Nurse who beat hard-to-treat cancer says she stayed strong by thinking of herself as a ‘survivor’

Zipporah Washington was in a nursing program last winter when she began experiencing stabbing pains in her chest and breathing difficulties. At first, doctors thought Washington had a cyst in her chest, but she was ultimately diagnosed with non-Hodgkin lymphoma. Her case was unlike most in that it involved an invasive tumor in her heart.

"It was really devastating to hear, because that was the last thing on my mind," Washington said.

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Washington, 34, of Newark, Delaware, ended up receiving specially-tailored treatment from a multi-disciplinary team that included cardiologists and oncologists at Temple University Hospital.

In June, Washington rang the bell to celebrate the end of her chemotherapy alongside her sons, ages 3 and 5, and the rest of her family. She graduated the same month with honors from her nursing program at Lincoln Tech in New Jersey.

On Thursday, Washington reunited with her care team at Temple, drawing a hug and big smiles from ICU nurses Nathalie Nelson-Sealey and Robin Johnson.

"She (Washington) went from us thinking the worst-case scenario to walking out cancer free," Johnson said.

How Temple treated Washington's rare form of non-Hodgkin lymphoma

Non-Hodgkin lymphoma starts in the body's immune system in white blood cells called lymphocytes. It is among the most common cancers, especially for young adults, affecting about 4% of people in the United States. More than 19,000 people will die from the disease in 2025, according to projections from the American Cancer Society.

But non-Hodgkin lymphoma involving a tumor in the heart is "relatively uncommon, highly aggressive and invasive," said Washington's oncologist, Dr. Michael Bromberg.

Bromberg's oncology team collaborated with cardiologist Dr. Eman Hamad on a personalized treatment plan for Washington. The aggressive course of chemotherapy needed to break down Washington's tumor also could have broken down the heart muscle, Hamad said.

"At any point there's a risk of rupture," Hamad said.

To prevent this from happening, Hamad's team monitored Washington's heart function with echocardiograms and other daily tests during her seven cycles of chemotherapy – the initial sessions all done in the ICU.

Scans over the summer showed that Washington's heart function had returned to normal.

"We're really very proud of her," Bromberg said.

'Think of yourself as a survivor'

Washington said she was afraid after hearing her diagnosis but that she "didn't sit in that fear."

"Look at yourself in the mirror, and think of yourself as a survivor," Washington said to others who may be facing a cancer diagnosis. "That's what I did."

Now, Washington is thinking about moving from Newark to Philadelphia to be closer to her care team at Temple during follow-up monitoring.

Washington is also thinking about becoming a pediatric oncology nurse.

"I'm honored to be a nurse and to share that love and compassion with people who need it," she said.