When people enter Anderson Regional Cancer Center, they immediately see colorful handprints. The artwork, designed through a project called Handprints of Hope, honors patients who have fought off cancer.
“What we’ve done is we’ve asked cancer patients, anyone who has had a diagnosis of cancer, to come by and just put their hand print on our canvas.”
According to the National Cancer Institute, over a million new cases of cancer are diagnosed each year in the U.S. But due to advances in treatment, the disease may not be a death sentence.
The Hand prints of Hope project serves as an encouraging reminder to everyone who has been diagnosed with cancer.
“That just encourages other people, as new patients come along, that there is hope. We got people up here with 30, 40 years of survivorship. People with just a couple of months of survivorship,” Herrington explained.
Herrington says the project, now in its 3rd year, also marks the progression of patients as they continue their survivorship journeys.
“We got people who come and who’ve done it the first year. They may have been here for 5 years, but then the next year they get to put 6 years,” He said
Herrington adds that this year’s painting still needs more handprints.
“We welcome anyone who’s had a cancer diagnosis, regardless of the length of time it’s been, to come and give us their handprint as a way of encouraging others,” Herrington said.
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