying for both mental and physical strength.”

A double mastectomy, multiple surgeries, chemotherapy and radiation treatments, clinical trials lasting several hours each time she was treated, but thankfully, she was able to accomplish that close to home—and close to her boys—through TidalHealth’s Richard A. Henson Cancer Institute. 

Hope still sees her oncologist twice a year for follow up and bloodwork, which is critically important to her health. “We all have to manage our own healthcare, not miss appointments and tests as needed, which isn’t always easy,” she added. “Great doctors and great resources are so essential.”

As a survivor, she’s also honored to be a champion of the TidalHealth Foundation’s Drive for Mobile Mammography campaign. “I’m so excited to be a part of this. As a working mom, I know how difficult it is to schedule time for my own health and this will give so many women, in particular those facing financial and transportation challenges, a more convenient option.”

Hope also knows she’s not in this fight alone and believes everyone will understand the importance of this mobile clinic. “Breast cancer has touched so many of us that I know people will want to be a part of this great campaign,” she said. “Early detection is so important with any condition, but with breast cancer, it’s a lifesaver.”