By Brookshire McDonald “April showers bring May flowers” The ancient saying goes. Where to find it etched in stone No one really knows. ‘Tis the year 2023 and to now The weather has changed day to day. The weathermen smile as they aim for perfection In what they say. But even they face a dilemma With predictions they roll out, ‘Cause minute to minute changes Seem to be what the weather’s all about. The daffodils seem as confused As anyone at all As to when to bloom After having been planted in the fall. In Feb. the warm weather came As never before; Winter stayed hibernating As records were broken galore. Taking this as their sign To poke their heads, Daffodils began blooming From everyone’s beds. April moves into May But blooming daffodils are now past. Maybe no saying Should forever last. “Record warmth in Feb. preludes snow in March” Has proved to go well Until the future creates A much different spell. OR changing the dates for seasons Year in and year out, May be the solution Without a doubt! Most probably in the past You did hear The first robin bird seen Means spring is near. Not to ask the following I would be remiss Who would be delegated to reveal to the robins All of this? Spring, winter, summer, fall Come on down south all of y’all! Share your poetry: https://www.survivingbreastcancer.org/submit-breast-cancer-story SurvivingBreastCancer.org Resources & Support: Podcast Weekly Meetups Free Events

By Christie White I want to move. To spin in circles on my lawn in the sun, to dance, to use my breath and feel my muscles To be happy I want my body to feel loose and flowy but strong, to lose the stiffness of work and aches of no sleep and fear of what they could all mean. I trust I am okay but I could be better. I want to be so much better. If I move, I will be better. Share your poetry: https://www.survivingbreastcancer.org/submit-breast-cancer-story SurvivingBreastCancer.org Resources & Support: Podcast Weekly Meetups Free Events

By William Laferriere it’s long been understood that there are no atheists in foxholes, and it follows then, that there are also no libertarians in crises, no jokers at a biopsy, no smiling faces - telling lies at a most inopportune time, no needy pearl clutching busy body know-it-alls, no phony sentimentalists, promising the glow of natural antiseptics, micro organisms for use to dispel malignancies… it’s also understood that Cancer as depicted, an astronomical constellation, has the likeness of a crab crushed under the sandal of Hercules. Share your poetry: https://www.survivingbreastcancer.org/submit-breast-cancer-story SurvivingBreastCancer.org Resources & Support: Podcast Weekly Meetups Free Events

By Michelle Laflamme She is naturally beautiful Gorgeous… He is floored A Peachtree Street hotel Perky bosom Flat abs Dinner and drinks… A rented Mercedes Cost one grand To risk it all… I am not this woman I am his wife He said it wasn’t personal No bosom Fat abs Head hung low No longer naturally beautiful Share your poetry: https://www.survivingbreastcancer.org/submit-breast-cancer-story SurvivingBreastCancer.org Resources & Support: Podcast Weekly Meetups Free Events

By Dawn Oswald December 2022 The light and my legacy The light is my way The light is good The dark is bad, but not all the time In the light I can see You’re so beautiful I can see a beautiful rainbow I can see birds flying high above We need the light to see To see each other In the dark we can see the stars and the moon, but then I can’t see you The light brings me joy You can lose track of time in the light, especially when it is light 20 hours of the day The light brings warmth The dark brings cold The light blooms flowers Flowers from me to you I hope to brighten your day Some people see a white light and live to talk about it That is when I am going to stay away from that bright light Do not go into that light I will fight before going When it is time to go into that good light I hope I am old I hope I put up a good fight I hope I was able to mark off my bucket list I hope I have left my legacy behind Behind to brighten someone else’s day Let’s survive as long as we can and tell our legacy I hope my husband does not follow me into that light I hope he can survive and live longer The light is good The light can be bad if seen way too early The light can be full of beautiful colors Let the light shine on you and guide you Live life bright and full Except the light of the day Make your legacy count Share your poetry: https://www.survivingbreastcancer.org/submit-breast-cancer-story SurvivingBreastCancer.org Resources & Support: Podcast Weekly Meetups Free Events

By William Laferriere They once inculcated a moral response, Within our vaunted, ever-expanding community, Eyes wide open, Hearts and minds filled with hope. Bodies ravaged by Insidious dividing cells, Scalpel scar tissue And deleterious side effects. Their early departure speaks of travesty, We’ll miss their countless contributions Of thoughtful advocacy and decency, Lived experiences and tears. A recent NoHalfMeasures discourse, Enjoins us to develop grief rituals, Remember those left behind, And find the lesson of their lives. And to “Say Their Names.” Share your poetry: https://www.survivingbreastcancer.org/submit-breast-cancer-story SurvivingBreastCancer.org Resources & Support: Podcast Weekly Meetups Free Events

By Lourdes D. Heras Content note: This story references the author’s experience with intimate partner violence (IPV) and sexual abuse. For support and resources, please visit the CDC’s IPV webpage or the National Domestic Violence Hotline. Hello! My name is Lourdes D. Heras. I have been a member of the SBC community since October 2020, when I started attending the Thursday Night Thrivers program days after my double mastectomy. In June 2022 I began my collaboration as the new Director of Community Engagement and co-founder of “Después de un Diagnóstico,” SBC’s new addition of programs offered in Spanish, where we provide educational information and support for the Spanish-speaking community. The Spanish team helps with a variety of tasks at SBC. Together with my colleague Brenda Coronado, I co-host a new podcast: “Después de un Diagnóstico,” a newsletter, and our Tuesday support group, which meets on the third Tuesday of the month. We also assist in art therapy every first Tuesday of the month and very soon we will launch our reading group. We collaborate in the planning of our programs, communicating with members, and also participate in events and conferences. In October 2020, I was diagnosed with estrogen- and progesterone-positive, HER2-negative breast cancer. Through this diagnosis I had many, many difficulties. As if cancer was not enough, I had to protect myself from the person who I thought would be my protector; after all, he was my husband. Sadly, after 18 months of marriage and a cancer diagnosis, he became my abuser. Two days after my mastectomy he sexually abused me, unraveling a series of infections and emergency surgeries. He would also humiliate me with words like, “Look at you, they are taking all your woman parts away,” (since I needed a mastectomy and hysterectomy due to my type of cancer), “You will get it again in 10 years,” and the first words that came out of his mouth: “They are not big enough,” after the first filling of those excruciating expanders. Never a word of encouragement. Never an, “I am here for you” or “We will beat this together.” I suffered a stroke two weeks after finishing radiation, and the hospital nurse advised me to file for a restraining order so that he would not approach me. He violated the initial stipulations of the order seven times. I was finally granted three years of protection for him to stay away from me, and recently finalized my divorce from him. Now, I am very happy to be part of the SBC community, not only professionally but personally. I have a Master’s in Public Health, specializing in healthcare administration. My passions are everything related to diabetes, Alzheimer’s, and breast cancer. More recently I’ve become active in the prevention of intimate partner violence (mental, emotional and sexual) after a cancer diagnosis. This is especially important to me since I was personally affected after my breast cancer diagnosis. Outside of my job with SBC, I am a mother of two beautiful children: Xoe (age 15) and Londen (age 12). I also manage a multidisciplinary department of endocrinology, diabetes and wellness, which I am very passionate about. My team of 60+ people offers various resources for patients in the prevention, treatment and maintenance of diabetes in the state of Arizona. Throughout a cancer diagnosis, I want everyone in the Spanish-speaking community to know that they are definitely not alone. We offer great support through SBC’s resources. I personally want you to know that it is good to look at the glass half full and not half empty. And as for the parts that God gave me and cancer took away, that doesn’t make me any less of a woman. I look forward to seeing you and connecting through SBC’s various resources and programs in Spanish! Learn more: Después de un Diagnóstico Excess Estrogen, Gene Testing, and Beyond Information on Reconstruction Surgery Partner Abandonment and Cancer Thank you for sharing your story, Lourdes. SBC loves you! SurvivingBreastCancer.org Resources & Support: Podcast Weekly Meetups Free Events

By Dr. Antje Petershagen My name is Dr. Antje Petershagen. I am a doctor specializing in rehabilitative medicine, a psycho-oncologist, and a breast cancer survivor. SBC note: According to the American Psychosocial Oncology Society, psycho-oncology is “a cancer specialty that addresses the variety of psychological, behavioral, emotional and social issues that arise for cancer patients and their loved ones.” Art by Dr. Antje Petershagen Illness has accompanied me since early childhood. I cannot remember my body without scars. I have three abdominal scars. The first two I got in 1965, when I was three years old. After a partial ileum resection (intestinal surgery), I needed additional surgeries for adhesive ileus (bowel obstructions). I had adhesive ileus again in 1981. I had additional partial ileum resection and surgery for adhesive ileus in 1996. I have also been diagnosed with pelvic vein thrombosis with subsequent pulmonary emboli. In this context, a factor V mutation was diagnosed, with lifelong anticoagulation therapy. Since not knowing my body was different from others, I never felt really ill. As a little girl, I thought, this is a “normal” body. I worked around many physical problems due to my intestinal issues and diarrhea, but I never held myself back from participating in any adventure. As a child, I was bullied because of my scars (kids can be cruel), and I was very skinny. Gaining weight was a problem since I spent most of my childhood and teenage years in the bathroom. I was shy and the time being hospitalized at a young age, not seeing my parents, not understanding what was going on, left scars in my soul. In these times there was no psychological support, neither for me nor my parents. In early adulthood, despite my additional illnesses, I felt pretty good. I finished my university education, medical school, and even my 5-year internship. Somehow, I am resilient and I know how to cope with illness. In 2012, I was diagnosed with breast cancer, and it was a challenge. I had been seeing my gynecologist for cancer screenings since I was 50. This time, I’d had no symptoms but I felt an inner call to go for the screening. The diagnosis process involved a manual exam, ultrasound, mammogram, and a vacuum-assisted core biopsy. I was diagnosed with highly-moderately differentiated invasive ductal carcinoma and highly to moderately differentiated ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS), both in the left breast. I proceeded to have surgery to remove the cancer and some surrounding breast tissue. After tissue removal, histology was used to determine whether the surrounding tissue was cancer-free. Twice, surgery did not achieve cancer-free status. However, the lymph nodes were not affected and no metastases were detected. Because the operations were not successful, I decided to have a single left mastectomy. I decided to have reconstructive plastic surgery at the same time. I never regretted this decision. No chemotherapy or radiation was needed. For five years I was on Tamoxifen, an anti-hormonal therapy since I was tested to be hormone receptor positive. In 2014, I was diagnosed with a tumor in the right breast. Luckily it was a benign tumor, called a fibroadenoma, which I had removed surgically. Later, when I started my education to become a psycho-oncologist, I was surprised how much anxiety was expressed in the cancer groups I participated in. Cancer was our topic. We studied so much theory, but meeting the real patients was a challenge for us. We met a young patient who told us her story, never being able to have the life of a teenager, but instead spending months in hospitals. When we got the notice that she died some weeks later, the group was shocked. As a breast cancer survivor, I could relate to patients, empathize with their fears, anxieties, their reactions and comments, and even their thoughts on not continuing with therapy. My colleagues did not take it easily, as they often could not understand the mindset. They had to learn to be empathic, to respect a patient’s decision, and to find skills to open up a healthy dialogue with them. We had intensive training on how to tell someone their diagnosis, and how to stay calm and yet supportive. And here is my strength. I do know how huge anxiety can become, how easily it can arise—unexpected and overwhelming—and how important it is to be open to the emotions, instead of using phrases like, “You are strong” and “You just have to stay positive.” Comments like this do not help at all. Being active in breast cancer support groups gave me the chance to apply my very own experiences. I have three perspectives to look at the topic: as a psycho-oncologist, a doctor, and a patient. It is the perfect experience to support breast cancer patients going through this difficult process, from diagnosis and beyond. Getting diagnosed with cancer means starting a new life; there is no return to the life before. Cancer provided a huge opportunity to change my life. Without cancer I would not have found the motivation to leave my comfort zone, to go beyond inner limitations. Cancer made me so much stronger than before. I’ve gotten more creative since my diagnosis in 2012. In my life after cancer, I reduced my working hours and started writing a book about my journey, which I self published. I also did what I always wanted to do: paint. Art was always important in my life, but I fell in love with watercolor painting after being diagnosed with breast cancer. Slowly, I started to show my art in public. Over the years I became an established artist and showed my work in several exhibitions. I started traveling as a solo traveler in India, hiring a driver and exploring India. And most importantly, I spent a lot of time studying Indian philosophy. I spent time in an ashram and dived deep into my meditation and yoga practice. Ultimately, I completed over 700 hours of yoga teacher training and received my certificate from the Kriya Yoga Center in Passau, Germany. I also teach medicine for students wanting to become yoga teachers. Last year I decided to participate in a mentor program to expand my work as a coach and psycho-oncologist. Cancer was a huge chance for changing my life to the life I always wanted. I don’t overdo things; I choose carefully what I want to do and I learned that “no” is an answer. My focus is now on being a mentor and coach for breast cancer patients, expressing myself through my art, and using art as a tool in my workshops. It took me years to tell my story and to open up about the breast cancer part of my life. But it is important to share my experiences, my story, to support women, and to speak out loud about the illness and its deep effect on my life. When someone goes through breast cancer, they are not the same person as before. But we are all stronger and wiser. Learn more: Different Types of Breast Cancer Rock Painting While Battling Breast Cancer Is Invasive Ductal Carcinoma (IDC) Curable? Fighting Stage 2 Invasive Ductal Carcinoma SBC Art Therapy Programs Transitioning Back Into the Workforce There Is No New Normal; It’s Just Life SBC Resources for the Newly Diagnosed Thank you for sharing your story, Antje. SBC loves you! SurvivingBreastCancer.org Resources & Support: Podcast Weekly Meetups Free Events

I wish someone would have told me that I was going to feel this good after surgery! First off, I am just so relieved that I woke up from surgery. I had never had any major surgery before so I was naturally was petrified about the procedure, the pain, and what life would be like “on the other side”. I have to say, in full honest, I am surprisingly happy! Knowing that the tumor was removed just gives me a new sense of relief. I know having cancer is stressful, but being on this side of the operation feels so good! Now, it’s time to move forward and I am not going to miss a beat. I know rest is an important part of the healing process, but so is movement! I was thrilled when my surgeon told me to move as much as my body allows me to! I started raising my arms and “climbing the wall” so that I could build up my arm mobility as quickly as possible (this was also important for me as not to have too much scar tissue form either)! Also, while I can’t run, I am determined to walk 5 miles a day, minimum. As part of my recovery it is important to get out of the house, enjoy some fresh air, and get moving! Walking is a great form of exercise to get the blood circulating and build confidence! Yes, I just had surgery, I have 3 drains, and peach fuzz for hair, but I am not letting this stop me from enjoying the activities I love. Plus, I know that if I can walk every day, I’ll be back to jogging and running in no time!

By Jill Rackham I will never know what it was like for my children to receive such news about their mum, Telling my boys about my cancer diagnosis was so hard and certainly no fun. My words were always factual and spoken positively, I had to be truthful but also wanted to talk so openly. I had shaken their world with so many unknowns, At a time when life was different as covid was full blown. Scans, treatment, and surgery with nights in hospital away from home. No visiting was allowed so we could only speak by phone. During my daily struggles in times of much strife, They made no fuss at all and quietly got on with life. Being a good mum is what we all aim to be. During times I've felt so absent and my boys have instead looked after me. My boys are total superstars and most definitely are resilient, As how they have dealt with all that has come their way has been truly brilliant! -- Connect with Jill and read more of her poetry on Instagram: @poems_to_help_you_through

Lisa is the creator and Host of the Our MBC Life Podcast. When she was diagnosed de novo MBC with ER+HER2- in August 2017, Lisa became the 4th generation in her family to be diagnosed with breast cancer but the only one to be diagnosed at Stage 4 from the beginning (de novo). She was on her seventh line of treatment, has participated in two clinical trials. Lisa lived in CT and NYC with her husband of 27 years and their dog, Kita. They enjoy seeing their two young adult sons when they aren’t working or in school and connecting with family who live in Canada. Lisa was an advocate and we are pleased we have been able to get to know her through our community at Survivingbreastcancer.org. Check out Lisa Laudico on our podcast: Breast Cancer Conversations

Andra Kalnins was a mindfulness instructor, patient advocate, former nurse and family nurse practitioner graduate. She lived in Chicago, with her husband and 5-year-old son. She was diagnosed with early-stage triple negative breast cancer in 2016, with a stage IV metastatic breast cancer (MBC) recurrence in 2020. Andra recently completed mentor training with Project Life, a virtual wellness house for those living with MBC and their loved ones, and advocacy training through Living Beyond Breast Cancer’s 2021 Hear My Voice Metastatic Advocacy Program. Her advocacy interests included peer support, with a focus on quality of life and psychosocial, emotional, spiritual, coping and healing. Andra strived to live as fully as possible, by empowering herself and others to keep living with joy, connection, meaning and purpose despite the grief and uncertainty of facing an incurable disease. Always seeking hope. We are honored that we had the opportunity to get to know Andra through her involvement with Survivingbreastcancer.org. Watch her Webinar as she and her sister Ilga discuss how Art gives Hope.

Kristin Lynn "Kristie" Konsoer, age 51, peacefully returned home to God on Sunday, Dec. 5, 2021, after living over nine years with breast cancer. I was born on May 30, 1970, in Madison, the daughter of Donald and Carol (Christensen) Konsoer, and grew up in Middleton, Wis. I loved Sunday visits with grandma on the farm outside of Wisconsin Dells. School was also one of my favorite places. I loved learning so much that I would often play school when I got home each day. I was a lifelong reader, writer, and learner. Over the years, I was fortunate to have traveled widely throughout the U.S. and visited 26 countries. Family vacations held many favorite memories for me. Disney World, national parks-Yellowstone in particular-and Fish Creek in Door County are forever in my heart. After graduating from Middleton High School in 1988, I went on to UW-Madison where I received my B.S. in elementary education in 1993, and my M.S. in curriculum and instruction in 1999. As part of the Portage Community School District, I taught split grades for nine years in Endeavor, Wis. One of those years was spent teaching in Edinburgh, Scotland, as part of the Fulbright Teacher Exchange Program. In 2002, I was hired to teach in Middleton-Cross Plains. I taught at West Middleton and my alma mater, Elm Lawn, for 14 years before I needed to choose a very, very early retirement. Over my 23 years as a teacher, I was blessed to teach grades 1-4, and roughly 543 students. I loved being a teacher. It is what I always wanted to do and thankfully what I was able to do for many years. One of my friends once told me that the skills and abilities I gave my students would stay with them beyond the classroom. I hope I played a small role in forming individuals who can think and be kind to another. I loved nature and walking on trails shrouded by trees. They offered peace and energy to my soul. Gallistel Woods at the UW Arboretum and making the trek to the top of the hill at Pheasant Branch were favorite places to relax, where the journey itself was every bit a part of the destination. Birdwatching was another favorite hobby of mine. Chickadees, cardinals, and the tiny but strong voiced wren always made me smile. I would be remiss if I didn't mention my love for Badgers football. Badgers are very special fans, as were my Badgers companions. I was lucky to span over four decades of games cheering on the team with my father, then my mother, and finally my sister. Go Badgers! Throughout my years living with cancer, it was very important to me to change perceptions about those living with metastatic cancer. More people are living stronger and better than ever before with cancer. Live in a future built on hope, resiliency, and positivity. I appreciated every ounce of support I ever received, but I saw it as my responsibility to create a mindset geared toward surviving and thriving. I was not going to be put in a box of medical timelines and what others expected or told me I could or could not do. If you are someone reading this who has cancer, politely make it very clear to anyone who gets in your way that you are living in a space of wellness. You have moved beyond the medical classifications of your health and do not accept discussing your health in unhealthy or disparaging terms. Thank you. I hope I am remembered as kind and giving. Some may remember me for my chocolate chip cookies and brownies, and that is fine and good. I want to take a moment to say giving is one of the truest joys in life. Whereas it's tradition to receive gifts on your birthday, many of us may be missing the opportunity to take this day as a chance to give back. My birthday was one of a couple days per year that I would quietly donate to a charity that was important to me. I would like to pass this tradition on to whomever it appeals. You are here on purpose. I am preceded in death by my parents and survived by my sister, Julie (James) Ackerman, as well as many extended family and much-loved friends. I would like to express my gratitude to Dr. David Hei, Dr. Kari Wisinski, my angel nurses, and the entire staff at the UW Carbone Cancer Center. I am also very thankful to Dr. John Ewalt and Associated Physicians for a lifetime of healthcare. I survived many things in my life, most of them good. I believe I will also survive my death. Rest assured, right now I'm doing really, really well. Yes, I would rather have stayed here to laugh more, make more of a difference, and enjoy life, but leave all those things for you to do and to do them well. God bless. Read Kristie's Articles Empathy and Cancer Hear Kristie on our Podcast Breast Cancer Conversations On Empathy & to Withhold Judgement Stage V Breast Cancer. Living on My Own Terms Stay in Touch If you have a memory, story, or photo you'd like to share, please email it to info@survivingbreastcancer.org and we will add it to this page.

Kerensa Nathele Irvin, 25, of Maple Valley, passed away on December 9th at 3:14 am in her mother’s arms. She had a 1½ year battle with stage 3 breast cancer, which become metastatic last November 2018. She was courageous and an example of hope through her strength, smiles and positive attitude. Kerensa was born on February 28th, 1994 in Seattle where she lived her early formative years in diverse communities. She embraced the rich culture she was exposed to with love and acceptance. Her childhood experiences developed her into a person who respected and accepted diversity. In grade school, she was first to welcome new students or include students left out to participate in activities. She was known for her inclusive and collaborator skills at a young age. As she matured, her compassion, genuine care for others, along with her infectious smile became her beloved traits. As a youth she was always willing to experience new activities such as karate, dance, racquetball, basketball and baseball. She played soccer for several years before discovering swimming. During her junior and high school years Kerensa loved performing in plays and was fortunate to be in a variety of roles. She had a love for the water and enjoyed swimming for King Aquatics and Tahoma High School. She had a connection to water that gave her comfort and peace. Her favorite places included Kalaloch, Pacific Beach, Long Beach, Big Island Hawaii and Puerto Rico beaches walking and playing in the surf. She had an unfulfilled dream of visiting the Greek Isles to walk the white sands and swim the turquoise waters. Kerensa graduated in 2015 from the University of Washington with a bachelor’s degree in psychology. She had a passion for helping people through difficult situations. She had a special interest and love for adolescents, especially young people experiencing depression. She wanted to prevent teenage suicide and assist those at risk. Her goal was to complete her master’s degree in either psychology or social work. In late 2015 Kerensa made the journey to Massachusetts where she spent 4 years sharing her love, light, and laughter making everyone's lives infinitely better. During her time in Massachusetts, Kerensa was an active Human Rights advocate, and won the hearts of executives and politicians while helping create diversity and inclusion programs. She passed along her love and knowledge of baking to "her boys" as she danced in the kitchen while making her secret recipe cookies and cakes. She was an unconditional supporter of education and would effortlessly help with schoolwork. The lessons she taught will be cherished, remembered, and passed down. Kerensa is survived by her parents, Diane Irvin Marines and Osbardo Sosa, stepfather Gonzalo Marines, papa Glenn Irvin and Grandma Victoria Sosa. Her late nana Barbara Irvin adored her along with her “second mom” Laurie Yarbrough who passed in 2017. She will be missed by her brothers Gonzalo Jr., Joaquin and Lorenzo. Uncle Kevin Irvin, Aunt Glenda McQueen and cousin Amber Hoyt. Kerensa leaves behind her loving husband of just over 1 year, Glenn, two adoring stepsons Liam and Finnbarr, nephews Grayson and Oliver, niece Maisie, as well as countless family, friends and coworkers at Granite Telecommunications where she was admired as a valued employee with lists of accolades. Husband Glenn shares memories of the late Kerensa Irvin on our Podcast Breast Cancer Conversations L ose the Tumor Keep the Humor Let's Get Married Recurrence, Progression, and Passing Stay in Touch If you have a memory, story, or photo you'd like to share, please email it to info@survivingbreastcancer.org and we will add it to this page.

TISCHLER--Alyson, beloved wife of John Eberhart, adored and adoring mother of Simon, cherished daughter of Beth and Warren Tischler, loving sister of Jonathan Tischler and his wife, Eiko, dear aunt of Emi and Nina, niece, cousin and friend to all she met. She passed away peacefully at home in Woodbridge, CT on April 9, 2021. A 1995 Phi Beta Kappa and High Honors graduate of Wesleyan University, Alyson earned her MA and Ph.D. from the University of Michigan in English Literature in 2000. She was a Vice President of Material Plus, a marketing firm, with her primary focus being pharmaceutical and healthcare research. In recent years, she became a patient advocate in the triple negative breast cancer community, a source of support and strength to others on the same journey. Hear Alyson on our Podcast Breast Cancer Conversations What Treatments Are Available for TNBC (as of 2020) Clinical Trials 101 How to Build Trust with your Medical Team If you have a memory, story, or photo you'd like to share, please email it to info@survivingbreastcancer.org and we will add it to this page.

Emily Rees Garnett died on March 29, 2020, 28 months after being diagnosed with metastatic breast cancer. She was 35 years old. Emily was born in Phoenix on March 19, 1985, the first child of Brian and Barbara Rees. She graduated from Xavier College Preparatory in 2003 where she was a 4-year state finalist in the breaststroke and co-captain of the swim team. She continued swimming at Scripps College and was named the Scripps Alumnae Athlete of the year upon graduation. Always seeking adventure, Emily moved to Manhattan after college and began working as a case manager for Housing Works, an AIDS/HIV advocacy group. This work led her to law school and she graduated from CUNY School of Law in 2012. Emily was admitted to the New York Bar after graduation and worked in NYC as an elder law attorney focusing on guardianships, capacity issues, special needs issues, and public and private benefits. Emily was known in the New York Surrogate Court as a detail-oriented, dedicated professional. In 2012, Emily married Christian Garnett and they welcomed their son, Felix, in November, 2015. In 2017, Emily, Christian, and Felix moved to suburban Mt. Kisco after a decade of living in the city. In November 2017, two days after her son's second birthday, Emily was diagnosed with stage 4 breast cancer and given a life expectancy of 2-3 years. After her diagnosis, Emily became a relentless advocate for breast cancer awareness. Emily began documenting her illness, treatments, and life in her blog, Beyond the Pink Ribbon, to foster dialogue surrounding metastatic breast cancer. In addition to her blog, her writing on health issues was published by Women's Media Center, Scary Mommy, Coffee+Crumbs, CURE Magazine and Healthline. In February 2019, she walked the runway for AnaOno in New York Fashion Week to bring awareness to metastatic breast cancer raising $100,000 for research. Emily was a member of the Metastatic Breast Cancer Alliance's Patient Advisory Advocacy Group and served as an ambassador for the Breast Cancer Research Fund. In this capacity, she appeared in a New York Times ad campaign and was featured on a billboard in Times Square. This last year, she was named WEGO Health's Rookie of the Year for advocacy work across numerous social media channels. In addition to her blog and advocacy work, Emily hosted a podcast, The Intersection of Cancer and Life, which featured candid, honest and often funny accounts of the realities of life with cancer. She appeared on Entertainment Tonight with Giuliana Rancic to talk about cancer and was featured in a YouTube episode of Binging with Babish. Last October, she traveled to Washington DC to lobby congress for increased funding for breast cancer. But Emily's real legacy lay with the countless individuals with whom she connected daily. Persons who read her blog or listened to her podcast sought her out and she always made time to speak to them, offering advice and counsel. Emily is survived by her husband, Christian, their son, Felix, parents, Brian and Barbara Rees, her brother, Patrick Rees, paternal grandparents, Paul Rees and Donna Rees Canfield, maternal grandmother, Beverly Morgan, numerous, aunts, uncles, cousins and their children. In her last effort to shed light on this devastating disease, Emily donated her tissue to Memorial Sloan Kettering for research. No funeral arrangements were possible due to the Covid 19 quarantine. A reception honoring Emily's life took place in NY once it was safe to gather. Hear Emily on our Podcast Breast Cancer Conversations When Two Podcasters Finally Connect Stay in Touch If you have a memory, story, or photo you'd like to share, please email it to info@survivingbreastcancer.org and we will add it to this page.

Ilene loved writing, drawing, jewelry making, music, and all things vintage and antique. Reading and learning and laughing and singing and dancing and hiking and just meditating. A little gentle yoga and hikes in the Sierra foothills of California certainly keep things interesting. Equally as important she enjoyed guest blogging and writing for publications. Her cancerversary was on March 25th – diagnosed de novo – from the beginning – with stage 4 metastatic breast cancer. I have lived 7 years beating the savage average mortality of 2-3 years. Ilene was forced into retirement at the age of 49 and started her blog, the Cancer Bus and a small Etsy business as well as completing healing circle training through Healing Circles Global. Ilene was a member of the metastatic breast cancer community and especially active on Twitter @ilenealizah. She was also a friend, sister, wife, stepmom, and cat mom to Simon. Hear Ilene on our Podcast Breast Cancer Conversations I was Told I Had 3 Months to Live What Inspires You To Write? Pink Culture. Bridging the Gap Between Stage 0-4 Why "How Are You?" is such a Weighted Question Breast Cancer Poetry Read Ilene's Poetry Live With Your Questions It's Another Thing Now The Last Poet Standing Insomniac Stage IV Read Ilene's Content on our SBC Blog The Healing Circle Framework Healing Circles and Breast Cancer Stay in Touch If you have a memory, story, or photo you'd like to share, please email it to info@survivingbreastcancer.org and we will add it to this page.

“I was 23 years old when I noticed a small lump in my breast. My doctor told me not to worry. It was probably just a cyst. One week later, I got a call that the “cyst” was actually an aggressive form of breast cancer. After a grueling year of chemotherapy and radiation, I had lost a sense of identity after shaving my shoulder length red hair. I no longer trusted my body, but I anticipated the worst was behind me. I was 25 years old when my cancer came back. I decided to remove both breasts to ensure that this would be my last time dealing with this disease. While I planned my double mastectomy, surgeons said nothing about the possibility of the cancer spreading into other parts of my body after the surgery. I was 28 years old when I was diagnosed with terminal breast cancer. If my story can help even one person it’ll be worth it.” Melissa was 32 when metastatic breast cancer stole her from this world. Melissa’s Legacy Melissa believed in the power of film and spent her life using that power to support women and mend impacted by cancer around the world. We at the Melissa & Jimmy Boratyn Foundation aim to live up to the standard she set by creating art that makes an impact. Hear Melissa on our Podcast Breast Cancer Conversations Ginger the Movie - Interview with Melissa and Jimmy Stay in Touch If you have a memory, story, or photo you'd like to share, please email it to info@survivingbreastcancer.org and we will add it to this page.

There’s no other word to describe the feeling when you or someone you love is diagnosed with cancer. On any given day, you might rotate between feelings of disbelief, anger, and grief. You may even feel like you’ve lost control over your own life. While your diagnosis might raise any number of negative feelings, here's the good news: you don’t have to feel lost or confused. In Cancer: The Journey from Diagnosis to Empowerment , Dr. Paul Anderson clearly outlines what you can expect throughout your cancer journey. More importantly, he demonstrates how to cultivate a mental outlook that will help you reach your best outcome. When it comes to healing, mind does matter. Drawing on decades of experience, Dr. Anderson offers practical advice to demystify the healing process, empower patients, and teach loved ones how to provide effective support. ♡ RESOURCES MENTIONED ⟡ Cancer: The Journey From Diagnosis to Empowerment: https://amzn.to/2NrybmM ♡ QUOTES WE LOVE ⟡ “Be as healed as you can be” Transcription: Laura Carfang 00:03 Hello and welcome to breast cancer conversations podcast brought to you by surviving breast cancer dashboard. I am Laura Carfang, breast cancer survivor and founder of surviving breast cancer dashboard, a nonprofit organization providing community education and resources to empower those diagnosed with breast cancer and their caregivers from day one and beyond. Hello, everybody, and welcome back to breast cancer conversations. It is so nice to be speaking with all of you today. If this is your first time tuning in, welcome. It's so nice to have you here. Please be sure to subscribe. We release our podcast once a week, usually on Mondays so you can always have something to look forward to as we begin our week together. Before we jump into today's conversation, I just want to give a quick shout out to all of the great amazing resources we have on our website surviving breast cancer.org. I got some feedback actually, that some of our listeners don't know about all of the amazing events that we have every week, every month, etc. So I want to make sure that you guys are aware. Every Thursday night, we host our Thursday Night Thrivers virtual meetup. It is our aka support group. But it's really anything but a support group. It's kind of like chill time to hang out at 7pm. Eastern, everyone is always welcome. I also kind of coin it our no agenda meetup because we talk about anything that comes to mind. Sure, breast cancer, but also anything else that we're going through in life, it's just a really nice time to hang out, chill and catch up. So if you want more information on that, you can visit us at our website surviving breast cancer.org forward slash events. You will also find on that website more information on all of the amazing webinars we have coming up our Sunday NBC series where we host webinars every other Sunday, plus our monthly book club where we read books that have nothing to do with cancer as well. So as we build this community, there are just so many ways to get involved. And speaking of books, I am excited to announce today's podcast topic where we are going to be speaking with Dr. Paul Anderson, who is the author of cancer, the journey from diagnosis to empowerment. As we know, there's no other words to describe the feeling when you or someone you love is diagnosed with cancer. On any given day, you might rotate between feelings of disbelief, anger or grief. You may even feel like you've lost control over your own life. We've all been there. While your diagnosis might raise a number of negative feelings, there's good news, you don't have to feel lost or confused. In Dr. Paul Anderson's book, he clearly outlines what you can expect throughout your cancer journey. More importantly, he demonstrates how to cultivate a mental outlook that will help you reach your best outcome. When it comes to healing. Mine does matter. Drawing on decades of experience, Dr. Anderson offers practical advice to demystify the healing process, empower patients, and teach loved ones how to provide effective support. Welcome to the conversation. Dr. Paul Anderson 02:57 I've been around medicine a long time. So I started in the laboratory end of things in 1976, actually, so it's been doing this a while, went back finished medical schools A long time ago. And what happened really just the very short version of the story is when I started practice, I really wanted to be a general practitioner, which is what I was. But I was also very interested in a lot of integrative medicine topics and palliative care things. So what started to happen almost right away when I opened was people realize that I was doing certain types of therapies that other doctors in the neighborhood weren't. And so we started getting a lot of cancer patients. So it really it didn't start out that I thought cancer would be the focus etc. But that's really very rapidly what happened very sick people with not with the chronic illness and cancer. And that really grew into you know, if you go back, say 25 years or more there, the idea of palliative oncology was almost non existent. The idea of integrative oncology was almost non existent. I mean, it was really, we, we were all learning a lot. But people needed help. So that's really where it started. And from there, there was a good part of 20 years where I did that a lot. I also have always taught I teach physicians as a large part of what I do now. And mentor doctors and so I was really involved in trying to, you know, move that part of medicine forward. And in and amongst all of that in about 2000. Let's just for sake of argument, say eight or nine you mentioned that I ah I had a university post where I was full time professor in a medical school and we I had a NIH funded study we were doing. And it was a collaborative between my university in the Seattle Cancer Care Alliance, which is University of Washington and Children's Hospital and Fred Hutchinson, and you know, some very big players. And what it started was I didn't start with study, but I joined it right away. And it was if we took people who had largely breast cancer, but there were a lot of other cancers as well, from this large, collaborative, those who wanted to do integrative therapies and palliative therapies, this stuff I've been doing, what if we track them, and then match them to people same age who did standard therapies, and so everyone did standard therapies, but we had good add ons. After five years, would we see better quality of life or survival, etc. And so we did that for five years, what got me involved was the study had an interventional part, that they couldn't start until they had somebody who had done that before. And that's what I was doing, the intravenous therapies and all of these other interventional things. So I was part of that for the five years, and I almost thought we got funded because they didn't think it would make a difference. And at the end, we actually got some very positive note that our patients did actually live longer, you know, compared to age matched, and it spawned another study that looks a lot at quality of life and some other things that are going on. So I've had a not planning at all, but I've had a very rich background with cancer patients. And so what really happened as far as writing about cancer, I've always written because I'm a teacher. But right after the study, I started to publicize some of the things that we had done, because if you've ever looked at studies, there may be parts of the studies that no one ever publishes, because there's so many things you discover, you didn't realize. So I went and started teaching. Well, I was doing that. And a doctor I hadn't seen in 25 years, who went to medical school together, came up to me at a conference and said, You should really tell this story. And you, he says, you have a hard time getting a publishing deal, though, because you're, you know, no one knows you except in the academic world. And he says, but I can get you a publishing deal. So we wrote a book together that was predates this book, which was really a lot about those other things, sort of the, you know, what I would call the what happens to you with cancer and what what are choices to make that are better and worse in the, you know, integrative space, etc. When we were done with that books, in many languages around the world, it's been very popular call outside the box cancer therapies. But we were done. I was mentoring my clinic and my doctors, and one of the things that I I felt like we did a great job with the, what do you do with cancer as far as your body goes, but what we kept I kept running into was, we talked a little about the mind body connection, and just the logistics of, oh, what do I do with this diagnosis, I didn't want it I you know, what I do with my family, what I do with, you know, everything. So the more I worked on that with my own doctors and mentored people, the more I thought, you know, agnostic of how you're treating cancer, what you're doing about your cancer, the internal part that you go through, and your closest loved ones go through and you get diagnosed, is so critically important. So that led to this book, cancer, the journey from diagnosis to empowerment, literally the point, it's, um, I designed it to be easy to read, not super heavy and academic was the first time I ever wrote something like that. But honestly, it was it. This, I mean, there is some research and some data and things that I, you know, looked at or whatever. But really, this came from just my day to day experience over those three decades. And looking people in the eye, getting diagnosis and walking them through that. So the point really, is, there is a way to go from the shock and whatever emotions go on that you feel to a place where you are more, you know, empowered, self-actualized, whatever you want to call that. But it doesn't happen automatically for most people. So that's, that's the short version of all those years. Laura Carfang 09:30 No, that's wonderful, such a rich introduction as well. And a, you know, decades of experience, which I'm so excited to have our listeners kind of take us on this journey, right from diagnosis to empowerment. I feel like anecdotally we speak about that a lot in our like support groups and our blogs and the work that we do, because we know that we anecdotally it makes us feel better, right when we exercise we feel better when we take time to focus on the breath and the mind body connection that you're talking to About, we know it helps, but we don't always know why it helps. And I would like to take a step back quickly to just so we can define terms for people who might who might not be aware when we talk about kind of like the traditional therapies, I think you're referring to like the surgery, the radiation and the chemotherapy. Whereas integrative care, which I think is a nice segue from what used to be referred to as alternative medicine, where it's no longer alternative, it's how can we put these therapies together? And really integrate them so that the quality of life and you know, is there for the person going through the treatment? Do I have that correct? Dr. Paul Anderson 10:34 Very much. Yes. Yeah. Excellent. It doesn't always work out that way. But that's the goal. Yeah. Exactly. Exactly. Laura Carfang 10:43 And I know when I was going through my own personal treatment to a lot of these integrative therapies were recommended to me, such as acupuncture to help with some of the side effects that I was going through. And, you know, it's, I think, just a mindset also. So what I love about your book, is that right from the beginning, you kind of paint this picture of the shock and the devastation that comes with a cancer diagnosis, and then how mentally we can start making this shift. And you kind of talk about two different characters in your book and kind of the diversion that these two characters take. Can you tell me a little bit about these personas? Dr. Paul Anderson 11:20 Yes. So there's, there's two characters that you get to meet Well, you get to meet some other people later, but Bob, and GM, and they're actually real people, obviously, it's not their names, and I change details, so no one knows who they are. But they're very real people. And that was a big part of the motivation to write the book, other than what I was seeing just with patients, and there was sort of a hole here in that space. But the the publishers in I came up with the idea of, could I tell two stories. And the publisher really encouraged that, because the rest of the book is useful from a technical point of view of Gee, I'm stuck and I'm angry, well, you know, where do I go or I, you know, I can't get my family on board or whatever it is. The stories really are there to give the two counterpoints two ways you deal with the, you know, that trip from being diagnosis, to either not empowered or being empowered. So each one of them embodies that. And it's real stories. It's a, you know, everything a book is very real, from real experience. So the point of that, though, is sometimes we you know, sometimes we learn from data and bulleted points, and there's that and sometimes just learned from stories, stories are wonderful. And my, the first thing I was like to say is I don't, I don't judge either point of view, I, of course, you never want a patient to become angry and stuck, and, you know, self-sabotage, but you know, one of them did. So it didn't make me happy that they did, but that's, that's the person's choice, everything's your choice. But if you want to do something other than that, you know, there is a trajectory. So those two stories really are, we see a lot of ourselves in them in different places, and the stories, you know, each, each chapter sort of as the technical parts of where to go, the story kind of unfolds in that, you know, in that order and direction. So yes, it's there to add some humanity to, you know, what otherwise could be a little technical book Laura Carfang 13:25 Absolutely. And I think sometimes we forget that our own diagnosis extends just beyond the self, that it impacts our families, our friends, and I use the term like we all the time, like we have cancer, we are going through cancer, we are going through treatment, because as I think you point out in the book is there's this grieving process, that we're all on a different journey in terms of those, like anger phase denial, phase acceptance, phase etcetera, but then our family and loved ones might be on a different path also. And so how do we deal with these different personalities or, you know, my experience, I love my mom to death, she's a nurse, and she, when I was going through breast cancer, she wanted to be the nurse. And I really had to turn to her and say, No, I need you to be my mom right now. And that was a challenging and hard conversation to have. But you know, I think you talk about that also in your book in terms of the role the family plays, and the grieving process too. Dr. Paul Anderson 14:22 Sometimes it's the patient with cancer, who is the one really struggling and may be stuck in, you know, denial or whatever stage of grief. And I did use those stages of grief, you know, to it's a framework we're all familiar with, usually and it is actually the order that people kind of process cancer diagnosis into but the other side of it though, is you can actually be doing pretty good as the patient but you have to understand and it's not your responsibility, but the people around you who love you and are close to you are just as shocked and just don't know what to do and they might be angry or they might have You know, what happens a lot like with your mother, as a nurse or any, you know, any medical person, their default is if I do something for you, medically as a nurse, or if I'm your doctor, I'm doing something to help you. And really, it's harder sometimes to take that roll off and just be the loved one, you know, the parent, the spouse, the partner, whatever. And that's really, we talked about that, in the book, those discussions of Look, this is, it's great, you want to do that, but this is what I need from you, you know, I need this primary relationship we have, and it's so important. And a lot of times, and I saw this, you know, weekly with with patient families, some, it's just like, it works out, and everyone sort of sorts out where they're at, and they get over, you know, the place they were stuck. But sometimes you really have these two divergent things, especially with like partners or spouses. And that's not a healthy, like, none of you the point of the book is, if we move more towards being empowered, in our small circle, including the patient, our outcomes are better, it's, you know, it's not great to have cancer, but it's, it's a more doable thing, and you actually get better outcomes when you do have that. So the fact your close circle is, is so huge. And, and they're going through it a different way. You know, what I usually remind people is when you hear that you have cancer, it activates your your fight or flight system, and it activates, you know, your partner's fight or flight system, but what that connects to is two different worlds, you know, they may have seen some, you know, very bad outcome with cancer had a primary, you know, loved one or relative go through something that they thought I'd never ever want to see that my life, well, then you hear, well, my wife has cancer, it's, it takes them there, then take him to some logical place. So there's a lot to, you know, it's not easy, but it's really worth it. And it's really worth it at least to get the people closest to you on board. Laura Carfang 17:09 I think you were hitting on some key points about you know, empowerment, how can the patient feel empowered to have those conversations with people to say, this is what serves me now, this is what's helpful to me and what's not helpful to me, I think a lot of times, you know, it's easy to just kind of harbor some of those emotions. And, and that really makes sense of it. And, and to feel that it's okay to disagree with someone, if it doesn't help you. What I love about your book is that you immediately say like, it's okay to be selfish Now is the time to put yourself first and yourself and your health are the only things that matter. Everything else is secondary. And I think just reading that was like, like, yes, like, I'm ready to go take on the world, like, I matter, I'm important. And I can say, like, yes to what I need, and whether that's a nap or whether that's a walk, you know, I sometimes feel like having those words and reading them, give us give us the permission to say that it's okay, it's your allowing us that permission just to be okay, on those good days. And to not be okay, on those bad days, Dr. Paul Anderson 18:10 As you well know, it's, most people are not socialized to a place where it's okay to, you know, be the center of what needs to happen. And, and that becomes a real, you know, stumbling block for a lot of people, which is why, you know, almost every, if not every chapter where there's sort of, you know, you can get stuck here and move on. The first thing I say is, it's okay to be that way. It's okay to be sad, it's okay to be angry, it's okay, whatever. The point is, that's a place in time and you want to move from there. But the other thing is, it's, it's more than okay for you to take care of yourself and say, whatever it is, you know, I, I can't do this activity anymore, I need to focus on this or I need time, so I can take care of my body or whatever it is. And most people just don't have that internal, the message they hear back is well, you should think about other people or you know, something like that. And, and, you know, we shouldn't think about other people but you, you are engaged with, you know, a process that's not got your best interests at heart. So you have to have your best interests at heart. Yeah. Laura Carfang 19:24 And you definitely make that connection between like the emotional piece, those thoughts we tell ourselves in our head, and the impact that it has on our outcome and diagnosis. A lot of the conversations that I have in some of my circles most recently, I am four years out from my original diagnosis, and I am still healing I am still now trying to let go of the pre cancer me work on the current version of me. And also trying to be gentle and practice that self care piece because there's still a lot of things that I can't do. And just last night in one of our support groups that we have Every Thursday night, we were talking about, like, we can't go, we can't ever go back, just like the grieving process, right? Like, we can't be in that hole of, Oh, I wish I could have done should have done, you know, used to be able to do. But look at all the amazing things now that I can do, because I've come out on this other side, whether it's, you know, I no longer practice the vigorous yoga I used to do, it's more of like a slow meditative practice and, and coming to terms with that, I would love to hear your opinion on kind of like the self care and the self healing piece. And what you say to someone who still may be a little bit stuck in, in that like, sad world of like, How did this happen to me, but I want to come out of it, how can I take better care of myself, Dr. Paul Anderson 20:42 And that's where the rubber meets the road really, for most people. The first thing, you know, that I think is most important with that discussion is allowing the person time to get to that place where they actually say it. Because if if some outside person just tells you, you know, look, you you need to stop thinking about the past, and you needed to do some self care or whatever. Sometimes people need that maybe to move off the dime. But really, that has to come from within. And I think the most important thing is it's not. It's the extremely rare human who wakes up one morning and says, Okay, today, I'm all about self care. And I'm going to forget about the pre cancer me, most people, it's just, I've come to realization, I want to go there, I have no idea how to do it. So I'm willing, but I'm, you know, unaware. That's the moment at which then, you know, the whoever is helping, whether it's a medical person, or family or therapist or whatever, or support group. That's the point at which you provide resources that are the next steps. And I think the most important thing is not overwhelming people. Because you can come to realization, you know, for people who don't have cancer, it's, sometimes they'll come to realization, I need to take better care of myself and exercise. Well, if you suddenly give them you know, a 400 point exercise plan, and they've never exercised it, they're not, you know, that's overwhelming. Same if you have cancer, and you realize you got to do something, and you have to move away, you know, from past thinking, etc, you got to start with just baby steps and move forward. So a lot of it is that holding a place for the fact that you're doing it this realizing you can only do so much at a time. And, and really the you know, you probably saw kind of the order the book is written in, what I say is that you might be great with the stuff in chapter one, but chapter two, you might be stuck at great spend some time there, you know, it's baby steps. And every day, just, you know, just like grieving or just like processing anything, every day is a new day to do that, too. So you don't necessarily wake up on day two or day 20 and say, you know, I've got all that handled, and, you know, most the time you wake up and say I still have cancer and I need to, you know, I need to be in this other place with it. So a lot of it is just being gentle, gentle motivation forward tools when they're needed, but not too many. Because I, I did see that a lot that that sort of stimulated some memories for me about when I was thinking of writing the book, mentoring doctors, especially, you know, newer ones, and they would get a cancer patient give them way too much all at once. And the patient's just like, you know, overwhelmed with, you know, so they have all this physical stuff they're doing and maybe they're doing, you know, chemo, or maybe they're getting surgery and recovering and doing 11 other things. And then they've got, you know, a 40 point list about changing their diet and their mental set and their other site. Without cancer, you can't do all that, you know, with it. So, you know, so let's, you know, let's start with one thing and move you forward and keep going. That's, I think that's the most humane way, but it's also the most sustainable way to do that. Laura Carfang 24:16 Yeah, I hear a lot of times that, you know, cancer can be that catalyst that wakes us up. And that ignites some sort of flame within us to make behavioral changes. And another piece that I love about your book too, as you give us all of these tools and allow us to linger in various chapters as we're doing the inner work to heal internally. I think that's incredibly important what you mentioned and resonates with me very much so to say that we have to want that change, we have to want to have that mentality and shift because if it doesn't come from within it's going to sound like one more thing on our to do list and potentially, you know, depending on your your behaviors and character like it might retract, right? You say well, I don't want this at all and I'm even going to hibernate even more so It's definitely a fine line and something that people need to tread lightly on for sure. And, you know, I think one of the tools that you you share in the book is the opportunity for us to control what is in our control, and then let go of what is not in our control, I think so much of a cancer diagnosis, when you feel like everything is ripped out of you, how can we make sense of what we can do on like, kind of the small chunks, and bite sized chunks of like, day to day, this is something that's in my control. And it could be that mindset, or it could be the diet, it could be taking a walk, or an exercise, like something that is tangible, because so much of it is unknown, especially in the cancer world, right, we have, treatments are constantly changing or evolving based on how you're responding to a particular drug. And, you know, I hear a lot of times too, you know, we think we're going in for one surgery, and then lo and behold, there's an infection or something happens, or you need for breast cancer, your exchange surgeries, like, there's so much, and there's a lot of unknown. And, you know, to kind of tie this back to those various phases of grief and loss and sadness, and then unknown, but we just want control, we want to know what we can do. And I used to tell my doctors to like you're in charge of the medical side, I'm in charge of like, the health and wellness side, and we can meet halfway, and I feel that way that I am empowered, and that I can take an active role in my health. I think you speak a lot about that in your book as well. Dr. Paul Anderson 26:30 Yeah. And it is so critically important, with, with cancer as a journey, but especially like with what you're describing where treatments can change, suddenly, surgeries Can you know everything can change suddenly, because your body is going to react the way your body reacts. And we see that all the time, you get 10 people with the same chemo regimen, and, you know, seven to one way and you know, three to three different ways. And so, you know, part of what I try to get to in the book is, those are things that you don't want to totally, like, just go on autopilot and say, Well, whatever, you know, but I mean, you only have so much control over how your surgery goes, that's, you know, you can prepare for it and all that stuff, but the rest is about the surgeon, your body and how it all works together. Same with chemo, you know, or a targeted therapy or something, your body and your immune system do the work and you may not have total control. And one of the things I've seen that gets people to stay stuck is if their focus is all on, you know, especially people that like a lot of control, that's probably that's a human condition. But, you know, some people are much more into control and other people. I've seen them get so tied up in those things that they can't really control, that there's no energy for this stuff, you can, you know, which are the harder things literally waking up and saying, you know, it's another day with cancer, but it's, you know, it's my day, it's, you know, this is, you know, this is going to whatever happens, however I feel, it's still my day, and this is going to be how it goes. And I think that that switch of doing inventory, because you know, every month is different, what's in your control, what's kind of in your control, like you could maybe choose your doctor, maybe choose whatever. But beyond that the medical side, like you say is it's going to do what it's going to do. So then you got a whole bunch of other stuff you're in control of and that and that, that is empowering and of itself, because people get to stay stuck in the area of stuff they can't control, you're automatically disqualified you like you, you're disempowered, because I can't be empowered about something I have no control over, you know, I can be empowered about how I am around that. But, you know, so focus on the stuff that you you're totally in control of. Yeah, Laura Carfang 28:57 You know, with a cancer diagnosis I was, you want a plan, you want that roadmap, and I had to quickly learn, I think it was my second appointment after chemotherapy. And I was like, that plan has to go out the window. Like I just can't hold on to that. And it's I think it's also hard to going back to the chapters on like family and friends. They turn to you to say like, well, what's next what's happening next, they want a road map also. And so all of a sudden, it can be compounded with you know, I was given some information, the information changed. And now as I'm talking to new, the newly diagnosed it's it's very similar type of peer to peer advice of, you know, you have to be flexible and nimble and just kind of go with the flow sometimes because it'll save you some stress and heartache. Dr. Paul Anderson 29:46 You really have to hold it with an open hand because there's just, you know, there's so many things that can change and not even go wrong. Just change you know, and People obviously we don't, you know, if we don't have cancer, we're not usually sitting around focusing on how cancer is treated and things. But, you know, I was trying to tell people look, you know, your radiation oncologist or your medical oncologist or surgical oncologist, they have huge jobs that have almost no margin for error. And so their whole world is tied up in doing dosing your radiation, or figuring out your chemo or changing your chemo or doing the right surgery for the moment. To keep you as safe and healthy as possible. So like, that's their world, they're really tied up in it. And you just don't know how many variables they have to sift through. So changes are part of the deal, usually. So, you know, pick good doctors, let them do their work, keep on top of what they're doing, ask questions, but then, you know, focus on being as prepared as possible to either do or not do treatment or be as prepared as possible to deal with what you can it's, it's a huge thing. If you think, Oh, you know, cuz I'll use this analogy. Most of us have been to the doctor because we got, you know, strep throat or we had a broken leg. Those are pretty linear treatments, you know, there's X amount of time, there's this medicine, and you're better sometime, that in the future. Cancer doesn't work that way. You know, every day, there's sort of all these variables you have thrown up in the air, and then, you know, you see which balls hit the floor first. And that's what you do. Very different. So it, it's Yeah, that's really good peer to peer advice. Laura Carfang 31:38 100%. And I think that's a great way to reframe it as well, taking it like you're not changing it because I'm just going to be very candid. Like, I think sometimes too, it could be like the trust that we have with our doctors, right, it's like, you're given one thing. And now you're changing it on me. And I think the way you just reshaped that was like, okay, it's a positive, you're changing this because you're tailoring it. But it's my own symptoms and my reactions that I'm having, which is completely different than somebody else. And so I love that, that's great positivity, I want to pick your brain a little bit more on the mindfulness and kind of taking a deeper dive into the integrative therapies and complimentary care that you were discussing in your book. And I know you also mentioned a little bit about palliative care. And I think sometimes we think about palliative care as like, end of life and sometimes use it interchangeably with hospice, but it's not necessarily and to utilize the palliative care and integrative cares as quality of life. How, how can we speak about quality of life? And how do you define that? Dr. Paul Anderson 32:40 I think that's a really good. And sometimes I, I forget, because I think of palliative care is really encompassing, but a lot of people do they hear palliative, and they think, Oh, no, you know, it's the same as hospice or something. Now, it can include that. But really, as I was mentioning earlier, you know, 2030 years ago, the idea of palliative oncology was just end of life care. It has come a very long way since then. So now what that really means and maybe a better term, although it's not the term people normally uses is, you know, quality of life and health enhancement is really what you're talking about in modern times. Now, he going back to just what I said earlier about, you know, you've got your surgical oncologists and medical and radiation oncologists there, their world is wrapped up in their treatments, which are so complex, they understand the need for this other stuff, but that's not their job. That's not what they do. You know, it's people like me who do the quality of life and other care. What I usually tell people is there, there's really four steps in a cancer journey. The first step is you don't know you have cancer, and its primary prevention. Most people are always making cancer cells, but they don't develop cancer don't do too later. The next step is what the book is talking about, which is diagnosis and initial treatment. And then the next step is actually recovery from treatments so that you know, you stay in remission or you get towards your mission, etc. And then the next step is secondary prevention, which is, let's not have it come back or get worse or you know, whatever. And the reason I divide it that way for people's minds is the amount of effort and energy you as a patient, have, time wise, energy wise, etc. to put into working on those things is very different at each step. primary prevention, preventing things it's that can be 100%. If you are just starting with some surgery and chemo or radiation or whatever, you aren't going to have time and energy for very much you're going to do you like to say baby steps just to shore up everything. But in the recovery part in what I would call palliative or quality of life recovery care. It's not about hospice or any of life normally, it's about let's get you recovered from, you know, all of all of this treatment you just had. It's, you know, there, there's no, uh, maybe there is I can't think of a cancer therapy of any kind. That is any fun and you come out the other side feeling healthier than you did when you started. It's, it's, you know, there's this job you're doing of treating cancer and now you know you want to recover? Well, one of the things and I get to the mental emotional part in this book, the prior book, we talked a lot about it medically, but the more you do on the other end of recovery from surgery, radiation, chemo, etc. Actually, the more calm your cancer stem cells are, and the less chance of recurrence later on. So when we're talking about palliative oncology, yeah, it's the whole spectrum. And while it might include more end of life things, that's, you know, 5% of what we're trying to do, mostly what we're trying to do is make you as healthy as possible, so that you have the lowest index of cancer wanting to come back or be aggressive, etc. So it's a, and there's, there's so you know, if I think of just what we didn't know, five or 10 years ago, but if we go back 25 years ago, was like, well, we can do something. I mean, it was, it was really, it just, you know, it's it's been logarithmically expanding. And, and the research has to, I mean, you know, the first book we had, like, over 1000, scientific, you know, resources. This book isn't so much about that, but but the mindset part, I guess, you know, big reason for the book, this, this book about the mindset is and empowerment, you can do all the, the perfect medical oncology, you can do all the perfect recovery and palliative and quality of life stuff. But if your brain is stuck in that place, where you're still angry, you, you know, don't want this cancer, you're mad at it, it's, you're a victim, your body doesn't feel the same. And so it's it's part and parcel with the external things you do, such as, you know, fixing your body after surgery, or, you know, recovering from chemo or whatever. It's also your brain being on board with that. So it, you know, moves you forward. Laura Carfang 37:25 I couldn't agree more, I think the mental side is the muscle we have to work also, right? It's not just the physical, you know, the exercise, but how could we mentally help ourselves grow after such a traumatic diagnosis. And I completely agree, I think when we talk about the secondary prevention piece, and I do kind of want to reframe this also, because I'm also very sensitive to a lot of women in our community who were diagnosed with metastatic breast cancer de novo. And so there is some anger there where you don't have that initial early stage, to have that option. You think you're being preventative, and there's a variety of reasons why that happens. But you know, when we an app, I don't want to put words in your mouth or look for your buck. But as I was reading about the secondary prevention piece, it wasn't just a second recurrence of breast cancer, but it was that no evidence of disease or no progression of disease, right? Like, how can we take this and again, still feel empowered, and even with a terminal diagnosis still move forward. And, again, be empowered with the choices and the control that we have? Every single day that we wake up? Dr. Paul Anderson 38:36 You did a good job putting words in but the idea was secondary prevention, of course, is you there, there are things you can do to get to a certain place there. But as you say, some people and this was a large portion of our patients started out de novo with, you know, metastatic disease, and they, you know, there isn't the first two or three steps, you know, it's just boom, here it is, and here's what we're gonna do about it. So secondary prevention, the nice thing about the more modern way of looking at it is, it's not just for people with no evidence of disease or into remission. It's also for people who are either really, we had other two other areas, one was progressive, but but slow progressive disease, and the other was stable disease. And so you may have metastatic, you know, stage four cancer, but you can do everything you can to keep it either very slow, progressive or stable. So it's not in remission, but it's remission. Like, there's a lot of things you can still do there to manage all of that because, you know, you're just as shocked but I would say yes, probably a little more anger comes up because you feel like gosh, why couldn't I have been diagnosed? Stage One, you know, like my friend did or stage two, in here I was diagnosed at stage four, which is a lot of people nowadays. You don't even, that's not part of your choices, which is terrible, it's too bad, but that's the way you know it is. So for that person, they have to rewind to the place where you process the anger and the loss of total control over everything. Plus, you're grieving the fact that you didn't get it stage one diagnosis to deal with or, or a stage two or something. And it's the same steps, it's just you, you're going to deal with different emotions, because you literally had a whole bunch of options you never got important part is, it's still so critical to to do the mental emotional and Mind Body connection, work, etc, to get beyond that, because we've literally had people with metastatic disease, who, you know, through whatever combination of therapies and, and supportive things stayed stable and had very good quality of life for years and years and years. And, yeah, they never, you know, stage four, cancer didn't go away, you don't really see that very much. But they had, you know, what they said, were wonderful life, you know, wonderful quality of life, dealt with it as it came in. And I think, you know, it's, it's, that's it, those are the elephants in the room, which are, nobody wants to talk about that real harsh reality that, you know, and again, you're not telling the person will get over it, you know, because that's, that's not, it's, you know, you don't have to get over it, you have to, you have to recognize you have every right to be angry, because this, there's nothing fair about this. But staying in the anger won't make you healthier, you know, processing it will moving forward. And we had, you know, in the, in the NIH research, the large majority of people that were doing interventional things, I was in charge of all but one where stage four people most stage for a diagnosis. And they were which makes you more amenable in research to do all sorts of things, which is what we did. But they were, they had all mostly come to the place where they were so they were an empowered group. And they didn't like having stage four cancer, and, you know, they didn't like the effects and all of that. But the reason they were part of this research project, and we're we're in my section where they knew that at some point, it would help somebody down the road. Laura Carfang 42:48 100% response I totally agree. Dr. Paul Anderson 42:50 Those are the people that motivate me, many of them are no longer with us, but a lot of them still are, you know, we we had one lady that was diagnosed at 85. Doctor said, she wouldn't live to see 86 and we celebrated her 90th birthday in our office, and she made it to 96 years, and she lived 10 years. And it was all her like, just the way she dealt with it. So, yeah, it's not, you know, none of the things are easy. You know, these aren't easy conversations to have with yourself, let alone with you know, people in your circle, but they're so necessary for your mind to be free to let you be as healed as you can be. Laura Carfang 43:38 I think the positive affirmations and you know, not letting someone else dictate time, that how much time you have left to live, no one can say that, right. So right and wake up in the morning saying, today's a new day, I'm going to live it to the fullest. And you know, it's it definitely has a positive outcome and relation on your own mental health and on your body and on your outcome. So it's really great to hear. Dr. Paul Anderson 44:05 Very much Yes. Laura Carfang 44:06 You'll be able to buy this book cancer, the journey from diagnosis to empowerment via Amazon. It's also available on Kindle, as well as an audiobook. I will link to all of this in our show notes below. So this has just been wonderful. Thank you so much. Dr. Paul Anderson 44:21 Thank you. It's a perfect organic conversation. Laura Carfang 44:24 Yeah, exactly. That's how I love them too. Thank you for tuning in and listen to our podcast. If you'd like to find out more about our organization and upcoming events and ways to connect. You can find out more by visiting our website at surviving breast cancer.org. And we'd like to acknowledge that all of the information on our podcast is from personal experiences and it is not a substitute for professional medical advice. You should always consult your medical care team. If you're looking for specific topics or would like to be a guest on our show, feel free to contact me directly at Laura at surviving breast cancer.org. And of course, we have a couple social media handles. You can follow us Sat as well. For example, surviving breast cancer org all one word, as well as our podcast, specifically breast cancer conversations. Until next time, keep on thriving.

TRANSCRIPTION: Laura Carfang 00:03 Hello and welcome to breast cancer conversations podcast brought to you by surviving breast cancer dashboard. I am Laura Carfang breast cancer survivor and founder of surviving breast cancer dashboard, a nonprofit organization providing community education and resources to empower those diagnosed with breast cancer and their caregivers from day one and beyond. Hello, everybody and welcome back to breast cancer conversations. It is so nice to be speaking with all of you today. If this is your first time tuning in, welcome. It's so nice to have you here. Please be sure to subscribe. We release our podcast once a week usually on Mondays so you can always have something to look forward to as we begin our week together. Before we jump into today's conversation, I just want to give a quick shout out to all of the great amazing resources we have on our website surviving breast cancer.org. All of our podcast listeners are invited to join us on Thursday nights for our Thursday night drivers meetup. We meet on zoom every Thursday at 7pm. Eastern you can RSVP from our website, and a zoom link will be emailed to you. We also send out weekly newsletters on Mondays and Fridays. We have an every other Sunday metastatic breast cancer series that we produce, as well as a once a month breast cancer book club that we host. The best part about the book club is that we don't read any books that have to do with cancer. It's pure escapism, a lot of fun. And we meet on the first Sunday of every month. You can check out what book we're reading again on our website. Today on the podcast, we are speaking with Karla who is not new to breast cancer conversations. She actually provided us with a beautiful 45 minute long episode where she shares with us everything she knows with regards to nutrition education around clean eating and living with metastatic breast cancer so I'll link to that full episode below. However, I wanted to pull out a short excerpt from that longer series because we want to focus on Phyto estrogens. If I breast cancer is ER positive, it can be very confusing to understand if we should be avoiding soy eating soy products, avoiding Phyto-estrogens etc. I am so excited to have Karla back on the episode to help us answer some of these questions. Welcome to the conversation. Karla Mans Giroux 02:17 Now let's talk about Phyto estrogens and breast cancer and Laura and I talked a little bit about this ahead of time and I do like to share this information and it is controversial. But there are studies that show of course you'll always find on any topic study that's forward a study that's against but Phyto estrogens are plant based compounds that mimic estrogen because their chemical structure is very similar to that of estrogen from the body. They have been found to be beneficial in combating symptoms and conditions caused by estrogen deficiency. Therefore, this may be a particular benefit to pre and post-menopausal women who are having their hot flashes. Phyto-estrogens may also play a role in fighting cancer. However, it is still controversial and more research is absolutely needed to understand this. Unfortunately, they do not spend a lot of time and money on researching something that can't be patented. But there we are. There are studies that have revealed that high consumption of soy products is associated with low incidences of whore hormone dependent cancers, including breast and prostate. Soybeans contain the large amounts of isoflavones. Previously, it's been demonstrated that genistein, one of the predominant soy isoflavones can inhibit several steps involved in carcinogenesis. So it can inhibit the development of cancer. It is suggested that genestein possesses mechanisms of action, including inhibition and modulation of different signaling pathways associated with the growth of cancer cells. Moreover, genestein is also a potent inhibitor of angiogenesis. Uncontrolled angiogenesis is considered a key step in cancer growth, invasion and metastasis. I see Dr. Keith Block of the Block Center for Integrative Cancer Treatment in the Chicago area. I've talked to Dr. Block many times about soy and breast cancer and fighter estrogens and breast cancer. Dr. Block has told me that processed soy foods such as soy burgers typically contain very low amounts of that genestein and other soy items such as miso and soy sauce contain even less. In fact, he says a whole bottle of soy sauce contains only about six or seven milligrams of isoflavones, which would have no effect at all on breast cells, though it would be quite a lot of salt. So Dr. Bullock counsels that there is no need to pass on the tofu or the tempeh, so long as you're eating soy foods in moderation, just like anything else, and be sure your soy is non GMO. Dr. Block also stated in a 2016 article that he wrote, he stated in 2016, the studies suggested that eating moderate amounts of soy foods is safe for breast cancer survivors. In fact, in studies conducted by Dr. Anna H. Wu, and others at the University of Southern California, show that women who consume approximately one to two servings of soy food each day are not isolated soy supplements, you want to avoid those. But if you eat soy food each day, you actually have a reduced risk of breast cancer recurrence, or being diagnosed with the disease. And moreover, these studies, there were three studies in China and two in the US that provided further evidence that women who ate more soy have better survival after breast cancer diagnosis than those who ate the least soy. Laura Carfang 06:20 Karla, as always, this has been so helpful, I am definitely going to look on PubMed, and I will link to some of these studies in the show notes below so that our readers and listeners will have access to this information. Thank you again, for everything that you do for our breast cancer community. It is always a pleasure having you on the podcast. Thank you for tuning in and listen to our podcast. If you would like to find out more about our organization and upcoming events and ways to connect. You can find out more by visiting our website at surviving breast cancer.org. And we'd like to acknowledge that all of the information on our podcast is from personal experiences and it is not a substitute for professional medical advice. You should always consult your medical care team. If you're looking for specific topics or would like to be a guest on our show, feel free to contact me directly at Laura at surviving breast cancer.org. And of course, we have a couple social media handles you can follow us that as well. For example, surviving breast cancer org all one word, as well as our podcast specifically breast cancer conversations. Until next time, keep on thriving.

Originally published by Dependable Cleaners here . In honor of October being Breast Cancer Awareness Month Dependable Cleaners wanted to put the spotlight on an entrepreneur making strides to support those who are and have faced a breast cancer diagnosis. So here we are! The spotlight is turned inward so here we go! Laura Carfang started SurvivingBreastCancer.org as a platform to provide support, education, and a community for those that have been diagnosed and their caregivers. Laura took her personal journey with breast cancer and turned it into a way to inspire, encourage and support others. As Executive Director she has set out a vision and is a strong believer that everyone’s voice should be heard. We spoke with Laura to learn more about her journey and her vision for SurvivingBreastCancer.org How can we offer support and compassion to both individuals fighting a breast cancer diagnosis and survivors of breast cancer? There are various and sundry ways family, friends, and caregivers can offer support to those diagnosed with breast cancer. I think the most important thing to keep in mind is that everyone is different, so take the time to ask the person what would be helpful to them. You may think it is helpful to bring over food, but a person diagnosed with breast cancer may have a particular aversion to certain foods due to the side effects of the chemotherapy; some people lose their taste buds, others may develop mouth sores – making meals a challenge and a reminder that they are ill. One thing I noticed is that everyone has an opinion when it comes to your health care. Unless the person with breast cancer is asking you to recommend a doctor, or specific advice, sometimes these options are better kept to yourself. Finally, going back to the first point, I think it is also important to ask the person what their boundaries are, how open they want to be about their diagnosis, I.e., which family members get all of the details and which people get the high-level updates. In my experience, my boyfriend and caregiver came to all of my appointments and he was the one family members were able to call and ask questions allowing me to catch up on much needed rest.   What are some key initiatives SurvivingBreastCancer.org is working on this coming year? We have some exciting plans coming up this year. We are transiting to more of a virtual platform to enable our organization to help as many people as possible. Secondly, we are seeking grants, corporate sponsorships and cause related marketing alliances that will enable us to work full-time for the non-profit. Was there a specific moment in your breast cancer journey that set the stage for what you wanted the mission of your organization to be? Absolutely! Living in Boston, one of the world’s great health care Meccas, and being a major metropolitan city, I thought it was going to be easy to find other women, similarly diagnosed with breast cancer and make connections. I honestly thought that if I typed into google “breast cancer survivors in Boston” I would find a thriving community ready to connect and share their experiences. In hindsight, I guess I was looking for a breast cancer mentor so to speak. Boston offers several support groups and forums which are great resources, but they are usually spearheaded by the hospitals. However, if you are working, it is hard to attend weekday afternoon sessions. It was through my own experience navigating breast cancer that I launched my 501(c)(3) non-profit, Survivingbreastcancer.org . I wanted to create a virtual platform that provides community, education and resources for those diagnosed with breast cancer and their caregivers. A breast cancer diagnosis does not end when treatment ends, there is a lot of aftermath that comes with it. If you are diagnosed with early stage breast cancer, you are never truly 100% “Cancer Free.” Oncologists use the term “No Evidence of Disease” or “NED”. There is always a lingering fear that the breast cancer may return. That is where our organization comes into play. We are there when your medical care team says they will see you in 12 weeks, or 6 months or next year, and PTSD slowly creeps into the fabric of your life. This is when the community and support systems are needed the most. Tell us about a mentor who has been influential to you as a leader. I have to say that my mom and dad have been my biggest mentors and influential leaders. They are my rock! I am very fortunate to be very close with my family. My father started his own business in the financial industry 35 years ago, so in a sense I’ve grown up around entrepreneurship. From a young age I was exposed to the dedication and hard work that goes into running a business and that the hours are hardly 9-5. My mother works in the healthcare sector. I remember early on, she would find opportunities to educate her patients and their families. She incorporates nutrition and lifestyle medicine in her approach making it easy for her clients to understand the complexities associated with illness, food allergies, and autism, for example. She now leads the Carol Carfang Nursing and Healthcare Ethics conference where leaders, educators, and philosophers come together to discuss the most pressing issues in the field. I guess you can say, it’s in my genes and I couldn’t be more grateful for the mentorship and leadership I receive from my parents.   Do you have any tips for entrepreneurs to help them maintain a healthy work/life habit? Most entrepreneurs will tell you that you have to have an unwavering passion for and belief in the work you are doing. There are times when entrepreneurship can be quite lonely. There are moments of doubt and insecurity along the way. However, it is in those moments that I remind myself, “if it were easy to put your life and souls’ work out there to be a success, then everyone would do it.” It takes a specific mindset and drive to be willing to take chances, to be judged (because everyone has an opinion), and to risk failure and still persevere, that distinguishes an entrepreneur. The work/life balance is a challenge and it comes down to prioritization. A simple black and white question I ask myself is, will this give me joy, will this help me get from point A to point B. And if the answer is “yes”, then it is worth doing. If the answer is “no”, then I move along to the next thing.  The other technique that I use is dedicating one day a week for “me-time”. I have chosen Monday as that day where I do not book meetings, schedule podcasts, or work on blog posts. For me this is a guaranteed day where I can find a yoga class, go for a run, grab a dinner with girlfriends, or simply sit on the couch in pj’s and scroll through social media posts. Whatever you need to do to unwind, relax and refresh, it’s important to carve out that time each week. In the work that I do running a non-profit, I am reminded that it is not a race but a marathon. Like all non-profits, we are called to solve some of the world’s most challenging problems. We are not going to cure breast cancer tomorrow. However, if we can help one person, move the needle one point, and provide support, education and community to those diagnosed with this disease, then I know we are going in the right direction. Thank you Dependable Cleaners for publishing our story and supporting breast cancer awareness, programing, and resources. Want to learn more about Laura's story, here are some additional features: Channel 7 News & On the Podcast

Position: Social Media Manager - Marketing and Community (Instagram, Facebook, Twitter) Hours per week: 10-20, Position is remote, unpaid, part-time. Job Summary: Our growing non-profit, which is at the intersection of health care, technology, and customer service, would like to bring on a Social Media Manager. The successful candidate will be a driven, ambitious, creative, individual looking to develop and execute a digital marketing strategy with the end goal of increasing followers and engagement across multichannel platforms. We offer a flexible schedule, extensive training, and mentorship, as well as the opportunity to experience the industry from the inside and valuable work experience. Responsibilities and Duties: · Responsible for managing the organizations online social media accounts · Responsible for growing followers, engagement, and collecting email addresses. · Engage with health care professionals and those diagnosed with breast cancer via the various platforms platform · Engage and develop community via our online networks · Promote webinars, events and programs · Solicit blogs, stories, and content for our website and newsletter · Enhance our digital presence on social media while maintaining our brand and voice · Create graphics and content Team Player: · Take on additional tasks and responsibility as needed Qualifications and Skills: · Must be passionate about our cause and our work Must be reliable and able to maintain confidentiality Must have strong public speaking skills and enjoy meeting new people Excellent written and verbal communication skills Self-directed and able to work without supervision Energetic and eager to tackle new projects and ideas · Must be 18 years or older How to Apply Please send cover letter, resume and three references to William@survivingbreastcancer.org

Position: Content Writer Hours per week: 10-20, position is remote, unpaid, part-time. Job Summary: Our growing non-profit, which is at the intersection of health care, technology, and customer service, would like to bring on a Content Writer Intern for a semester with the option of extending. The successful candidate be a driven, ambitious, creative, individual looking to learn on the job and develop skills to excel and create a career in communications, digital media, content marketing, advocacy, and public health. We offer a flexible schedule working remotely, extensive training, and mentorship, as well as the opportunity to experience the industry from the inside while gaining valuable work experience. Responsibilities and Duties: · Responsible for researching health care topics, gathering content and writing articles for publication on our website and for distribution in our weekly newsletter. · Research trending and hot topics related to breast cancer, treatment, and advocacy · Create content for feature landing pages · Collaborate with social media teams to disseminate content and grow survivingbreastcancer.org’s brand and subscriber list. Team Player: · Take on additional tasks and responsibility as needed Qualifications and Skills: · Must enjoy writing and have strong writing, communication and proof reading skills. · Must be passionate about our cause and our work Must be reliable and able to maintain confidentiality · Enthusiastic about health care, advocacy, and promoting breast cancer awareness Self-directed and able to work without supervision Energetic and eager to tackle new projects and ideas · Must be 18 years or older How to Apply Please send cover letter, resume and writing sample to William@survivingbreastcancer.org

Position: Podcast Communications Intern (Breast Cancer Conversations Podcast) Hours per week: 10-20, Position is remote, unpaid, part-time. Job Summary: Our growing non-profit, which is at the intersection of health care, technology, and customer service, would like to bring on a Marketing and Communication’s Intern. The successful candidate will be a driven, ambitious, creative, individual looking to learn on the job and develop skills to excel and create a career in communications, digital media, content marketing, advocacy and public health. We offer a flexible schedule working remotely, extensive training, and mentorship, as well as the opportunity to experience the industry from the inside and valuable work experience. Responsibilities and Duties: · Responsible for the post production of our podcasts which include: o Developing and writing the show notes for weekly episodes o Reviewing and editing transcriptions of weekly podcast episodes o Uploading and publishing podcasts o Creating and disseminating soundbites o Creating graphics and cover art for each episode o Incorporating Search Engine Optimization strategies to ensure our content gets found on google · Collaborate with other interns and volunteers to ensure the podcasts are published to the website, queued up for the weekly newsletter, and promoted on social media outlets Team Player: · Take on additional tasks and responsibility as needed Qualifications and Skills: · Must enjoy writing and have strong writing, communication and proof reading skills. · Must be passionate about our cause and our work Must be reliable, meet weekly deadlines, and able to maintain confidentiality · Enthusiastic about health care, advocacy, and promoting breast cancer awareness Self-directed and able to work without supervision Energetic and eager to tackle new projects and ideas · Must be 18 years or older How to Apply Please send cover letter, resume and three references to William@survivingbreastcancer.org

Position: Video Editing & Communications Intern (YouTube) Hours per week: Minimum of 10 hours per week Job Summary: Our growing non-profit, which is at the intersection of health care, technology, and customer service, would like to bring on a Marketing and Communication’s Intern for a semester with the option for renewal. The successful candidate will be a driven, ambitious, creative, individual looking to learn on the job and develop skills to excel and create a career in communications, digital media, content marketing, advocacy and public health. We offer a flexible schedule working remotely, extensive training, and mentorship, as well as the opportunity to experience the industry from the inside and valuable work experience. Responsibilities and Duties: · Responsible for the post production of our webinar · Cut, edit, and create videos for our YouTube channel. · Developing and writing the show notes for weekly webinars · Support the growth strategy and community building strategy of our YouTube channel · Creating and disseminating soundbites · Incorporating Search Engine Optimization strategies to ensure our content gets found on google and on YouTube · Collaborate with other interns and volunteers to ensure the Webinars are published to the website, queued up for the weekly newsletter, and promoted on social media outlets Team Player: · Take on additional tasks and responsibility as needed Qualifications and Skills: · Must enjoy writing and have strong writing, communication and proof reading skills. · Must have a basic background in video editing · Must be passionate about our cause and our work Must be reliable, meet weekly deadlines, and able to maintain confidentiality · Enthusiastic about health care, advocacy, and promoting breast cancer awareness Self-directed and able to work without supervision Energetic and eager to tackle new projects and ideas · Must be 18 years or older How to Apply Please send cover letter, resume and three references to William@survivingbreastcancer.org Position is remote, unpaid, part-time.