Saturday, October 3, 2026
The only thing that might be stronger that Jasmine Wade’s spirit is the collective strength of the community that rallied around her. Over the past two years, Wade, her children and the Sid Jacobson Jewish Community Center have become an unshakeable team.
In December 2023, while pregnant with her second child, Wade, of Long Beach, was diagnosed with breast cancer, which, even after chemotherapy treatment, would later return and metastasize to her brain. She had never heard of the East Hills-based SJJCC, or the staff that would become some of her fiercest advocates.
Wade, now 37 and living with Stage 4 cancer, began treatment at Mount Sinai South Nassau hospital in Early 2024, and was relying on help from a series of social workers — who, unfortunately, came and went without having much impact. She was eventually directed to the Nancy Marx Cancer Wellness Center at the SJJCC. There she connected with the help she needed, beyond just medical aid.
A top priority was navigating a pile-up of bills, stress and confusion. An endless string of doctors’ appointments left her unable to work, and fatigue from the treatments left her unable to fully attend to her son. Support agencies for those affected by cancer, including Pink Aid and CancerCare, offered some financial assistance, but there was little relief from the stress. Wade’s daughter, Anaiyah, now 19, decided to leave her first year of college classes at Keiser University, in Florida, and came home to care for her mother and help with her baby brother.
“Anaiyah is my saving grace,” Wade said. “My amazing daughter. She went away to school because she was going to study nursing. At the time, I had just beat breast cancer, so we thought it would be OK. And then it came back, so she came back. I have something called a BRCA gene.”
The BRCA gene is, essentially, a genetic predisposition to developing certain cancers. It is present in roughly one of every 400 people, and those with the gene can be as much as six times more likely to be diagnosed with cancer.
“After the treatment of breast cancer,” Wade said, “they wanted me to go straight into getting a hysterectomy, because ovarian cancer was the next possible cancer.” The past two years have required constant vigilance, as the disease returned despite treatments. “In October, I just had the last part of my mastectomy surgery,” she recounted. “I had a craniotomy in July. They cut a three-centimeter tumor out of my brain. They still have me on chemo, which they say I have to take for the next 20 years because of the BRCA gene.”
At the Marx cancer center, Wade was put in contact with Joy Rubel, a licensed master social worker, who quickly became a buffer between Wade and a stream of administrative confusion. “She went to other places for help, and all she got was paperwork to fill out,” Rubel recalled. “We’re here for emotional, social and also financial support.”
Shortly after Rubel got involved, she arranged for the SJJCC to provide everything from baby clothes to gift cards and groceries. Debbie Kessler, the center’s director of early childhood, explained why she believed the community pulled together so quickly when people learned about Wade’s circumstances. “Parents can relate because we’re a preschool,” Kessler said. “They saw a mother with a toddler, and wanted to help.”
And that help came in quickly. More than $2,000 worth of donations appeared within a week. The SJJCC also maintains a “community needs bank” stocked with donations — strollers, cribs, clothes — for anyone in need. It even coordinated with the Friedberg JCC, of Oceanside, to provide cost-free day care at a center that’s within walking distance of Wade’s home.
Wade’s journey is far from over. After the craniotomy, her doctors categorized her as NED — no evidence of disease — an enormous win, although different from being “cancer-free” or in full remission. The oral chemotherapy treatments, two pills every day for the next two decades, leave her struggling with basic activities.
“I can’t walk or anything for more than five minutes,” she said. “I have no quality of life. I told my doctor, ‘I feel like I’m too young to not be able to do these things.’”
And there is another unexpected complication: Kairo was recently diagnosed with autism. “I had to do chemo with him in my belly — my oncologist thinks it could be related,” Wade said. “He requires a lot of my attention, and I can’t run behind him like I want to — like I should be able to.”
Through the persistent cycle of victories and challenges, Rubel remains in constant contact with Wade, and recently brought donated gift cards to ensure that the family could enjoy the holiday season. Her support has not gone unnoticed. “If it wasn’t for Joy, I swear I would not be here right now,” Wade said. “I know it’s her job, but I don’t feel like it’s her job. I feel like she genuinely loves me and cares about me and my family. It’s good to have people in the world like that.”
The Marx cancer center recently created a new program — the Younger Adult Cancer Connection — to provide support groups and workshops to people ages 18 to 49 with cancer diagnoses.
While she continues to focus on one day at a time, Wade was proud to share another family victory: Anaiyah returned to college while still helping with her mother’s care. She’s now studying nursing at Nassau Community College.
