BOSTON -- "I remember going in and telling the woman at the counter that, 'I found a lump, I do not have any insurance and I'm scared,'" said Venatia Gilmer-Jones.

The memory was from the days after Gilmer-Jones discovered a lump in her breast while she was getting dressed for a family member's funeral.

Now, she wasn't just fighting breast cancer. She was fighting for help.

Unemployed at the time, Gilmer-Jones did not have health insurance. She had been repeatedly rejected for unemployment benefits, Social Security and welfare.

"I just broke down and cried," she said.

Then, medical bills started piling up. Doctors recommended that she undergo genetic testing for the BRCA breast cancer gene, a single test that cost $3,000.

"And I did not have $3,000," Gilmer-Jones said.

There is no requirement that hospitals help patients who cannot afford medical care, but nearly every hospital in Boston does offer help. Services range from free mammograms to counseling for young children of newly-diagnosed patients.

Faulkner Hospital will pay for some women's care all the way from diagnosis through treatment.

Boston-area women don't have to be in dire straits to get help. Many nonprofit organizations realize that a cancer diagnosis can throw any family into turmoil.

That's why groups like The Ellie Fund work to organize transportation and child care for breast cancer patients.

Community Servings delivers meals.

The Wellness Community in Newton offers health and lifestyle support.

As for Gilmer-Jones, she feels fortunate that a nurse really listened to her. Eventually, that nurse helped line up a pharmaceutical company that was willing to pay for the critical, $3,000 genetic test that confirmed she is positive for the BRCA gene.

"People looked and me, they listened to me and they said that I am worthy," said Gilmer-Jones. "I want all of us to have this."