From Childhood Cancer Patient to Pediatric Physician

When Bridgette Merriman walks into a hospital room today, it’s not as a patient anymore—but as a doctor.

Long before the white coat and medical degree, Bridgette was a typical Rochester kid. But everything changed at age 11, starting with what seemed like a simple cough.

From Symptoms to Seeking Answers

In the fall of 2008, Bridgette developed a persistent cough and swelling in her lymph nodes. Since it was cold and flu season, and because she was an active swimmer, her symptoms didn’t seem alarming at first.

But the cough lingered, the swelling remained, and she began to lose weight.

By early 2009, she was too fatigued to keep up at her younger brother’s birthday party. That’s when her mom knew this was more than a long-lasting cold.

Bridgette and her mom visited her pediatrician, where she received bloodwork and a chest X-ray. While the technicians couldn’t share results, their body language said enough. When her doctor promised to call that night, Bridgette and her mom knew something serious was ahead.

A Life-Changing Diagnosis

“Bridgette, pack your bags,” her mom said, eyes brimming with tears. Bridgette, who still felt mostly fine, was confused. Kids my age only go to the hospital for things like a burst appendix, she thought. But my stomach doesn’t even hurt. To her, the visit seemed more like a spontaneous sleepover than a medical emergency. Ever the optimist, she was already imagining the exciting story she'd have to tell when she got home.

She arrived at Golisano Children’s Hospital and underwent additional tests. Then David Korones, MD, entered the room and gently explained what they had found: Bridgette likely had Hodgkin’s lymphoma.

“It’s cancer—it’s serious—but it’s curable,” he told her right away. His calm and direct approach left a lasting impression. “I never really had the chance to worry about whether it wasn’t curable, because he put me at ease immediately,” Bridgette says.

She had chemotherapy and radiation treatments from February to June 2009. During these months, Bridgette recalls the magic and joy she experienced at Golisano Children’s Hospital.

“My care was so holistic,” she said. “The doctors, nurses, child life and social work teams did so many great things for me, my siblings, and my parents. Through everything, I was never nervous.”

Now 27 and cancer-free, Bridgette’s medical care has shifted to monitoring long-term side effects from treatment.

Something else shifted while she was a pediatric cancer patient, and it changed her life.

From Patient to Provider

“What do you want to be when you grow up?” Bridgette was asked about three years after reaching remission for her Stage 4 Hodgkins Lymphoma. “A pediatric oncologist,” she answered.

While hospitalized, she developed a deep curiosity about the medical field—asking questions, learning about procedures, and even blogging to teach others about the care she was receiving. What began as a way to make sense of her own experience grew into a calling.

“It’s been incredible going from saying I want to do it to actually doing it,” she said.

Bridgette attended Boston University School of Medicine from 2020 to 2024. During her final year, she returned to Rochester for a rotation at the Golisano Children’s Hospital Hematology/Oncology outpatient clinic—working alongside none other than Dr. Korones, the very physician who had cared for her over a decade earlier.

“One of my mentors once told me that to have a successful career in pediatric hematology/oncology, you need smarts, drive, and compassion,” Korones said. “Bridgette is extraordinary in that she has all three and then some. She adds a fourth element—she knows what it’s like to be the ill one in the hospital bed, the kid with no hair, the child on the receiving end of bad news.”

Last spring, Bridgette graduated from medical school. In a full-circle moment, Dr. Korones traveled to Boston to serve as her hooder at the ceremony—an honor reserved for someone who played a significant role in a student’s journey to becoming a doctor. “Dr. Korones is really the one who inspired me to pursue pediatric oncology,” Bridgette says.

“The Dr. Koroneses of the world—that’s what it’s all about.”

Looking Ahead

Today, Bridgette Merriman, MD, is a pediatric resident at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, with plans to pursue a fellowship in Pediatric Hematology/Oncology and Palliative Care. Inspired by her own journey, she is particularly interested in research surrounding the survivorship experience for young adult cancer survivors.

“Being a young adult with an adverse healthcare experience creates a constant feeling of ‘waiting for the other shoe to drop,” she said. It’s a topic she explored in her senior thesis and hopes to delve into further throughout her career.

Her experience at Golisano Children’s Hospital not only opened her up to the world of pediatric oncology but also showed her the type of care she wants to model for her own patients.

“I know what it’s like to have the best,” Bridgette said, reflecting on the empathy and respect she received from her care team. “Being there—bearing witness during the hardest moments of a child’s life—and helping them find comfort, even joy, in the darkest times... that’s what I want to do.”