Florida woman serves as mentor for breast cancer patients orlandosentinel.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from orlandosentinel.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
“It was very difficult back then,” said Kalb, 74. “There were no groups.”
Kalb is now helping change that. She is one of about 30 survivors who have received training through the University of Miami’s Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center to serve as mentors to the hospital’s breast cancer patients.
Alliances between women battling the disease have long existed, but Sylvester’s program provides an official channel for patients looking to speak with someone with a similar experience.
“The first time someone is confronted with a breast cancer diagnosis, they question their own mortality,” said Teresa Neira, program director of social services at Sylvester. “For a person to see an example of a hopeful outcome, someone who survived it, is very important.”