Breastcancer.org Podcast

Artist Kathryn Stella, vice president of the Bodice Project, discusses how the sculptural exhibit promotes inner healing among women and men who have been diagnosed with breast cancer. Running time: 3:44

Dr. Levi Garraway, senior vice president of oncology development and medical affairs at Eli Lilly and Company, discusses some of the research highlights at the 2018 AACR Annual Meeting, particularly those in breast cancer.  Running time: 3:06

Dr. Jennifer Litton is a board certified medical oncologist and associate professor of breast medical oncology at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston. Her research focuses on the genetics of breast cancer and how the genes of a breast cancer change at the molecular level. She has been principal investigator on a number of research projects and is a member of the Genetic/Familial High Risk Assessment: Breast and Ovarian guideline expert panel for the National Comprehensive Cancer Network.Listen to the podcast to hear Dr. Litton discuss: the phases of clinical trials and why each is important the benefits and risks of being part of a clinical trial how to withdraw from a clinical trial how care works in a clinical trial how to find clinical trials Running time: 31:12

Dr. Jennifer Litton is a board certified medical oncologist and associate professor of breast medical oncology at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, where she is chief of the Section of Clinical Research and Drug Development for Breast Cancer. She also is a member of the Breast Immuno-Oncology Task Force of the National Cancer Institute.Listen to the podcast to hear Dr. Litton discuss: how immunotherapy medicines work why immunotherapy medicines haven’t seemed to work as well in breast cancer as they have in other cancers the direction of immunotherapy research for breast cancer Running time: 13:35

Dr. Alexander Miller is a surgical oncologist who specializes in treating breast cancer and people at high risk of the disease. Currently at the START Center for Cancer Care in San Antonio, Texas, he trained at MD Anderson and the Mayo Clinic. Dr. Miller has received awards for excellence in research, education, and patient care. He has been lead or collaborating researcher for several studies on breast cancer treatments, prevention, genetic testing, and the psychosocial experiences of people receiving cancer care.Listen to the podcast to hear Dr. Miller explain: the most common side effects of both mastectomy and lumpectomy and how to manage them why the risk of lymphedema, while still a concern, has gone down in the last 10 years steps people can take before surgery to reduce the risk of side effects Running time: 31:48

Dr. Dawn Hershman is professor of medicine and epidemiology at Columbia University. She also serves as leader of the Breast Cancer Program at the Herbert Irving Comprehensive Cancer Center at Columbia and is nationally recognized for her expertise in breast cancer treatment, prevention, and survivorship. A member of the Breastcancer.org Professional Advisory Board, Dr. Hershman also has conducted extensive research on breast cancer treatment and quality of life -- she has published more than 250 scientific papers and has received the Advanced Clinical Research Award in Breast Cancer from the American Society of Clinical Oncology and the Advanced Medical Achievement Award from the Avon Foundation. Dr. Hershman is also on the editorial board of the Journal of Clinical Oncology and is an associate editor at the Journal of the National Cancer Institute. Listen to the podcast to hear Dr. Hershman explain: how clinical trial results are used how clinical trial results have changed the standard of care why factors

Dr. Sherene Loi is a medical oncologist who specializes in treating breast cancer. In addition to treating patients, particularly patients diagnosed with HER2-positive breast cancer, she also leads the Translation Breast Cancer Genomics and Therapeutics Laboratory at the Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre in Melbourne, Australia, where she is a professor. Much of her clinical research focuses on investigating new treatments, such as immunotherapy, especially for breast cancers that have become resistant to standard treatments.Listen to the podcast to hear Dr. Loi explain: results from the PANACEA trial, which looked at using the immunotherapy medicine Keytruda (chemical name: pembrolizumab) along with Herceptin to treat Herceptin-resistant, HER2-positive, advanced-stage breast cancer that had high levels of PDL-1, a biomarker that indicates that Keytruda will be effective how an immunotherapy medicine like Keytruda works what tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs) are and why cancer tumors with high numbers of TILs

Dr. Timothy Pluard is medical director at the Saint Luke’s Cancer Institute and the Koontz Center for Advanced Breast Cancer in Kansas City, Missouri. A medical oncologist, Dr. Pluard specializes in offering comprehensive care, including treatments that use advanced genomics and immunotherapy to women diagnosed with metastatic breast cancer. He also incorporates nutrition planning, spiritual counseling, exercise physiology, massage, yoga, palliative care, and emotional support into patient care. He also advises patients on participating in clinical trials on leading-edge treatments for advanced-stage breast cancer. Many of Dr. Pluard’s patients have praised his communication skills.Listen to the podcast to hear Dr. Pluard discuss: how he tailors his communication to each individual patient and that person’s unique situation how he talks to patients about disappointing news, such as cancer progression or a treatment that stops working what makes someone a good communicator his tips on how to make doctor-patien

Beth Fairchild was diagnosed with de novo metastatic breast cancer in 2014 at age 34. The diagnosis was a surprise to her because her mammogram results from the month before were negative, and she had never had a lump in her breast. Beth was familiar with breast cancer though. Her mother was diagnosed with breast cancer at age 44, and her paternal grandmother died from breast cancer at age 33.An artist and tattoo professional, Beth and her husband own five tattoo studios. Her focus is on permanent cosmetics, scar camouflage, and areola restoration for people diagnosed with breast cancer. Beth is the current president of METAvivor, a nonprofit organization dedicated to increasing awareness of metastatic breast cancer and funding research on metastatic disease. Beth also is one of the creators of the Serenity Project, a metastatic breast cancer support campaign that gives patients an opportunity to tell their personal metastatic breast cancer stories through a series of photos and videos.Listen to the podcast t

Beth Fairchild was diagnosed with de novo metastatic breast cancer in 2014 at age 34. The diagnosis was a surprise to her because her mammogram results from the month before were negative and she had never had a lump in her breast. Beth was familiar with breast cancer though. Her mother was diagnosed with breast cancer at age 44 and her paternal grandmother died from breast cancer at age 33.An artist and tattoo professional, Beth and her husband own five tattoo studios. Her focus is on permanent cosmetics, scar camouflage and areola restoration for people diagnosed with breast cancer. Beth is the current president of METAvivor, a non-profit organization dedicated to increasing awareness of metastatic breast cancer and funding research on metastatic disease. Beth tattoos permanent cosmetics, such as eyebrows or eyeliner, as well as nipples and areolas for women who have had breast cancer surgery.Listen to the podcast to hear Beth explain: how to find a professional who can do permanent cosmetics what scar camo

Cristina Nixon is a licensed certified genetic counselor with the Cancer Risk Assessment and Genetics Program at Main Line Health in Pennsylvania. In addition to counseling patients, she also assists with research, including a study looking at multi-gene panels in BRCA1/BRCA2-positive families. Cristina also has completed the City of Hope’s intensive course in cancer risk assessment. In the wake of the March 6, 2018 U.S. Food and Drug Administration authorization of the 23andMe Personal Genomic Service Genetic Health Risk Report for BRCA1/BRCA2 (Selected Variants) test, we talked to Cristina about at-home genetic testing. Listen to the podcast to hear Cristina explain: the differences between an at-home genetic test, such as the 23andMe BRCA genetic test, and a genetic test that is ordered by your doctor, as well as the benefits and drawbacks of each how the cost of a genetic test ordered by a doctor isn’t much more than the cost of an at-home genetic test why genetic counseling is so important when having

Dr. Marleen Meyers is a medical oncologist and clinical assistant professor of medicine at NYU Langone. She also serves as director of the Perlmutter Cancer Center Survivorship Program. She received her medical degree from the NYU School of Medicine and has been in practice for more than 20 years.Listen to the podcast to hear Dr. Meyers talk about: what HER2-positive breast cancer is and how its aggressiveness ranks compared to other types of breast cancer factors doctors consider when estimating a person’s risk of recurrence specific ways to reduce the risk of HER2-positive disease recurrence how she helps her patients manage the fear of recurrence Running time: 17:06

Terry Lynn Arnold, founder of The IBC Network Foundation who was diagnosed with triple-negative inflammatory breast cancer in 2007, talks about how her organization is raising awareness of and funding research on this rare type of breast cancer. Running time: 1:48

Marc Hurlbert, chairperson of the Metastatic Breast Cancer Alliance (MBCA) and chief mission officer of the Breast Cancer Research Foundation, discusses some research presented in San Antonio by MBCA collaborators.Running time: 3:00

Kelly Shanahan, MD, a former obstetrician/gynecologist, was diagnosed with early-stage breast cancer in 2008 and then diagnosed with metastatic disease in 2013, on her birthday. Here she talks about how empowering it was to participate in the #ThisIsMBC Serenity Project, which gives women and men living with metastatic breast cancer an opportunity to tell their personal stories through a series of unique pictures and inspiring videos.Running time: 4:01

Joint pain is one of the most common side effects of aromatase inhibitors and may be a big reason why women stop taking these medicines early. Dr. Dawn Hershman, leader of the Breast Cancer Program at the Herbert Irving Comprehensive Cancer Center at New York-Presbyterian/Columbia University Medical Center, presented research at the 2017 San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium showing that acupuncture can ease aromatase inhibitor-caused joint pain, even after the acupuncture treatment sessions stop.Listen to the podcast to hear Dr. Hershman explain: how much acupuncture eases joint pain why she believes acupuncture could help many women stick to their hormonal therapy treatment plans the cost of acupuncture relative to other treatments the few and mild side effects of acupuncture Running time: 13:26

This Breastcancer.org podcast focuses on breast reconstruction and features Frank DellaCroce, M.D., F.A.C.S., cofounder of the Center for Restorative Breast Surgery and the St. Charles Surgical Hospital. Dr. DellaCroce is board certified in plastic and reconstructive surgery, and his pioneering work in microsurgery has made the Center for Restorative Breast Surgery an international leader in the art and science of breast reconstruction. He has performed thousands of breast reconstructions on women from around the world. Listen to the podcast to hear Dr. DellaCroce discuss: the advances in reconstruction that have happened in the past decade what microsurgery is and why it’s so specialized the most popular breast reconstruction options how he assesses a breast reconstruction that a woman is unhappy with Running time: 34:52These podcasts, along with all the other vital content and community support at Breastcancer.org, only exist because of the generous donations of listeners like you. Please visit Breastcanc

A former pharmaceutical sales rep, Deidra is a 3-time cancer survivor. She was diagnosed with melanoma in 1991 at age 32 in 1991. In 2006, she was diagnosed with non-Hodgkin lymphoma at age 47. Three days before Christmas in 2014 and 12 weeks before the wedding of her son, Pierce, she was diagnosed with hormone-receptor-positive breast cancer in two spots. She had double mastectomy and immediate DIEP flap reconstruction on January 18. She also had nipple reconstruction and tattooing. Her goal was to be able to dance at Pierce’s wedding, and she did. She continues to take an aromatase inhibitor.Deidra is one of three women whose stories are featured in the Breastcancer.org video series on reconstruction after mastectomy.Listen to the podcast to hear Deidra talk about: why she was honored to share her story what she would tell a woman who was recently diagnosed with breast cancer how she felt when she was relating her story on camera what dancing at Pierce’s wedding meant to her Running time: 20:17

A former first grade teacher, Peggy Johnson was diagnosed with breast cancer in November 2009 after she became concerned about some dimpling in her left breast. She had six rounds of chemotherapy, then a double mastectomy with immediate implant reconstruction in May 2010. She then had radiation therapy. After that treatment was completed, she had new implants inserted in December 2010. At that time, nipple reconstruction wasn’t offered to her. In early 2016, at her annual exam with her breast surgeon, the surgeon discovered that one of her implants had ruptured and was leaking. Peggy was told she would have to have her implants replaced yet again. Instead, she decided to have DIEP flap reconstruction as well as nipple reconstruction and nipple tattooing in May 2016.Peggy is one of three women whose stories are featured in the Breastcancer.org video series on reconstruction after mastectomy.Listen to the podcast to hear Peggy talk about: why she decided to have DIEP flap surgery when her implant ruptured how k

Breast cancer was familiar to Mimi, even before she was diagnosed. Her mother has been diagnosed with breast cancer three times. She was treated with a double mastectomy, radiation and chemotherapy. Fifteen years later, she is cancer-free. Mimi’s cousin Annette, her best friend, was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2009 and passed away from the disease that same year at age 42. Mimi herself was diagnosed with stage I breast cancer in April 2015 at age 45, the same age her mother was first diagnosed. She had a double mastectomy with immediate DIEP flap reconstruction. Later she also had a preventive hysterectomy because the cancer was hormone-receptor-positive. She took tamoxifen and an aromatase inhibitor but has since stopped.Mimi is one of three women whose stories are featured in the Breastcancer.org video series on reconstruction after mastectomy.Listen to the podcast to hear Mimi discuss: how she made her decisions about surgery and reconstruction the positives she believes breast cancer brought to her li