She is noted as the first woman surgical resident at the University of Texas Medical Branch Galveston (UTMB), where she also worked as part of the faculty.
After finishing her secondary education at Austin High School in 1952, she obtained a degree at the Rice University in 1956.
[3] After her retirement in the field of medicine, she completed a substance abuse counselling programming at Galveston College.
[6] Abston is credited for developing garment compression for burn treatment that improved the appearance of scars.
[2] She successfully demonstrated how to maintain body weight in children with serious burns through the consistent enteral feeding of milk.