Bosom Buddies

The Bosom Buddies program, at the Women’s Center of Jacksonville, is dedicated to improving the lives of women affected by breast cancer. Compassionately and respectfully, we educate, support and advocate so that women are empowered to make informed decisions concerning their health. The Bosom Buddies program shares the heart to heart experiences of breast cancer through:

Breast Cancer Support Group >
Mondays, 7 – 8:30 p.m.
Bosom Buddies hosts a free weekly breast cancer support group meeting on Monday evenings at the Women’s Center of Jacksonville. The support group focuses on “caring and sharing” and “survivorship education,” providing the opportunity for breast cancer survivors to share their personal cancer journey experiences and learn new ways to increase their quality of life. The group consists of women of all ages in all stages of their cancer journey: newly diagnosed women, women in treatment, women who are now cancer-free, and occasionally caregivers. Bobbi de Córdova-Hanks, a 24 year breast cancer survivor, facilitates this group.

Young Survivors Group
First Tuesday of the month, 6:30 – 8 p.m.
Bosom Buddies is excited to announce the addition of a free Young Survivors Group, for female survivors between the ages of 18 – 45, held the first Tuesday of each month at the Women’s Center of Jacksonville. This group is geared towards addressing the emotional and social issues that arise with being diagnosed with cancer at a young age. A young survivor and a life coach co-facilitate this group.

Interested in attending a support group? New members are always welcome! Please contact the Woman's Center at 722-3000 Ext. 224 or see our Bosom Buddies calendar for a schedule of support group meetings and other Bosom Buddies activities.

Bosom Buddies Now Provides A Volunteer Survivor Advocate Service
Most women diagnosed with breast cancer are able to rely on the support and encouragement of their family and friends throughout their cancer journey. However, those survivors who do not have a reliable support network end up traveling the journey alone. Through a grant from the Florida Breast Cancer Research Foundation, Bosom Buddies hopes to change that with its new Survivor Advocate Program.

The program trains breast cancer survivors as advocates to accompany women in need of support and who are looking for guidance and encouragement. Survivor Advocates can be a “second set of ears,” be the voice of reason, coach and motivator to help women coordinate their care. Most importantly, they can link patients with support groups and other vital community resources. They can also help these women become compliant patients.

Some of the problems with treatment compliance are low literacy levels, lack of understanding of what the treatment and its physical effects may be, and how going through surgery and treatment will affect their family. Many women are single mothers without a backup support system.

The Survivor Advocate project provides encouragement and support for these women and helps in closing the gap with regard to the disparities that exist in the healthcare system for ethnic and racial minorities and the medically disadvantaged.

For more information, call the Bosom Buddies office, 722-3000 Ext. 224.

Information Resource Center
Bosom Buddies provides free educational materials for women diagnosed with breast cancer, those at high-risk, and those who are interested in learning more about breast cancer. Breast cancer educational materials, mastectomy bras, wigs and a variety of prostheses are available at no charge to the community. Bosom Buddies also provides information referrals to underinsures/uninsured women looking for breast health care in the Jacksonville area. For information about financial assistance for breast cancer survivors, check out the Donna Foundation.

Community Education Presentations
Complimentary breast health/breast cancer educational presentations are available to groups within the Jacksonville community. Presentations are catered to meet specific audience requirements and breast health/breast cancer educational materials are provided at each presentation.

We invite you to take part in our breast health/breast cancer services. Call 904-722-3000 ext. 224 for more information. .

See Florida Times-Union's multimedia columnist Amanda Warford's video.