Breast cancer survivor Jessica Snover with her dad
Jessica Snover of Kearney remembers the exact moment her life changed. It was an ordinary December evening in 2023. She had just turned 40 a few months earlier and wasn’t due for a mammogram. But during a routine self-exam in the shower, something didn’t feel right.
“I found a lump on December 13,” Jessica said. “By that Friday before Christmas break, my gynecologist called. The biopsy came back as triple-negative breast cancer.”
The timing felt unreal. Christmas approaching, winter storms rolling in, and suddenly a diagnosis filled with unfamiliar medical terms and urgent decisions.
“Everything moved so fast,” she said. “My first chemo appointment was already January 5.”
A whirlwind year of treatment
Jessica underwent six months of infusion chemotherapy, followed by a lumpectomy in July 2024 and 20 rounds of radiation that September. Complications from immunotherapy delayed additional oral chemotherapy, which she completed in late 2025.
Even now, life doesn’t look the same.
“You think when treatment ends, you just go back to normal,” she said. “But there’s a new normal. I still get tired easily. And when the appointments space out, that’s scary too. You’re so used to constant monitoring, then suddenly it’s, ‘See you in six months.’”
Strength in support
Jessica doesn’t describe herself as brave. Instead, she points to the people who stood beside her.
“I didn’t find strength by myself — I found it from everyone around me,” she said.
Her father, now in his 70s, has been her steady companion at appointments. After her mother passed away in 2022, she moved in with him to help at home. He repaid the care by becoming her biggest supporter.
“He takes me to every appointment and asks questions so he understands what’s going on,” Jessica said. “Everything is overwhelming. Having someone there means everything.”
Her 17-year-old daughter has walked the journey in her own way: sometimes quietly, sometimes by simply being present. Jessica and her fiancé began dating her right as she was diagnosed; their anniversary falls on the same day her chemotherapy began. Months later, his own mother was diagnosed with Stage 4 lung cancer, deepening their shared understanding of the disease.
“It’s been the hardest on my daughter,” she said. “But we’ve all leaned on each other.”
Care close to home
Jessica received oncology care with Dr. Sarah Creamer of Nebraska Cancer Specialists. She said having expert care within driving distance made an enormous difference.
“After chemo, you can go home and sleep in your own bed,” she said. “That matters more than people realize.”
She describes her care team as patient, attentive and deeply human.
“I never felt rushed. I could ask anything, even when it felt like a silly question, Dr. Creamer took it seriously. There was one time when I broke down, she came right over and put her arm around me. I can’t imagine doing this with any other doctor.”
From nurses and pharmacists to therapists and financial counselors, Jessica says the comprehensive support eased more than just the medical side of cancer.
“They have your back from A to Z.”
Finding balance after cancer
Today, Jessica is in surveillance, learning to balance vigilance with living.
“There’s always that fear it could come back,” she said. “You get a headache and think the worst. But you also can’t stop living. It’s a balancing act, and I think it always will be.”
Her mantra through the hardest days? “It’s okay to not be okay.”
She learned to listen to her body, to accept help, and to let go of the expectation that she had to hold everything together for everyone else.
A moment of light
One bright chapter came through Little Pink Houses of Hope, a foundation that offers retreat experiences for breast cancer patients. Jessica and her daughter spent a week at the ocean in Florida, staying in a donated condo just steps from the beach.
“Sleeping with the patio door open and hearing the ocean, it was amazing,” she said. “We didn’t have to worry about anything. It gave us space to just breathe.”
Jessica and her daughter in Florida
Looking ahead
Now, Jessica is looking forward to traveling more, returning to making handmade jewelry and décor, and planning her wedding.
But most of all, she hopes her story reaches someone who needs to hear it.
“You don’t have to do it all on your own,” she said. “You are not alone. There’s a medical team at NCS that is there for you, and there are people who care.”
About Nebraska Cancer Specialists
Nebraska Cancer Specialists (NCS) at CHI Good Samaritan Cancer Center in Kearney is a full-service, independent, physician-led cancer practice providing comprehensive care for cancer and blood-related conditions. With 15 convenient locations across Nebraska and into Iowa, NCS’s independence allows collaboration with health systems throughout the region, delivering seamless, patient-centered care close to home while ensuring access to advanced treatments, clinical research, and a full range of supportive services.
Drs. Sarah Creamer and David Crockett, both with Midwestern roots, serve patients at the Kearney location. Crockett, who was born and raised in Hastings, also speaks Spanish, helping expand access to care for Spanish-speaking families. Both Creamer and Crockett reside full-time in Grand Island with their families. They are part of a team that includes 25 physicians, 30 non-physician providers and nearly 400 oncology-trained employees dedicated to caring for patients across the region.
For more information about Nebraska Cancer Specialists, visit NebraskaCancer.com.
