PHILADELPHIA (CBS) – A mother who was diagnosed with an aggressive form of breast cancer when her sons were young is hoping her story helps empower other women.

Now that her sons are older and more independent, she has dedicated much of her energy to educating women about breast cancer and is working to close the gap when it comes to breast cancer deaths in the African American community.

And fortunately, I did that, because I had triple negative breast cancer, which is the most aggressive form of breast cancer for black women in particular,” Wimms said.

African American women die from breast cancer nearly 40% more than Caucasian women.

“Cancer is a horrible thing, but you can recover from it and you can take the horrible event and turn it into something that becomes a life lesson and becomes a blessing to other people,” Wimms said.