From provider to patient, MUSC nurse practitioner finds strength in cancer journey

Transitioning from the role of a provider to a patient is not something any MUSC employee expects. Yet, that’s exactly what happened to MUSC Health Lancaster Medical Center acute care nurse practitioner Julia Boone, APRN, when she was diagnosed with Stage IIIA triple negative breast cancer.

“It doesn't matter what stage or what type of cancer you have. To be on the other side of health care and to go from that to being the patient really shook me,” said Boone.

Just after her 40th birthday, Boone visited Amanda White D.O., at MUSC Health Primary Care - Lancaster for an annual checkup. She said during her appointment, White said “Happy 40th birthday. You're getting a mammogram from me.” As a strong advocate for early detection, White scheduled Boone’s first mammogram.

Boone never considered that at such a young age she would be at risk for something like breast cancer. Before she even went in for her scheduled mammogram, she found something that made her heart sink.

“I had just gotten in the shower, and I felt a lump in my left breast, and it was about the size of a grape. It wasn't painful, and it didn't move,” said Boone. “From school and my general health care background, I knew that it was concerning. I was praying. This can't be real. I was just freaked out.”

After a positive mammogram that same day, later testing determined she had Stage IIIA triple-negative breast cancer. Even as a nurse practitioner who cares for patients with cancer every day, nothing could have prepared her for the impact that this positive diagnosis would have.

“I went through all the stages of grief, and they were not linear whatsoever,” said Boone. “They just came as they came, and I felt like sometimes I experienced them all in the same day.”

After a whirlwind of a diagnosis, Boone was feeling overwhelmed about her next steps. That’s when she got a call from an old friend and fellow MUSC employee, general surgeon Hart Parker M.D., with MUSC Women’s Health at Columbia Medical Park Downtown. She said she answered his call frantic and scared, but he reassured her. “Julia, I am here with you. I'm going to be with you through this. Whatever this is, you need to take a deep breath, and we're going to take this one day at a time,” he said.

 

From that point forward, Boone decided to start traveling from Lancaster to Columbia to receive her care from Parker. She underwent chemotherapy for six months, which affected her ability to work and her life at home. After completing her chemotherapy, Parker and his team performed a double mastectomy to reduce the risk of further complications. Along with additional treatment, she is in the process of scheduling her reconstructive surgery.

“I have interest in every patient like they’re my own, but someone who you see every day, and you've known for years, certainly hits home,” said Parker, Boone’s surgeon. “It certainly emotionally impacted me from seeing her where she used to be to where she was during her treatment. But also, in a way, I think it established an avenue for us to have very in-depth, honest conversations about her treatment and her diagnosis moving forward.”

Boone has gained a sense of strength and now believes that a devastating diagnosis can also bring a renewed sense of purpose and resilience. Through her battle with cancer, she not only had support from her family, but her colleagues, patients and friends. Now her message is clear: Only you can be your own best advocate. Trust yourself to know when something is wrong. Lean on your care team to guide you. And hope is stronger than cancer.

“My colleagues supported me wholeheartedly and did everything that they could from the medical standpoint to expedite things and advocate for me,” said Boone. “They supported me both medically and emotionally. My clinic just rallied around me, and all my bad days held me up through my diagnosis.”

For more information on MUSC women’s health resources in Lancaster and Columbia, please visit MUSC Women’s Health at Lancaster Medical Center or MUSC Health Women’s Health at Columbia Medical Park DT 1.