The next time a friend or loved one tells you that they’ve just received a cancer diagnosis, there are three things you can do.
1. Give a hug—a big one. Everyone can hug. Even self-proclaimed non-huggers.
2. Say you’ll be there to help and support them. And then be sure to follow through.
3. Share information about Imerman Angels 1-on-1 Cancer Support. This just might be the most valuable thing you can give them.
Imerman Angels is based in Chicago but offers services free of charge to anyone anywhere in the world who is going through a cancer journey.
They match individuals newly diagnosed with cancer with a survivor who has been through the exact same journey—same type of cancer, close in age, same gender and with similar lifestyle or interests—to serve as a “mentor angel.” Their services support those with a cancer diagnosis as well as their caregivers,utilizing a database of more than 6,000 survivors and caregivers who have signed up as mentors.
The nonprofit organization was founded by Jonny Imerman, a two-time testicular cancer survivor whose own personal experience opened his eyes to the number of people who navigate a cancer journey without support.
“I had people with me every day,” Imerman says. “But I’d walk down the halls during treatment—dragging my IV pole by my side—and I’d meet a lot of people who were alone.”
Those trips down the hall made a lasting impression on Imerman. And while he regularly would stop and talk with anyone he passed, he wanted to do more.
“I made a silent promise to myself that if I ever got to the other side of this, I was going to figure out a way to help.”
It took a couple of years, but Imerman did get to the other side.
When he did, he remembered the promise he made to himself to help others who were going through a difficult cancer experience. In 2003, he started Imerman Angels to provide one-on-one cancer support to anyone anywhere in the world facing a cancer diagnosis.
“What we do is simple,” Imerman says. “We connect people dealing with cancer—both patients and their caregivers—with people who have gone through it. We’ll find someone for anyone—same cancer, same sex, age and lifestyle. Someone who can say, ‘I’ve walked in your shoes. I’ve been there. I beat it. And you can too.’”
It’s a buddy support system. But to those on the receiving end, it’s hope.
Today, Imerman Angels maintains the world’s largest database of cancer survivors and caregivers.
“We paired up almost 2,300 people this year,” Imerman says. “Am I proud of that? Absolutely. But there are more than 1.5 million people in our country who receive a cancer diagnosis every year. There’s still so much to do.”
