Jill Brooks has watched hundreds of patients step through the doors of the Concord Imaging Center, coming in to have their breasts scanned for any signs of lumps, cancer or other concerns.
As the chief technologist of mammography, Brooks does far more than operate scanners and produce images for radiologists to review. For four decades, she has been a patient advocate, helping individuals feel at ease from their first visit through every step of their care.
“It’s important to them, because they need to know that somebody’s there, somebody’s listening, somebody cares, and that they’re going to help them,” Brooks said. “I have many patients that recommend that I do their exam every year, so they come back and see you and ask for you, and when they’re done, they give you a hug. And it’s a great feeling.”
Brooks, 60, is a cancer survivor herself. She was diagnosed in 2021 with follicular lymphoma. Her husband, Mark Brooks, also knows the fight firsthand — he survived testicular cancer after being diagnosed in 2016.
With both personal and professional connections to the disease, Brooks has made it her mission to support the fight against cancer whenever and wherever she can, including far beyond the walls of Concord Imaging Center.
For 33 years, she has participated in the Making Strides Against Breast Cancer walk in Concord, showing up each year to celebrate survivors and support those currently battling the disease.
This year, Brooks missed the Concord event only because she was in Aruba. But, she didn’t let that stop her and took her walk there instead.
Dr. Gregory Bonci, who works alongside Brooks, described her as “a driving force in the [imaging] department’s growth” and praised her for dedicating “significant time to community outreach.”
Walking alongside thousands of people dressed in pink is always bittersweet for Brooks, who joins to raise awareness and support the cause.
“The energy is amazing and overwhelming,” Brooks said. “They’re happy tears, they’re sad tears too, just watching the survivors walk.”
Each year, she makes it a point to raise $1,000 herself, in addition to the $25,000 radiologists at the Concord Imaging Center raise and donate to the American Cancer Society.
This year, Making Strides of New Hampshire raised $400,790.
Beyond her fundraising and patient advocacy, Brooks continues to share one message above all: Get your routine mammogram.
Many people assume they’re not at risk if they have no family history of breast cancer, yet the greatest risk comes from simply being a woman.
Brooks said that she understands that the idea of screening can feel intimidating, but she wants patients to know they’ll never go through it alone.
“So come in, because you may not feel something, but we may find something,” Brooks said. “Don’t be afraid, come in. We’ll work with you, because it’s important.”
Alexander Rapp contributed reporting for this story.