October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month.
That’s important to many women.
It’s particularly noteworthy for Heather Frimmer. She is a radiologist, specializing in breast imaging.
The Weston resident is also an author. Her third medical fiction novel, “Always Hope,” will be published October 14.
The tale of healing and hope explores the intricacies of medicine, law and redemption. It’s told through 3 characters: an obstetrician haunted by trauma, a mother raising a child with cerebral palsy, and an attorney striving for redemption.
Frimmer combines professional expertise with detailed research, to tackle themes like the fallibility of doctors, the complexity of parenthood, and the healing power of foregiveness.
Dr. Heather Frimmer
Her routes to medicine — and writing — were hardly foreordained. She had no family members or friends in medicine. But Brandeis University had an excellent pre-med program, so she studied to become a clinical psychologist.
During Cornell/New York Presbyterian medical school, residency and fellowship, she pivoted toward radiology. Her focus now is on reading breast mammograms, ultrasounds and MRIs, and performing image-guided breast biopsies and localizations.
During her intern year she met Ben Frimmer on Jdate. They clicked, and married. He was raised in Westport (and graduated in 1988 from Staples High School), and they soon found a home in Weston.
They have 2 teenagers, a lazy goldendoodle, and just celebrated their 23rd anniversary.
In 2014, Frimmer took an introductory writing class at Westport Writers’ Workshop. Supported by that warm community, she found the talent — and courage — to publish novels.
This year, she joined the Writers’ Workshop board, to give back to a place that she loves.
With a demanding job, 2 kids and a dog, finding time to craft a novel is not easy. Writing on her days off (Wednesdays), weekends and vacations, she finishes a rough draft in just over a year. She spends the next year revising and polishing her words.
Though Frimmer is a physician, she has not had first-hand experience with the “medico-legal system” (she adds, “knocking on all the wood over here”).
However, 1 in 3 US doctors wil face a malpractice suit during their careers.
Frimmer has seen friends and colleagues navigate perilous journeys through “the confusing and frightening world of medical malpractice law.” She has seen lawsuits shake physicians to their core, “wreaking havoc on their hard-earned confidence, relationships and mental health.”
In “Always Hope,” she shows how a malpractice suit affects both the plaintiff (who claims to have been harmed by the medical system), and the physician pinned with the blame.
As part of her research, she interviewed 5 obstetricians about their experiences. “Their honest and often heartbreaking testimonials added color, pathos and authenticity” to the book, Frimmer says.
This novel is not about her. But, she says, “certainly threads of truth from my life are woven throughout hte narrative.”
Like the main charcter, she too has been sandwiched between ailing parents and teenage children, all vying for her attention while she also cared for her patients.
Like her main character too she has a non-binary child whom she supported as they navigated their gender transition, and changed their name and pronouns.
The audience for “Always Hope” is “anyone who has ever set food in a hospital or doctor’s office,” Frimmer says.
Fans of medical TV shows like “ER,” “Lenox Hill” and “The Resident, and books like “Miracle Creek” and “Ask Again, Yes” will also appreciate it.
Meanwhile, the author is gearing up for a busy October. She’ll be at the Westport Library’s StoryFest on the 18th, hosts a release party later, and is set for a signing at New Canaan’s Elm Street Books on October 25 (2 to 4 p.m.).
She wants “06880” readers to know that for average risk women, screening mammography should begin at age 40. Those with increased risks should start earlier.
And if you have symptoms — a lump, skin changes, nipple discharge, change in consisency or any other breast changes, no matter what age — tell your doctor.
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