December 28, 2024

A Cancer Scare Taught Me the Importance of Screening | Jasmine Smith

Interviewed by: Nikki Murphy
Edited by: Chris Sanchez

Jasmine passionately advocates for cancer screenings and philanthropy, driven by her own health scare and lifelong commitment to giving back. Earlier in 2024, she faced a breast cancer scare when an abnormal mammogram led to a biopsy. Thankfully, results revealed dense breast tissue, common among African American women, but the experience reinforced her belief in the power of early detection. Jasmine urges people to trust their instincts and prioritize regular health checks, emphasizing that it is better to know.

As a regional foundation member of Jack and Jill of America, Jasmine connects people to empower African American youth and the nation’s youth as a whole, fostering future leaders through education and community support. Her role spans fundraising and community service across multiple states. She highlights the importance of organizations like Jack and Jill of America in educating communities on health issues and ensuring accessible healthcare resources.

Jasmine stresses the importance of self-care, using the example of a medical emergency her husband faced as a testament to the value of knowing one’s health history. She educates healthcare providers about available resources like North Carolina’s expansive Medicaid system, striving to help communities leverage existing support. Jasmine’s story is a call to action for proactive health management and community empowerment.

Thank you to Abbvie, Genmab, and Karyopharm for their support of our patient education program! The Patient Story retains full editorial control over all content.

This interview has been edited for clarity and length. This is not medical advice. Please consult with your healthcare provider for treatment decisions.

Table of Contents

Introduction
- Her work for Jack and Jill of America
Breast Cancer Scare
Takeaways from Jasmine’s Cancer Scare
Breast Cancer Stories

The biggest lesson I learned is that it’s better to know.

Introduction

My name is Jasmine.

I’ve never had cancer, but because earlier this year, I thought I might actually have breast cancer, I’m now a big advocate for cancer screenings.

I would say I’m a philanthropist. I’m all about giving back. I’ve been very blessed throughout my life.

I’ve come from humble beginnings, and feel so blessed now to be able to give back in a lot of different ways. And so I think at the heart of who I am, I’m about giving back and philanthropy.

Who I am at my core is I am a connector. I love bringing people together from different avenues of life and figuring out what we can do together, how we can harness our strengths to make this world a better place. I have done that through my job.

Her work for Jack and Jill of America

I’ve brought people together through various organizations that I volunteer with, such as Jack and Jill of America Incorporated, where I’m a regional foundation member at large.

And it’s really where my heart and my passion lies.

Jack and Jill of America is an organization of mothers founded in 1938 that works to build future leaders of America. Our children and our teens are our future educators, connectors, and leaders.

And so at Jack and Jill, we rally as mothers behind our African American teens and all our children, and building them up.

We help our teens to realize their passions. We help them to create and learn their strengths, and then we enable and empower them to become leaders in this world. And so, we are hopefully building a bench for a greater future.

I am the lead for the philanthropic efforts of 32 chapters in North America, in North Carolina, South Carolina, and Virginia, specifically. And that includes fundraising, community service, and grants and philanthropic giving.

Breast Cancer Scare

So this is how my breast cancer scare went.

It actually happened earlier this year. I went for a mammogram, and it came back abnormal.

I’ve had an abnormal mammogram before, and so I wasn’t too worried, but this time, I had to go through a biopsy, and lie down on this huge table, and have them primp and prod and do all these things to get the right imaging.

And it was a scary few days before the biopsy results came back and showed that everything was good, it just really dense breast tissue, which happens to a lot of African American women.

So it ended on a positive note. But it was such a scary time. It was a scary procedure. Not knowing what the outcome was going to be was very scary for sure.

I should also add that breast cancer doesn’t run in my family.

… it’s so crucial to listen to yourself and trust your intuition.

Takeaways from Jasmine’s Cancer Scare

“It’s better to know”

The biggest lesson for me from my experience is the importance of knowing.

So originally I didn’t want to go. I had I think I had waited another year or two from my last mammogram and it was like, oh, I’m good. I don’t really need to go.

But then something inside me said, you better go. And so I finally went, and of course I ended up getting cleared.

You know, having all the resources available to me yet still hesitating to go is awful. So I would say the biggest lesson I learned is that it’s better to know.

It’s better to go get checked and to know if there’s anything you need to be aware of and to take care of.

Listen to yourself

And another important point is that it’s so crucial to listen to yourself and trust your intuition.

God, or whomever you might believe in, gives us this instinct, this sixth sense about yourself and or about your situation. And it’s so important to listen to that.

Don’t wait. Something is telling you to go get checked. So go get checked.

Hey, even if something isn’t telling you to get checked, you really should still go and get yourself looked at. It’s something we women should do every year.

You really need to take to heart your health and your life.
And if you don’t take care of yourself, who’s going to take care of your family?
So you have to take care of yourself first.

Encourage others to get themselves checked

I really encourage everyone to go get those mammograms, and have themselves checked for anything.

So I make it a point to encourage others to go and do so, beginning with my daughter, who is 15 years old.

Earlier this year, I didn’t manage to tell her about my scare immediately as she was out of town. But we have talked about the importance of going to the doctor every year, both she and I.

And so she definitely gets her checkups and, and now is at a point where she goes and she sees the doctor by herself.

Having that one on one personal relationship with your doctor is really important. And she definitely understands and respects that relationship.

Work to break the cycle

Organizations like Jack and Jill of America and the Divine Nine have a key role to play in helping future generations break the cycle and get better healthcare. They are essential in getting the word out to African American individuals, leaders, and children.

People respect us. We are at the heart of these communities. We have a voice people want to listen to, and when we speak up, they listen.

And so it’s really important that all of these groups reach out and do education, build relationships, and work to educate the community at large about all of these important issues, such as vaccinations and diseases such as diabetes and heart disease.

There are a lot of resources at our fingertips and at our disposal.
Make sure you know what these resources are.

Take care of yourself first

You really need to take to heart your health and your life. And if you don’t take care of yourself, who’s going to take care of your family? So you have to take care of yourself first.

Whether you’re a mom or a dad or anyone, there are other people relying on you, and you cannot take care of them until you take care of you. Because if you don’t prioritize yourself, who will?

Back in 2016, my husband collapsed on the floor. Because we knew his own history as well as his family history, because he had been going to the doctor regularly, they were able to save his life.

There were critical decisions that we needed to make in the moment — decisions that we did make, because we knew what we needed to know.

So, yes, it’s important to know all these important things, because by knowing them, you are prepared.

Take stock of the resources at your disposal

And it doesn’t take a whole lot of money to be ready. Even if you don’t have the financial resources, there is Medicaid, which is so robust that that you can get checked out and it does not cost you anything.

I’ve helped educate health care providers and community members on things like preventative care screenings and Medicaid itself. And the number one thing that breaks my heart is not knowing what resources are available to help you or your loved ones.

There are so many things that the system across the country can offer. For instance, there are so many resources here in North Carolina. North Carolina has a robust Medicaid system. I mean, you can get transportation to doctor’s appointments.

You can get financial help with housing. You can get food boxes. We no longer have to go hungry. We no longer have to make do without utilities.

So what breaks my heart is people suffering and not knowing that there is a way out.

There are a lot of resources at our fingertips and at our disposal. Make sure you know what these resources are.

Special thanks again to Abbvie, Genmab, and Karyopharm for their support of our patient education program! The Patient Story retains full editorial control over all content.

Thank you for sharing your story, Jasmine!

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