{"id":21919,"date":"2022-09-29T07:00:43","date_gmt":"2022-09-29T07:00:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/updates-www.mccdn.io\/vitals\/?p=21919"},"modified":"2025-05-02T15:00:21","modified_gmt":"2025-05-02T15:00:21","slug":"best-friends-cousins-cancer-survivors-brandis-journey","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/updates-www.mccdn.io\/vitals\/best-friends-cousins-cancer-survivors-brandis-journey\/","title":{"rendered":"Best friends, cousins &#038; cancer survivors: Brandi\u2019s journey","gt_translate_keys":[{"key":"rendered","format":"text"}]},"content":{"rendered":"<p><em>Cousins Brandi Blanchfield and Jennifer Zink have an unbreakable bond. Last year, they were both diagnosed with ovarian cancer just months apart. But through it all, they\u2019ve found strength in each other and their cancer care team.<\/em><em>\u202f<\/em><a href=\"https:\/\/updates-www.mccdn.io\/vitals\/best-friends-cousins-cancer-survivors-jennifers-journey\/\"><em>Read Zink\u2019s story<\/em><\/a><em>.<\/em><\/p>\n<p>In October 2021, Brandi Blanchfield rushed to <a href=\"https:\/\/updates-www.mccdn.io\/location\/allenmore-hospital\/multicare-allenmore-emergency-department\/\">MultiCare Allenmore Hospital\u2019s Emergency Department<\/a> after waking up in the middle of the night with an intense fever. Doctors ran several imaging tests, including a CT scan and an ultrasound. Her tests came back with the cause of her symptoms \u2014 <a href=\"https:\/\/updates-www.mccdn.io\/services\/cancer-care\/diagnosis-evaluation\/gynecologic-cancer\/\">ovarian cancer<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>As an otherwise healthy and active 37-year-old dedicated to volunteering at a local animal shelter and exploring the Pacific Northwest, \u201covarian cancer\u201d was the last thing Blanchfield expected to hear. Just eight months before, her cousin and best friend Jennifer Zink had received the same diagnosis. Blanchfield leaned on her for guidance and support.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhen I was in the ER, I contacted my mother and then I contacted my cousin Jennifer,\u201d she says. \u201cFrom that moment on, Jennifer connected me with everyone; she let her whole care team know her cousin was coming in with the same diagnosis she\u2019d just received.\u201d<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_21931\" style=\"width: 235px\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-21931\" class=\"wp-image-21931 size-medium\" src=\"https:\/\/updates-www.mccdn.io\/vitals\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/15\/2022\/09\/Brandi-Blanchfield-2-225x300.jpg\" alt=\"Two women smiling.\" width=\"225\" height=\"300\" srcset=\"https:\/\/updates-www.mccdn.io\/vitals\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/15\/2022\/09\/Brandi-Blanchfield-2-225x300.jpg 225w, https:\/\/updates-www.mccdn.io\/vitals\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/15\/2022\/09\/Brandi-Blanchfield-2-768x1024.jpg 768w, https:\/\/updates-www.mccdn.io\/vitals\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/15\/2022\/09\/Brandi-Blanchfield-2-1152x1536.jpg 1152w, https:\/\/updates-www.mccdn.io\/vitals\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/15\/2022\/09\/Brandi-Blanchfield-2-1536x2048.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/updates-www.mccdn.io\/vitals\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/15\/2022\/09\/Brandi-Blanchfield-2-scaled.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 225px) 100vw, 225px\" \/><p id=\"caption-attachment-21931\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Blanchfield (left) and Zink<\/p><\/div>\n<p>Blanchfield\u2019s care was transferred to <a href=\"https:\/\/updates-www.mccdn.io\/location\/tacoma-general-hospital\/\">MultiCare Tacoma General Hospital<\/a>, where she found glimmers of hope thanks to hospital staff.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt was hard during COVID to not have my family there, but I was in the greatest company,\u201d she shares. \u201cNurses that weren\u2019t even assigned to me were coming to visit. I met so many doctors I\u2019ll probably never see again who said they were watching over me. I was put into this cocoon where I always felt cared for.\u201d<\/p>\n<h2>Facing cancer \u2018takes a village\u2019<\/h2>\n<p>Those days were the first of many that Blanchfield spent at Tacoma General Hospital. After she was discharged, she began weekly visits to the <a href=\"https:\/\/updates-www.mccdn.io\/services\/cancer-care\/\">MultiCare Cancer Institute<\/a> with medical oncologist <a href=\"https:\/\/updates-www.mccdn.io\/provider\/blair-irwin\/\">Blair Irwin, MD<\/a>, who immediately began a personalized treatment plan, including four rounds of chemotherapy followed by surgery with gynecologic oncologist <a href=\"https:\/\/updates-www.mccdn.io\/provider\/wafic-a-massry\/\">Wafic Massry, MD, FACOG<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>According to Dr. Irwin, every moment matters when treating cancer patients like Blanchfield.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cCancer marches along, and if we delay by not connecting patients to the next step quickly, then that affects their outcomes,\u201d Dr. Irwin explains. \u201cThat\u2019s where having a team around the patient who can educate and communicate with them quickly and efficiently and schedule them for all the treatments they need is so important.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>From the moment Blanchfield met Dr. Irwin and Dr. Massry, the team committed to easing her fears and uncertainty and empowering her with the most important tools for her healing \u2014 confidence and hope.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cDuring the process from diagnosis to starting and going through treatment, I always felt very protected,\u201d Blanchfield shares. \u201cDr. Irwin would always say, \u2018Let me do the worrying for you. You just take care of yourself.\u2019 And that really helped.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Her care team also included nurse navigators Maranatha Anderson, RN, and Becky Aurand, RN, MSN, BS.<\/p>\n<p>From the moment patients receive a cancer diagnosis, <a href=\"https:\/\/updates-www.mccdn.io\/vitals\/nurse-navigators-empower-cancer-patients-on-their-healing-journeys\/\">navigators become advocates for their care<\/a>, supporting them through their treatment and addressing potential barriers. Sometimes this includes using donor funds to cover temporary housing for patients or gifting a gas card to ensure they have reliable transportation to and from appointments.<\/p>\n<p>For Blanchfield, this meant connecting her to a MultiCare psychologist who works with individuals who\u2019ve experienced a cancer diagnosis. Navigators also referred her to a complimentary wig program at <a href=\"https:\/\/updates-www.mccdn.io\/services\/cancer-care\/patient-resources\/\">MultiCare Good Samaritan\u2019s Cancer Resource Center<\/a>. Powered by generous community donations, the program offers a free wig to those going through cancer treatment, including custom color matching, a wig liner and head covering accessories.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThat extra support is the most valuable thing a patient can receive,\u201d Blanchfield explains. \u201cIt takes a village and that\u2019s what nurse navigators are part of \u2014 a major village to help people facing really challenging times.\u201d<\/p>\n<h2>Whole person, family-centered care<\/h2>\n<p>As Blanchfield approaches the one-year mark since this chapter of her story began, she\u2019s celebrating the news that she\u2019s finally without evidence of disease. She\u2019s grateful for her community of support, including family and friends who ensured she never went to an appointment alone and staff who provided reassurance at every turn.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMy nurse navigators, Dr. Irwin and Dr. Massry, have not only helped my cousin and me, but also our families,\u201d she shares. \u201cI recently saw Dr. Massry, and he asked how my mom\u2019s doing because he knew she\u2019s been a nervous wreck for her daughter. He contacted them after my surgery telling them he believes I\u2019ll live a long, long life. All that positivity has really helped.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Although the experience has been filled with fear and uncertainty, Blanchfield is thankful she got to walk this path alongside her cousin and best friend. Throughout their journey, they\u2019ve found they have several more things in common \u2014 their strength, their love of laughter even in the darkest situations and their MultiCare Regional Cancer Center care team who\u2019s become part of their family.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignleft wp-image-21927 size-medium\" src=\"https:\/\/updates-www.mccdn.io\/vitals\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/15\/2022\/09\/Brandi-Blanchfield-3-215x300.jpg\" alt=\"Two women in the hospital hugging.\" width=\"215\" height=\"300\" srcset=\"https:\/\/updates-www.mccdn.io\/vitals\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/15\/2022\/09\/Brandi-Blanchfield-3-215x300.jpg 215w, https:\/\/updates-www.mccdn.io\/vitals\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/15\/2022\/09\/Brandi-Blanchfield-3-735x1024.jpg 735w, https:\/\/updates-www.mccdn.io\/vitals\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/15\/2022\/09\/Brandi-Blanchfield-3-768x1070.jpg 768w, https:\/\/updates-www.mccdn.io\/vitals\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/15\/2022\/09\/Brandi-Blanchfield-3-1103x1536.jpg 1103w, https:\/\/updates-www.mccdn.io\/vitals\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/15\/2022\/09\/Brandi-Blanchfield-3-1470x2048.jpg 1470w, https:\/\/updates-www.mccdn.io\/vitals\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/15\/2022\/09\/Brandi-Blanchfield-3-scaled.jpg 1838w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 215px) 100vw, 215px\" \/><\/p>\n<p><em>You can help cancer patients in the South Puget Sound receive compassionate care and support, regardless of their financial situation with a <\/em><a href=\"https:\/\/support.multicare.org\/site\/Donation2?2441.donation=form1https:\/\/support.multicare.org\/site\/Donation2?2441.donation=form1&amp;df_id=2441&amp;mfc_pref=T&amp;df_id=2441&amp;mfc_pref=T\"><em>gift to the MultiCare Health Foundation<\/em><\/a><em>. <\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false,"gt_translate_keys":[{"key":"rendered","format":"html"}]},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Cousins Brandi Blanchfield and Jennifer Zink have an unbreakable bond. Last year, they were both diagnosed with ovarian cancer just months apart. But through it all, they\u2019ve found strength in each other and their cancer care team.\u202fRead Zink\u2019s story. In October 2021, Brandi Blanchfield rushed to MultiCare Allenmore Hospital\u2019s Emergency Department after waking up in [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false,"gt_translate_keys":[{"key":"rendered","format":"html"}]},"author":403,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[43,79,115],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-21919","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-cancer","category-profiles-stories","category-womens-health"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v27.6 (Yoast SEO v27.6) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-premium-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Best friends, cousins &amp; cancer survivors: Brandi\u2019s journey - MultiCare Vitals<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Cousins Brandi and Jennifer were both diagnosed with ovarian cancer just months apart. 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Through it all, they\u2019ve found strength in each other and their cancer care team.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/updates-www.mccdn.io\/vitals\/best-friends-cousins-cancer-survivors-brandis-journey\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"MultiCare Vitals\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/multicarehealthsystem\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2022-09-29T07:00:43+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2025-05-02T15:00:21+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/res.cloudinary.com\/derwl0zbi\/image\/upload\/v1664300367\/mc-prd\/Brandi-Blanchfield-Feature-Image.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"2560\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"1440\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Christina Nelson\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:image\" content=\"https:\/\/updates-www.mccdn.io\/vitals\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/15\/2022\/09\/Brandi-Blanchfield-Feature-Image-scaled.jpg\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/updates-www.mccdn.io\\\/vitals\\\/best-friends-cousins-cancer-survivors-brandis-journey\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/updates-www.mccdn.io\\\/vitals\\\/best-friends-cousins-cancer-survivors-brandis-journey\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Christina Nelson\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/updates-www.mccdn.io\\\/vitals\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/4fdba364c9d27e4308937659cd176349\"},\"headline\":\"Best friends, cousins &#038; cancer survivors: Brandi\u2019s journey\",\"datePublished\":\"2022-09-29T07:00:43+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-05-02T15:00:21+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/updates-www.mccdn.io\\\/vitals\\\/best-friends-cousins-cancer-survivors-brandis-journey\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":884,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/updates-www.mccdn.io\\\/vitals\\\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/updates-www.mccdn.io\\\/vitals\\\/best-friends-cousins-cancer-survivors-brandis-journey\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/updates-www.mccdn.io\\\/vitals\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/15\\\/2022\\\/09\\\/Brandi-Blanchfield-2-225x300.jpg\",\"articleSection\":[\"Cancer\",\"Profiles &amp; Patient Stories\",\"Women's Health\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/updates-www.mccdn.io\\\/vitals\\\/best-friends-cousins-cancer-survivors-brandis-journey\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/updates-www.mccdn.io\\\/vitals\\\/best-friends-cousins-cancer-survivors-brandis-journey\\\/\",\"name\":\"Best friends, cousins & cancer survivors: Brandi\u2019s journey - MultiCare Vitals\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/updates-www.mccdn.io\\\/vitals\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/updates-www.mccdn.io\\\/vitals\\\/best-friends-cousins-cancer-survivors-brandis-journey\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/updates-www.mccdn.io\\\/vitals\\\/best-friends-cousins-cancer-survivors-brandis-journey\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/updates-www.mccdn.io\\\/vitals\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/15\\\/2022\\\/09\\\/Brandi-Blanchfield-2-225x300.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2022-09-29T07:00:43+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-05-02T15:00:21+00:00\",\"description\":\"Cousins Brandi and Jennifer were both diagnosed with ovarian cancer just months apart. 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