Dr. Shekinah Elmore: Cancer patient advocate and assistant professor at University of North Carolina School of Medicine has died – GoFundMe
Dr. Shekinah Elmore Death: A Famous Chapel Hill, North Carolina Cancer Patient Doctor who battled cancer multiple times has tragically passed away. Dr. Shekinah Elmore died unexpectedly this week, the family announced. “Words cannot describe the life and the loss of Dr. Shekinah Elmore. She was a pioneer in global oncology, a stellar physician, a visionary in humanity, a wife, mother, sister, and beloved friend.”
Who Was Shekinah Elmore?
Doctor Shekinah Elmore was a resident of Chapel Hill, NC. She was originally from Denver, Colorado, and a proud African heritage lover. Dr. Shekinah Elmore was a Harvard cancer doctor who had been a cancer patient for a long time. She was a caring mother to her son William and a dedicated wife to William.
Shekinah Elmore was also an Assistant Professor at the radiation oncology department at the University of North Carolina School of Medicine. She described herself as a “cancer person” and is well-known among her peers for her work in cancer patient advocacy. She had written and spoken publicly about surviving childhood rhabdomyosarcoma in the New England Journal of Medicine.
During her training at Harvard Medical School, Elmore focused on understanding and improving radiotherapy access in resource-limited settings and promoting pathways for resident involvement in improving global radiation therapy. Elmore also received a Fulbright award to study how patients in Rwanda experience cancer treatment, which she discussed in her speech. She graduated from Harvard Medical School with an MD, Columbia University with an MPH, and Brown University with a BA.
Dr. Shekinah Elmore GoFundMe
A GoFundMe Account has been created for her funeral. “Most importantly, as a wife and mother, nothing was more important to Shekinah than her son William and her husband Adam. Her greatest wish as she planned for the future was that her family would have the support and resources that they needed. This GoFundMe page is to directly support her family.”
Shekinah Elmore E-BOOKS
- She’s worn both a hospital gown & a white coat
- The Courage to Live with Radical Uncertainty
- The Muffin Question
- p53 and Me
- On Cancer and Metaphor
- The Worst
Shekinah Elmore Obituary and Funeral Arrangements will be Released by the Family.
As a physician, Dr. Elmore was a tireless advocate for patients given her own personal experiences with cancer and medicine. These experiences informed a career that has centered access, patient experience, and humanity in medicine across her institution, and the world. For the majority of her short career as an attending radiation oncologist, Dr. Elmore was also undergoing cancer treatment.
Still, she won several grants, continued her work in Global Health, and won several awards including the Society for Palliative Radiation Oncology’s Rising Star Award and UNC Chapel Hill’s Resident-chosen Teaching Award, continuing to mentor and inspire new faculty and students while on hospice. Her legacy is etched not only in the advancements she contributed to oncology in such a short time but also in the hearts of those she healed and inspired globally.
Dr. Elmore ventured into spaces no one dared considered, a true trailblazer. Her dedication to patients went beyond medicine; she offered comfort in their darkest hours and celebrated with them in their triumphs. Her life’s work and spirit will continue to be a guiding force, a testament to a life dedicated to healing and hope and putting humanity first. Through her passionate work, Dr. Elmore has left an indelible mark and legacy on humanity, oncology and countless destinies.
As a friend and colleague, Shekinah had an exceptionally unique and intersectional perspective that allowed her an enormous capacity for empathy for others. That empathy, coupled with a sense of purpose, hard work, and exceptional intelligence have made her a brilliant, compassionate friend, a natural leader, and most importantly, a change-maker. Throughout Shekinah’s life, we have learned the true meaning of friendship, camaraderie, courage, love, and resilience. She has shown us how to live fully, love deeply, and face challenges with grace. Not to mention, she loved art, music, culture, poetry and found joy in things great and small, no matter the circumstances. Shekinah was also a gifted writer and speaker. In the last months of her life, she wrote a series of beautiful blog posts about her experiences with multiple cancer diagnoses.
