Breast Cancer Coach helps alleviate fears after diagnosis

AMY QUESINBERRY COMMUNITY EDITOR

Getting a breast cancer diagnosis can be frightening, but Tammy Springer-Marcotte has created a business in which she walks alongside patients as they deal with those fears. Breast Cancer Coach LLC is an online company that empowers women with education once diagnosed with the disease. She calls it a resource and support hub.

Although Springer-Marcotte is not a breast cancer survivor, she has worked in the field for her entire 35-year career, first as a mammographer and ultrasound technician and then transitioning to the industry side in medical sales.

“Through my journey, I’ve learned that there’s a big gap between women who are diagnosed and women who truly understand(ing) what’s going on,” she said. “Women need to have a better understand of what they’re diagnosed with so they can make a well-informed decision on their treatment plan.”

Springer-Marcotte knows women who have received an abnormal mammogram, are told to get a biopsy, hear the news that they have breast cancer and are told to see a surgeon.

“They’re (panicking), because now it’s going to take three weeks to get an appointment,” she said. “All they hear is cancer. ‘I’m going to die.’ … They’re on the edge. I’m here to talk them off the ledge. … That’s where I come in.”

At BCC, Springer-Marcotte walks women through their diagnosis, whether it’s helping them form well-thought-out questions to ask their doctor or to give them a shoulder to cry on.

“Let me spend time with you on the phone and cry it out and talk through it,” she said. “And now when you get to your doctor’s appointment, your head space is better … and (your) time with the doctor is more valuable.”

When Springer-Marcotte asked several physicians about her idea, many were on board with it and said they see her role as a kind of team member. One asked how he can help her succeed.

A LIGHTBULB MOMENT

Before starting BCC, a friend of Springer-Marcotte called her after receiving a breast cancer diagnosis. She talked her through many trying moments and gave her some direction as she walked this frightening path.

Springer-Marcotte said: “She’s now on the back end of chemo and radiation … and she said, ‘You’ve helped me, you don’t even know. The timing of helping me think through it, asking the right questions, if I needed a second opinion, guiding me on where I