A chemotherapy nurse and her daughter traded scrubs for tap shoes to help women with dense breasts get biopsies without leaving Cornwall.
Jennifer Hurtubise has worked at Cornwall Community Hospital’s chemo unit since it opened in February 2016. Her daughter Emily graduated from nursing school in 2025 and is now a float nurse at CHEO. Together, they danced in the Cornwall Community Hospital Foundation‘s 2026 Dancing with the CCH Stars campaign, which held its gala on March 7 at Aultsville Theatre.
The pair raised money for a mammography injector that can do biopsies for patients with dense breasts. Right now those patients have to travel to Ottawa for the procedure. The funds will also go toward new surgical equipment for women’s health.
“We’re dancing for a mammography injector delivering biopsies for dense breasts, keeping patients in Cornwall instead of going to Ottawa, and new surgical equipment for women’s health,” the team said on their campaign page.
The cause hits close to home. Emily’s godmother died from breast cancer, and three daughters in the family are at higher risk for the disease. “Emily’s godmother passed of breast cancer, and there are three daughters in our family, so this project means a lot to us,” Jennifer said.
Their tap routine, sponsored by the Cornwall Community Hospital Auxiliary, was the first tap number the event had seen in four years. Emily danced competitively for years with Powell School of Dance, and Jennifer danced growing up as well.
Jennifer started her nursing career in 2003 and has been in the chemo unit since day one. The unit began as a satellite of The Ottawa Hospital’s Regional Cancer Centre and now treats 10 to 15 patients a day, delivering more than 2,000 treatments a year. The hospital also added a 3D mammography machine in 2023, performing close to 6,000 mammograms that year.
People can support the Hurtubise team’s fundraising through the foundation’s website.
