The phone call that changed my life happened on an ordinary Tuesday. When I was 34 years old, I heard the words “breast cancer.” As a single mother and emergency physician assistant, I suddenly found myself facing a battle not only for my career and raising my daughter, but for my life. But it wasn’t just the diagnosis that changed my course; it was what happened next.
A moment I will never forget was after the surgery. My little daughter gently traced the scar on my chest with her finger and asked, “Does it hurt?” I told her what I had come to believe deeply. Once scarred, these scars are now beautiful and indicative of transformation, not just survival. I explained that, like the Velvet Rabbit, sometimes we become more real through conflict.
Years later, when the cancer returned more aggressively, the oncologist “threw everything and the kitchen sink at me.” As I lay on the couch, exhausted from treatment, it felt like there was an hourglass above my head, time slipping through my fingers like sand. My daughter was still young and I couldn’t bear the thought of her growing up without me. It was like gasping for air, desperate for more time. We talk about “value” in healthcare, and what became clear to me at that point was that meaningful time is the ultimate currency.
Returning to work after breast cancer
This realization became the basis for my startup Dimer Health. Dimer Health provides 24/7 medical support to bridge the gap between discharge and full recovery. Through innovative technology and AI, we are making continuity of care the new standard for patient support. The U.S. health care system spends $62 billion annually on avoidable hospital readmissions, impacting more than 32 million patients. I am well aware of this cost. Two years after treatment, I was one of those statistics. After my implant replacement surgery, I rushed back to work too quickly and developed an infection that ended up in the hospital for three days. The most heartbreaking part wasn’t the inevitable hospitalization, but seeing all the trauma my daughter had already witnessed.
Through 17 years of medical practice and my own journey as a patient, I have discovered a critical gap: the dangerous space between hospital and home. Despite best efforts, 80% of patients do not follow discharge instructions. Many people wait weeks or months before reconnecting with their care team, increasing the risk of complications.
My own mother’s 14-year battle with advanced cancer became my north star for innovation. Through four rounds of chemotherapy, each year of which she lived as if it might be her last, she taught me how to build better health care. Founded in 2022, everything we develop at Dimer Health will be evaluated based on her experience. Can complications be detected early enough? Does she believe it? Would you be there at 3am when something worrying happened? My mantra is, “If it’s not good enough for my mom, it’s not good enough for anyone.”
We found that this solution needed to combine two key elements: the efficiency of artificial intelligence and the irreplaceable human touch. My company’s approach goes beyond cancer treatment and is transforming the entire hospital-to-home transition. Think of your doctor holding one hand and us holding the other, making sure you are never alone. Our 24/7 virtual support system combines AI technology and expert clinical staff to guide patients through recovery from surgery, managing chronic conditions, or transitioning from hospital care.
How to use AI in healthcare
Critics often ask whether AI belongs in medicine. As someone who wears the hats of both patient and innovator, I can tell you that it is about enhancing human care, not replacing it. When TechAviv, Silver Circle, and Bill Ackman’s TABLE Management recently invested in our vision, they weren’t just betting on technology. They were betting on a fundamental truth that I had learned through my battle with cancer. That is, medicine requires both innovation and humanity.
This belief is the driving force behind our unique “Patient Shadow” technology, which allows our team members to immerse themselves in the patient experience. Building healthcare technology is another thing. It’s another thing to truly live the problem you’re trying to solve and develop the necessary empathy.
We are at a critical moment in medical history. Hospitals are facing unprecedented staffing shortages and capacity issues and need solutions that extend human expertise while preserving the personal touch that humanizes healthcare. AI is more than just a buzzword, it is the bridge to a healthcare system that can finally deliver on its promise of putting patients first.
The future of medicine is not just about improved technology. It is important to understand that every patient has a girl who is walking through her scars, a mother who is fighting for longer hours, and a family who wants better care. That understanding is my superpower, helping me build a future where no patient faces their health journey alone. Because in healthcare, we’ve learned that innovation without empathy is no innovation at all.
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