Progressing through endometrial and breast cancer journey strengthens bond

Like mother, like daughter. Linda Gentry and Kim French each turned to MD Anderson when they faced cancer. And both now support MD Anderson through the Annual Fund, which provides unrestricted dollars for hard-to-fund research and other initiatives to end cancer.

Linda, 78, was diagnosed with endometrial cancer in 2009. Three years later, Kim, 58, learned that she had breast cancer. Linda credits the outstanding care she received at MD Anderson for convincing her family that there was nowhere better for Kim to be treated.

“We felt she had only one option, and that was MD Anderson,” Linda says. “There is nothing to compare with the quality of care, and everyone we met during this journey is top-notch.”

Kim concurs. “The staff never act like what they do is just a job. It always seems personal to them, even when they really don’t know you from Adam,” says the former nurse and mother of two who now runs the family’s commercial trucking company with her brother and their children.

Kim first witnessed the high caliber of care at MD Anderson when accompanying her mother to the hospital. “This is the No. 1 place for cancer treatment. It is truly the best,” Kim says. “I started in the medical field in 1983, and I have never seen patients cared for like they are at MD Anderson.”

Linda and Kim say their inspiration for giving to the Annual Fund comes from knowing that the whole MD Anderson family advances leading-edge treatment and is committed to stamping out cancer for good. “Hopefully, we can get rid of this awful disease,” Kim says. “The more people give to aid research, the faster a cure can be found.”