Duke’s Brain Tumor Center Introduces Grief Support Program
The Preston Robert Tisch Brain Tumor Center at Duke University is set to roll out a new initiative focused on mental and emotional support for patients, their families, and caregivers. This development comes thanks to a generous donation from the daughter of a former patient.
Rebecca Feinglos, a native of Durham, has donated $250,000 to establish the Susan & Mark Feinglos Grief Initiative in memory of her parents. The announcement coincided with National Grief Awareness Day.
The funds will help launch a pilot program aimed at supporting those connected to care at the tumor center.
Feinglos carries a multitude of memories associated with Duke University and its medical facilities. “My parents arrived in Durham in 1972. My dad began his residency at Duke and they pretty much stayed put after that,” she reminisced. “My mom eventually directed the Duke Medical Center Library, while my dad advanced in the endocrine division to eventually become its Chief.”
However, not all of her memories are filled with joy. Her mother was diagnosed with Glioblastoma, the most aggressive type of brain cancer, when Feinglos was just five years old.
“I don’t have many happy memories from that time. Most are pretty frightening. It’s tough when someone you care about is battling cancer,” she shared.
Sadly, Susan Feinglos passed away eight years later, leaving Rebecca’s father, Mark, to raise her and her brother as a single parent.
“My dad was my closest friend,” she recalled. “Some of my fondest memories revolve around basketball and Duke football games with him.”
Feinglos was working in education when her father passed away unexpectedly in March 2020.
“I thought I had dealt with my grief over my mom’s death. It was certainly a difficult chapter, but I moved on. Then my dad’s death reminded me that grief isn’t something you simply get over,” Feinglos explained.
Following her father’s passing, she shifted her career and founded a grief support organization named Grieve Leave.
“I’ve had the unfortunate experience of facing grief early in my life, but it’s made me realize I have a unique opportunity to apply what I know to help others,” Feinglos said.
“It’s an extraordinary problem and no one until [Rebecca] has addressed this.”
As part of her ongoing efforts to assist those in mourning, she has also established the Feinglos Fund. Through this fund and Grieve Leave, she was able to contribute funds for the new grief program at Duke’s Preston Robert Tisch Brain Tumor Center.
“There hasn’t been any program focusing on the grief experienced by patients, their families, and the medical staff involved,” stated Dr. Henry S. Friedman.
Drs. Henry and Allen Friedman, Co-Deputy Directors of the Preston Robert Tisch Brain Tumor Center, have personal connections to Feinglos’ family, having treated her mother.
“How do you comfort a 5-year-old whose mom has a brain tumor? It’s always been a challenge in the brain quality of life initiatives,” Dr. Allen Friedman noted.
Dr. Henry Friedman mentioned that the center receives about 3,000 applications for care each year, treating around a thousand patients annually.
“Every month, we send out a list detailing the patients we’ve lost, and it’s quite extensive,” he added.
“Yet, we lack a framework to effectively support patients during their treatment or palliative care, and similarly for their families and the medical teams involved. It’s a significant issue, and until Rebecca, no one had taken it on,” Dr. Henry Friedman said.
Over the next five years, the donation will fund research into effective grief support practices and implement these findings at the brain tumor center. Feinglos hopes this initiative will serve as a model for other healthcare systems moving forward.
