Karen Pribnow, MSN, RN, OCN, CN-BN

"God's got you, we got you". It was these words that Karen said to me that I have thought about every day since my breast cancer diagnosis at the end of June.

It was several weeks before this when I had my routine mammogram. The next day I was called and told they would like to do some additional views (both were done at a different facility here in Lincoln). Working at St Elizabeth and with cancer patients on a daily basis, I still was not overly concerned.

However, when I was told I needed a stereotactic breast biopsy and that there was a national shortage of biopsy needles... and I was #14 on the waiting list. This is when the panic began to set in.

The following Monday I came to work with my mammogram results in hand and texted Karen asking if she had a moment to talk. She did. She asked why I didn't just have the biopsy at St E. I mentioned the waiting list for the needles. Her response, "l'll be right back". Within minutes I was scheduled for the biopsy the following week at St E.

Six days later, it was again Karen that called me with the positive pathology report and reassured me at a moment that was so totally overwhelming.

I do need to mention that Karen knows that a cancer journey is not unfamiliar to me. It was 35 years ago (yes, 35 years!) that I was diagnosed with ovarian cancer at the age of 27. We were both new nurses at the time, and it was Karen who administered chemotherapy to me.

Now, once again, Karen has coordinated every step of care I have received since I first contacted her that Monday morning, including appointments with the Breast Care Clinic, the oncologist, the breast surgeon, the radiation department, surgery, and follow-ups.

It's a surreal experience to be on the patient side of treatments that have been a part of my life for years. Karen has never abandoned me during this difficult journey. She's the one who has pulled me into a hug more than once, knowing I needed one. She is the constant, the anchor... even when everything feels so unsettled.

I get a little emotional when I reflect on everything she has done for me. She has definitely left an imprint on my life that will never fade.

I honestly don't know how I'll ever repay Karen or thank her enough for what she has done for me during my cancer journey(s). And she is right...."God's got you. We got you.”