After attending the 2025 H.E.R. Summit, Hoag nursing director Lori Zaccari finally scheduled the mammogram she had been putting off. What followed was a breast cancer diagnosis, expert care, and a powerful reminder of the impact that community engagement can have on women’s health.
Lori Zaccari (middle) at the H.E.R. Summit by Hoag
For Lori Zaccari, last year’s H.E.R. Summit was more than a day of conversations about women’s health. It prompted her to take an important step she had been putting off.
A nursing director at Hoag Hospital Newport Beach, Lori had received an order for her routine mammogram in March 2025. She placed it on her computer as a reminder to schedule the appointment, but months passed as work and life took priority.
Then, in September 2025, Lori attended the H.E.R. Summit after a friend invited her. The annual event brings women and health advocates together with Hoag physicians to discuss prevention, screening, and the health issues women face throughout their lives.
The conversations resonated. The next day, Lori pulled the mammogram order from behind her computer screen and made the appointment.
Two days later, her mammogram showed an area of concern. Follow-up imaging and a biopsy confirmed breast cancer, and further testing revealed a second area of cancer in her left breast.
What followed was a comprehensive course of care involving breast imaging, surgery, oncology, chemotherapy, and radiation. Throughout her treatment, Lori experienced firsthand the value of coordinated care and the expertise of Hoag’s multidisciplinary teams.
At H.E.R. Summit, Lori had been seated next to Christine Kraft, MD, a Hoag breast surgeon and one of the event’s speakers. Neither knew that within weeks, Dr. Kraft would become Lori’s surgeon.
After surgery, Lori continued her treatment with Hoag’s oncology and infusion teams, completing chemotherapy in February 2026 and continuing with radiation therapy.
Looking back, Lori sees the H.E.R. Summit as a pivotal moment in her journey.
“I knew I needed to, but I wasn’t at risk, so I brushed it off,” she wrote of scheduling her mammogram. “It’s truly what got me motivated and empowered me to get my scan finally when I did.”
Lori’s experience illustrates the potential impact of bringing trusted health information directly to the community. For women, events like H.E.R. can provide knowledge, connection, and the encouragement to take action. For Hoag, they create an opportunity to engage the community around a shared commitment to advancing women’s health.
Philanthropy helps make that engagement possible. The most recent H.E.R. Summit raised more than $546,000 in support of the Women’s Hospital and Women’s Outpatient Pavilion at the newly expanded Hoag Hospital Irvine Sun Family Campus. Together, community support and clinical expertise are helping amplify opportunities for women to receive comprehensive care, from prevention and early detection through treatment and recovery.
For Lori, that mission is personal.
“I’m grateful to be in a position to receive such great compassionate care,” she wrote after experiencing Hoag from the patient’s perspective.
