Jill Bokern, RN, runs with her kids in the Race for the Cure every year, but this time, the Race has a little more meaning.

As nurse coordinator in the Barnes-Jewish Hospital''s Breast Health Center since its opening in 1997, she sees practically every diagnosed breast cancer patient that walks through the door. But until she became a patient herself, she didn''t realize just how much breast cancer affects every aspect of a person''s life.

"I''ve always been aware of the physical toll breast cancer can have on you," says Bokern, "But now I know the toll is more emotional than physical."

Last fall, Bokern signed up for a Washington University study comparing digital mammography to conventional film mammography. The screenings showed an abnormality from her previous mammogram, and another screening was ordered. That didn''t really scare Bokern, 47. "I thought it was no big deal because we ask people for additional views all the time," she says.

However after a biopsy, she was stunned to receive a breast cancer diagnosis. "I never thought it could happen to me because I''m so close to it," says Bokern. "But I have an advantage from that because I know early detection is important."

Suddenly, her role as a caregiver was reversed. While encouragement came from co-workers and family members, she was surprised to find help from an unlikely source.

Bokern is a facilitator in the HUGS program, a cooperative effort of the Siteman Cancer Center, the St. Louis Affiliate of the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation, Cardinals Care, Hardees and the St. Louis Public Library. The program helps children age four to 12 years, whose parents have breast cancer, understand what their parents are going through.

Ironically, Bokern was given her diagnosis on the same day HUGS would meet for the first time. Instead of counseling the kids, they would go on to counsel her.

"They don''t know I have breast cancer, but they have been a strength for me," says Bokern. "Kids are straightforward and tell it like it is and they''ve helped me talk to my kids."

A single mom with four children, ranging from eight to 25, Bokern only missed two and a half weeks of work following surgery and was itching to get back to work. "I have a different insight because I''ve been there," says Bokern. "I have a lot more to give."

To walk with Jill and the Siteman Cancer Center team in this year''s Komen St. Louis Race for the Cure, sign up by calling 314-454-5059 or register online at www.stlouisraceforthecure.org. Be sure to indicate the Siteman Cancer Center as your team name. Siteman is team #721.