Francine Walton, MPH, is a program director in the O’Neal Comprehensive Cancer Center’s Office of Community Outreach & Engagement. Sharing the importance of cancer screening, early detection, and access to care is all in a day’s work as she leads the outreach and community education programs. But it’s also a personal priority. Her mother, a four-time cancer survivor, has had a profound influence on Walton’s career path.

Nearly 32 years ago, Jeana Nesmith Russell was beginning her dream career as a nurse in one of the University of Alabama at Birmingham’s hospital units while pursuing her graduate degree. Little did she know that her life was about to change forever.

Individuals who are diagnosed with cancer can benefit from compassion and understanding shown by hospital volunteers. Patients at UAB Medicine's Breast Health Center (BHC) who experience such comfort from a stranger may suspect an angel is in their presence. In one sense, they would be correct.