Believe in Progress: an American Association for Cancer Research Foundation Podcast

On this episode, we are speaking with Donna James. Donna is well-known for her pioneering spirit, leadership in the community, and excellence in executive roles. Roughly six years ago, however, she earned a new distinction: triple-negative breast cancer survivor.

Please do not forget to visit www.aacr.org to make a donation or to find helpful information and resources. Together we can make progress in the fight against cancer and bring hope to those who need it most.

Please don't forget, cancer research saves lives.

For more information visit the AACR and our podcast here: https://www.aacr.org/get-involved/believe-in-progress-an-aacr-foundation-podcast/

This podcast was produced by the awesome people at CollegeCast LLC. Visit www.collegecastpodcasts.com for more information, or to check out our amazing podcasts.

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Donna A. James is a trusted resource and advisor to leaders in the public and private sector, ranging from entrepreneurs to C‐suite executives of Fortune 500 companies.

As the managing director of Lardon & Associates, LLC, Donna’s expertise includes corporate governance, business strategy and development, human capital management, financial and risk management and leadership development.

She serves on the board of directors for public companies Victoria’s Secret, The Hartford, American Electric Power and the private company Xponance. Ms. James is chairwoman of the board for Victoria’s Secret & Co. She is a past board member of Boston Scientific, L Brands, Marathon Petroleum Corporation, Time Warner Cable, Coca‐Cola Enterprises, Inc., Intimate Brands and CNO Financial Group.

In her community, Ms. James is the co‐founder and former board chair of the Center for Healthy Families, a non‐profit focused on transforming the lives of pregnant and parenting teens and their children and Co‐Executive Director for the African American Leadership Academy. She is on the board of Trustees for Ohio Health hospital system in central Ohio.

Two causes have a more personal impact for Donna. Victoria’s Secret’s commitment to cancer research, including funding research into women’s cancers through a partnership with Pelotonia, and the development of the company’s first mastectomy bra.

In 2017, Donna James faced a diagnosis of triple-negative breast cancer after finding a lump during a self-exam. Though it was caught early, it was an aggressive triple-negative cancer, so she opted for a double mastectomy.

Chemotherapy followed the surgery, and she remains on a medication regimen. So when Victoria’s Secret came up with a mastectomy bra, Donna was one of the first people to place her order online.

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This is the Believe in Progress podcast hosted by the AACR Foundation and featuring Donna James.

Join us on this journey of hope and progress. Subscribe to Believe in Progress, the AACR Foundation's podcast, today, and be inspired by the incredible stories of those who have faced cancer with strength and resilience, and the medical professionals who are working to find new treatments and ultimately a cure.

Please do not forget to visit www.aacr.org to make a donation or to find helpful information and resources. Together we can make progress in the fight against cancer and bring hope to those who need it most.

Please don't forget, cancer research saves lives.

For more information visit the AACR and our podcast here: https://www.aacr.org/get-involved/believe-in-progress-an-aacr-foundation-podcast/

This podcast was produced by the awesome people at CollegeCast LLC. Visit www.collegecastpodcasts.com for more information, or to check out our amazing podcasts.

On this episode, we are speaking with Doug Ulman, the Chief Executive Officer of Pelotonia, which was established in 2008 with the objective to fund lifesaving cancer research and today is a rapidly growing non-profit. In this role, he is responsible for overseeing the strategic vision and direction of Pelotonia and also serves as an advisor to The Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center – Arthur G. James Cancer Hospital and Solove Research Institute.

Please do not forget to visit www.aacr.org to make a donation or to find helpful information and resources. Together we can make progress in the fight against cancer and bring hope to those who need it most.

Please don't forget, cancer research saves lives.

For more information visit the AACR and our podcast here: https://www.aacr.org/get-involved/believe-in-progress-an-aacr-foundation-podcast/

This podcast was produced by the awesome people at CollegeCast LLC. Visit www.collegecastpodcasts.com for more information, or to check out our amazing podcasts.

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Doug is a three-time cancer survivor and globally recognized cancer advocate. After overcoming chondrosarcoma during his sophomore year of college and malignant melanoma twice since, Doug and his family founded the Ulman Cancer Fund for Young Adults to ensure that all young adults impacted by cancer have a voice and the necessary resources to thrive. With funding from an Echoing Green Fellowship, Doug served as Executive Director of the organization for four years before joining the LIVESTRONG Foundation in 2001 as Director of Survivorship. He went on to lead LIVESTRONG as President and Chief Executive Officer, establishing the organization as the global leader in cancer survivorship. Doug recently served as a Hauser Leader at Harvard Kennedy School Center for Public Leadership and speaks frequently at some of the nation’s most acclaimed festivals and conferences including the Social Good Summit, the Inc. 500|5000 Conference, the Aspen Ideas Festival, the Clinton Global Initiative University, TEDxAustin, SXSW Interactive and YPO Chapters across the country. Doug has also spoken to and consulted with numerous Fortune 100 companies and fast-growing startups. Doug’s personal story and his leadership accomplishments have been featured on major media outlets including The New York Times, Wall Street Journal, USA Today, Forbes, Sports Illustrated, NBC News, ABC News and MSNBC, among many others. Doug has been honored with many accolades including twice being named on the Non-Profit Times’ Power and Influence Top 50 Non-Profit Executives list, an honor bestowed on the top non-profit leaders in the United States. Doug was also named CEO of the Year: Large Non-Profit by Columbus CEO Magazine in 2017 and the PR Professional of the Year by the Public Relations Society of America in 2013.

Doug currently holds numerous board positions for organizations such as the Ulman Cancer Fund for Young Adults, the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids, Athletes for Hope and ROOT Insurance. He is also an active member of the Young Presidents’ Organization (YPO) and The Columbus Partnership. Doug served for four years on the National Cancer Institute Director’s Consumer Liaison Group and has served on the Board of the Union for International Cancer Control (UICC), as well as many other philanthropic, healthcare and entrepreneurial ventures.

Doug lives in Columbus, Ohio with his wife Amy Grace and their two children, Clara and Sam. Follow him on Twitter (@dougulman) and Instagram (@dougulman) and connect with him on Facebook.

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This is the Believe in Progress podcast hosted by the AACR Foundation and featuring Doug Ulman.

Join us on this journey of hope and progress. Subscribe to Believe in Progress, the AACR Foundation's podcast, today, and be inspired by the incredible stories of those who have faced cancer with strength and resilience, and the medical professionals who are working to find new treatments and ultimately a cure.

Please do not forget to visit www.aacr.org to make a donation or to find helpful information and resources. Together we can make progress in the fight against cancer and bring hope to those who need it most.

Please don't forget, cancer research saves lives.

For more information visit the AACR and our podcast here: https://www.aacr.org/get-involved/believe-in-progress-an-aacr-foundation-podcast/

This podcast was produced by the awesome people at CollegeCast LLC. Visit www.collegecastpodcasts.com for more information, or to check out our amazing podcasts.

On this episode, we are speaking with Dr. Marianne Ritchie, one of the first women to practice gastroenterology in the Philadelphia region and a pioneer in the field for over 30 years.

Please do not forget to visit www.aacr.org to make a donation or to find helpful information and resources. Together we can make progress in the fight against cancer and bring hope to those who need it most.

Please don't forget, cancer research saves lives.

For more information visit the AACR and our podcast here: https://www.aacr.org/get-involved/believe-in-progress-an-aacr-foundation-podcast/

This podcast was produced by the awesome people at CollegeCast LLC. Visit www.collegecastpodcasts.com for more information, or to check out our amazing podcasts.

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Dr. Ritchie completed her undergraduate degree at St. Joseph’s University and her medical degree at Jefferson Medical College (now Sidney Kimmel Medical College at Thomas Jefferson University in Philadelphia). Following training at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, the world’s oldest all-cancer hospital, she returned to Philadelphia to practice at The Lankenau Hospital and later served on the faculty at Temple University Hospital.

Currently Dr. Ritchie is an Associate Professor at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital where she has held several leadership roles including President of the Jefferson Medical College Alumni Association. She is the foundress of the Annual Women’s Forum which was continued for over 30 years. Dr. Ritchie has also served in teaching roles with medical students, residents, and fellows.

She is the Director of PINK PLUS®, an innovative program that bundles women’s cancer screenings – inviting women to have a mammogram, a gynecologic exam and a pre-colonoscopy consult in one visit. By spearheading this program, Dr. Ritchie is leading the charge towards more effective, equitable, and accessible cancer screenings. She has published her results and has been invited to present her work at national and international meetings.

Dr. Ritchie is also the Director of the BLUE LIGHTS CAMPAIGN® - an initiative that she began 10 years ago, to increase the public’s awareness of colorectal cancer by lighting buildings across Pennsylvania in blue each March. For 5 years the Campaign has included the PA State Capitol and for the past 3 years has included all State Capitols, making it a national effort. In 2017, Dr. Ritchie was awarded the highest national award for promoting awareness and education about colorectal cancer and screening by The American College of Gastroenterology at the World Congress of Gastroenterology. www.bluelightscampaign.com She has been invited to the PA State Capitol for several years in March as a guest of the House and Senate with proclamations for Colorectal Cancer Awareness month and for the BLUE LIGHTS CAMPAIGN®.

On March 4, 2023 Dr. Ritchie began Season 4 as the host of Your Radio Doctor®, on Talk Radio 1210 WPHT. It is the only all-medical talk radio show in the Greater Philadelphia Region which airs in over 30 states and has an international reach via live stream. Each week she interviews physicians and researchers from top academic centers around the country aiming to provide a greater understanding of various health topics for her growing audience.

Visit www.yourradiodoctor.net for more information.

In October 2022, Dr. Ritchie earned national recognition when she was nominated for a C2 Award (Cancer Community Award) by Astra Zeneca and Scientific American for her work in cancer prevention, screening, and early detection.

Prior to her own radio show, Dr. Ritchie was featured for four years as the Medical Contributor in a weekly talk-radio show on WPHT called Women to Watch®, which highlights stories of women leaders.

Dr. Ritchie is a recognized author and has been a regular contributor to PhillyVoice, as well as a public speaker and has made multiple media appearances. She is also a member of national and international medical societies and a former member of the Colorectal Cancer Alliance.

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This is the Believe in Progress podcast hosted by the AACR Foundation and featuring Dr. Marianne Ritchie.

Join us on this journey of hope and progress. Subscribe to Believe in Progress, the AACR Foundation's podcast, today, and be inspired by the incredible stories of those who have faced cancer with strength and resilience, and the medical professionals who are working to find new treatments and ultimately a cure.

Please do not forget to visit www.aacr.org to make a donation or to find helpful information and resources. Together we can make progress in the fight against cancer and bring hope to those who need it most.

Please don't forget, cancer research saves lives.

For more information visit the AACR and our podcast here: https://www.aacr.org/get-involved/believe-in-progress-an-aacr-foundation-podcast/

This podcast was produced by the awesome people at CollegeCast LLC. Visit www.collegecastpodcasts.com for more information, or to check out our amazing podcasts.

On this episode, we are speaking with Marcus Smith II, to coincide with Suicide Prevention Awareness Month.

Picture spending years tirelessly striving to play in the National Football League and then, in 2014, following years of dedication, you get picked in the first round of the NFL Draft by the Philadelphia Eagles. It's a day that tops all others in your life.

Time passes and the strain escalates. Eventually, anxiety becomes so overwhelming that you try to end your own life. Such is the tale of Marcus Smith II, a former Philadelphia Eagle and a veteran of six NFL seasons.

Marcus Smith II is a professional athlete, philanthropist, entrepreneur, and guest speaker dedicated to ending the stigma surrounding mental health, especially in professional sports. In addition to playing in the NFL, he creates opportunities for single mothers and their children through his foundation, MII, and seeks to improve the world through the written and spoken word.

A Georgia native, Marcus battled anxiety and depression from an early age. He struggled with these unwanted yet ever-present companions well into adulthood and even contemplated taking his own life. Nevertheless, he overcame all odds to become one of the best football players in the world.

As a first-round NFL Draft pick in 2014, he went on to play for the Philadelphia Eagles, Seattle Seahawks, and Washington Redskins. Marcus has touched countless lives along his football journey, his faith always at the forefront of his life. He is committed to helping others overcome their mental health struggles and believes his story can inspire them to get the help they need.

Here is more information about Marcus Smith II's MII Foundation:

Marcus Smith II started The MII Foundation in 2016. Named for its founder, MII’s mission is to improve the quality of life for single parents, at-risk youth, and the underprivileged by providing opportunities to enhance personal growth, build self-confidence, and gain valuable knowledge.

MII is a village for the voiceless, a shelter for those stuck in the storm. To support its mission, the foundation hosts sporting events, dinners, galas, and family-centric experiences built on friendship, support, and compassion for others. Marcus has hosted his Annual 7v7 tournament in his hometown—Columbus, Georgia—for the last three years, as eight local high schools compete for a grand prize of $1,000 and football accessories. George Washington Carver won the most recent tournament in 2019.

Visit https://www.miifoundation.org for more information.

This is the Believe in Progress podcast hosted by the AACR Foundation and featuring Marcus Smith II.

Join us on this journey of hope and progress. Subscribe to Believe in Progress, the AACR Foundation's podcast, today, and be inspired by the incredible stories of those who have faced cancer with strength and resilience, and the medical professionals who are working to find new treatments and ultimately a cure.

Please do not forget to visit www.aacr.org to make a donation or to find helpful information and resources. Together we can make progress in the fight against cancer and bring hope to those who need it most.

Please don't forget, cancer research saves lives.

For more information visit the AACR and our podcast here: https://www.aacr.org/get-involved/believe-in-progress-an-aacr-foundation-podcast/

This podcast was produced by the awesome people at CollegeCast LLC. Visit www.collegecastpodcasts.com for more information, or to check out our amazing podcasts.

On this episode, we are speaking with Rob Butcher and Matt Vossler,

Both of these gentlemen are champions in awarding high risk-high reward cancer research grants, which helps provide funds for innovative early stage cancer research.

In 1987, Matt Vossler co-founded Swim Across America Inc., a nonprofit organization that raises funds for cancer research, treatment, and survivorship programs through a series of open-water swimming events. He currently serves on the Board of Directors and oversees Safety and Risk Management for 20+ open water events. To date, Swim Across America has raised more than $100 million, primarily benefiting Memorial Sloan Kettering, UCSF, Massachusetts General, Johns Hopkins University, Fred Hutch, Moffit, and MD Anderson.

Rob Butcher was the CEO of U.S. Master Swimming which is a membership association for adult swimmers and triathletes, Prior to joining Swim Across America.

Before that, Rob was a senior marketing executive with NASCAR where he lead business development and media partnerships.

Rob swam in college and competed in the 2000 U.S. Olympic Trials.

Here is some information on their organization, Swim Across America:

“Swim Across America awards high risk-high reward cancer research grants with precision and accountability. Our goal is to provide funds for innovative early stage research that doesn't receive funding from traditional sources.”

In the 1980s, a small circle of oncologists sought funding for a revolutionary concept—that the immune system could fight cancer. This concept was considered speculative and dismissed by most of the medical community. The belief was that surgery, chemotherapy, and radiation were the best treatment options, despite their negative effects on the quality of life for patients and families (physical, emotional, and financial). Organization and commercial companies weren’t willing to provide seed funding for new research and to take a risk on new ideas.

Swim Across America (SAA) was willing to take the risk by making high risk-high reward research grants. Since our first grant in 1987, SAA has awarded $100M to cancer centers such as Memorial Sloan Kettering, Johns Hopkins, MD Anderson, Fred Hutch, and Dana-Farber so that their teams could innovate and develop breakthroughs in immunotherapy, cell gene therapy, personalized medicine, detection, and survivorship.

Swim Across America’s decades of identifying and funding high risk-high reward research grants were rewarded when the FDA approved immunotherapy treatments that SAA had been helping to fund; ipilimumab (Yervoy), nivolumab (Opdivo), atezolizumab (Tecentriq), and pembrolizumab (Keytruda).

Additionally, a recent high-risk grant is showing promise. In 2017, we identified and awarded seed funding to the research team that had an idea to treat rectal cancer with a novel immunotherapy. In 2023, the FDA Advisory Committee recommended support for the immunotherapy clinical trial which demonstrated a complete response to Phase 1 patients. All the patients (100%) responded to the immunotherapy and did not need chemo or radiation, offering a better quality of life for survivors. It is likely this immunotherapy will be expanded to other cancer types.

This is the Believe in Progress podcast hosted by the AACR Foundation and featuring Rob Butcher and Matt Vossler.

Join us on this journey of hope and progress. Subscribe to Believe in Progress, the AACR Foundation's podcast, today, and be inspired by the incredible stories of those who have faced cancer with strength and resilience, and the medical professionals who are working to find new treatments and ultimately a cure.

Please do not forget to visit www.aacr.org to make a donation or to find helpful information and resources. Together we can make progress in the fight against cancer and bring hope to those who need it most.

Please don't forget, cancer research saves lives.

For more information visit the AACR and our podcast here: https://www.aacr.org/get-involved/believe-in-progress-an-aacr-foundation-podcast/

This podcast was produced by the awesome people at CollegeCast LLC. Visit www.collegecastpodcasts.com for more information, or to check out our amazing podcasts.

On this episode, we are speaking with Sarah Happy, who is 38 years old and lives in Michigan with her husband, Noah and her two dogs Hugo and Nancy. She currently works for HBR, a consulting firm that works exclusively with law firms and corporate law departments. Sarah has a law degree from the Temple University Beasley School of Law, and a bachelor’s degree from the University of Michigan. Sarah has over ten years of experience in the legal industry and has worked with law firms, government agencies, and academic institutions to implement initiatives related to data analysis, practice optimization, and digital transformation of legal processes.

By the age of 25, Sarah Happy had survived not one but two types of cancer—lymphoma and cervical cancer. After her lymphoma diagnosis in 2007, the aspiring lawyer began a six-month regimen of chemotherapy, followed by two months of radiation therapy. After her treatment was completed, there was no trace of cancer.

In 2009, a routine Pap test came back abnormal. The subsequent biopsy, performed the day before her move to Philadelphia for law school, found early-stage cervical cancer. She quickly underwent surgery to remove the cancer and finally moved to Philadelphia shortly after to begin school. Six months later, however, the cervical cancer returned. After another operation, Sarah was once again declared free of cancer. Since then, she has been monitored closely and reports that the cancer has not returned.

Cancer, however, remains an ever-present element in Sarah’s life. The side effects of her treatments include chronic pain, lymphedema, and radiation fibrosis. Her experiences with physicians skilled in cancer survivorship issues have convinced her of the importance of research. In 2017, she became an AACR Foundation ambassador, joining the Runners for Research team and speaking on behalf of the AACR at public events.

This is the Believe in Progress podcast hosted by the AACR Foundation and featuring Sarah Happy.

Join us on this journey of hope and progress. Subscribe to Believe in Progress, the AACR Foundation's podcast, today, and be inspired by the incredible stories of those who have faced cancer with strength and resilience, and the medical professionals who are working to find new treatments and ultimately a cure.

Please do not forget to visit www.aacr.org to make a donation or to find helpful information and resources. Together we can make progress in the fight against cancer and bring hope to those who need it most.

Please don't forget, cancer research saves lives.

For more information visit the AACR and our podcast here: https://www.aacr.org/get-involved/believe-in-progress-an-aacr-foundation-podcast/

This podcast was produced by the awesome people at CollegeCast LLC. Visit www.collegecastpodcasts.com for more information, or to check out our amazing podcasts.

On this episode, we are speaking with Ricki Fairley, the CEO and Co-Founder of TOUCH. She is also a Triple Negative Breast Cancer Survivor and Thriver.

Ricki’s personal purpose, passion, mission, ministry, and blessing is to bring focus, attention, research, science, and action to eradicating Breast Cancer, and supporting and coaching what she calls her “Breasties” through their breast cancer experience.

Ricki is an award-winning seasoned marketing veteran that has transformed her strategic acumen into breast cancer advocacy. Ricki co-founded and serves as CEO of TOUCH, The Black Breast Cancer Alliance to address Breast Cancer as a unique and special disease state, with the overall goal of reducing the mortality rate for Black women.

Ricki founded and serves as co-host for “The Doctor Is In,” a weekly live breast cancer advocacy web series on the "BlackDoctor.org" Facebook page that reaches over 3 million viewers. She is a founding member of #BlackDataMatters, in partnership with Citizen, The Center for Health Care Innovation, and Morehouse School of Medicine to encourage and elevate the importance of Black Women participating in clinical trial research.

In January 2022, she started the When We Tri(al) Movement to change the game on Black women participating in clinical trials to improve outcomes for Black women with breast cancer.

Ricki serves on the Board of Trustees for the Triple Negative Breast Cancer Foundation where she chairs the marketing committee. She is a board member for the Center for Healthcare Innovation, a non-profit research and educational institute making healthcare more equitable. She avidly works with pharmaceutical companies to provide the patient voice for breast cancer awareness, action, therapy/drug development and advocacy.

Ricki has two daughters, Amanda Brown Lierman and Hayley Brown (both also graduates of Dartmouth College - like their mom), and 3 granddaughters, Belle, Leia, and Hart, who remind her of her purpose every day.

This is the Believe in Progress podcast hosted by the AACR Foundation and featuring Ricki Fairley.

Join us on this journey of hope and progress. Subscribe to Believe in Progress, the AACR Foundation's podcast, today, and be inspired by the incredible stories of those who have faced cancer with strength and resilience, and the medical professionals who are working to find new treatments and ultimately a cure.

Please do not forget to visit www.aacr.org to make a donation or to find helpful information and resources. Together we can make progress in the fight against cancer and bring hope to those who need it most.

Please don't forget, cancer research saves lives.

For more information visit the AACR and our podcast here: https://www.aacr.org/get-involved/believe-in-progress-an-aacr-foundation-podcast/

This podcast was produced by the awesome people at CollegeCast LLC. Visit www.collegecastpodcasts.com for more information, or to check out our amazing podcasts.

On this episode, we are speaking with Howard Brown, a Silicon Valley technology entrepreneur, with IPO exits, and who is a two-time stage four cancer patient, survivor, and advocate 30 years apart. On this episode, Howard will share the keys to leading a resilient life with hope.

He drives successful community leaders, business innovators, and patient advocates towards engagement, empowerment, and excellence. Howard is a bestselling author of his memoir, Shining Brightly, and an award-winning international speaker and weekly podcaster. Howard also has his own Shining Brightly podcast show with 25 episodes released as of this recording.

His podcast is all about overcoming with resilience, hope, and inspiration. If you wanna check out Howard's podcast, you can find links in this episode's show notes. Howard recently spoke to cancer researchers, investigators while he was being honored at the AACR's 2023 annual meeting in Orlando, Florida.

Howard was also selected and participated in AACR's 25th anniversary cohort at the Scientist Survivor program as an advocate mentor. At the annual meeting, Howard also shared how having the patient voice and communication, collaboration, and connection together gives all patients care, partners and families hope for a better tomorrow.

Live our lives. One more second, one more day, one more week, and one more year. Finding cures and battling cancer must be a team sport. Join us as we explore the inspiring stories of patients, survivors, and researchers who are making a difference in the fight against cancer. 

This is the Believe in Progress podcast hosted by the AACR Foundation and featuring Howard Brown.

Join us on this journey of hope and progress. Subscribe to Believe in Progress, the AACR Foundation's podcast, today, and be inspired by the incredible stories of those who have faced cancer with strength and resilience, and the medical professionals who are working to find new treatments and ultimately a cure.

Check out Howard's book, "Shining Brightly," here: https://www.amazon.com/Shining-Brightly-resilience-entrepreneur-interfaith/dp/1641801468.

You can also check out Howard's Podcast, "Shining Brightly," here: https://www.shiningbrightly.com, and here https://www.shiningbrightly.com/news/categories/podcasts

And please visit Howard's Shining Brightly website, for more information and support, here: https://www.shiningbrightly.com

Please do not forget to visit www.aacr.org to make a donation or to find helpful information and resources. Together we can make progress in the fight against cancer and bring hope to those who need it most. Please don't forget, cancer research saves lives.

For more information visit the AACR and our podcast here: https://www.aacr.org/get-involved/believe-in-progress-an-aacr-foundation-podcast/

This podcast was produced by the awesome people at CollegeCast LLC. Visit www.collegecastpodcasts.com for more information, or to check out our amazing podcasts.

Trevor Maxwell, 45, has been living with stage IV colon cancer since March of 2018. He has undergone five major surgeries, chemotherapy, immunotherapy, and a clinical trial. He lives in Maine with his wife and two teenage daughters.

In January of 2020, Trevor founded Man Up to Cancer, a purpose-driven company and support community that inspires men to connect and avoid isolation during their cancer journeys. MUTC consists of a podcast, website, annual retreat, chemo backpack program, and a Facebook group with nearly 2,000 men impacted by cancer. Trevor has a background in newspaper journalism and is writing a book scheduled to be independently published in December of 2022: “Open Heart, Warrior Spirit: A Man’s Guide to Living With Cancer.”

Man Up to Cancer has partnerships with Seagen, CURE/MJH Life Sciences, Natera, Fight Colorectal Cancer, American Association for Cancer Research, GI Cancers Alliance, COLONTOWN, Global Colon Cancer Association, and Ancora AI.

As a patient advisor, Trevor serves on advisory boards for Seagen, WCG Clinical, and Blue Note Therapeutics.

Join us on this journey of hope and progress. Subscribe to Believe in Progress, the AACR Foundation's podcast, today, and be inspired by the incredible stories of those who have faced cancer with strength and resilience, and the medical professionals who are working to find new treatments and ultimately a cure.

If you need support, or want more information about Trevor's organization (Man Up to Cancer), you can visit them here: https://www.manuptocancer.com.

You can also watch a 5-minute video about Man Up to Cancer here: https://vimeo.com/762385021

Please do not forget to visit www.aacr.org to make a donation or to find helpful information and resources. Together we can make progress in the fight against cancer and bring hope to those who need it most. Please don't forget, cancer research saves lives.

For more information visit the AACR and our podcast here: https://www.aacr.org/get-involved/believe-in-progress-an-aacr-foundation-podcast/

This podcast was produced by the awesome people at CollegeCast LLC. Visit www.collegecastpodcasts.com for more information, or to check out our amazing podcasts.

On this episode of Believe in Progress, the AACR Foundation Podcast, we have a special guest, Lauren Hart. You may know her as the voice behind the national anthem at Philadelphia Flyers home games, but Lauren is also a survivor of her own cancer battle and has been an advocate for cancer patients and their families for years.

Lauren Hart has sung the national anthem before Philadelphia Flyers games since 1997. In 1999 (at the age of 25), shortly after her father, Hockey Hall of Fame broadcaster Gene Hart, had died from cancer, Lauren was diagnosed with non-Hodgkin lymphoma.

From there, in Lauren’s own words:

She “Got sick, got dropped from her record label, got better, started working with Leukemia and Lymphoma Society and Pennsylvania Hospital Cancer Center.

Was “Elected to the Board of Governors of the National Recording Academy and served two years as vice president.

“Start recording on her own and independently put out three CDS: PAINTED BRIDE, GIRL KEEPS ON and 5 LIFETIMES.

Appeared (well, can be heard) in the Disney movie MIRACLE about hockey and she sang…the national anthem!

Got a tv show - “10!” on NBC – co-hosted in the mornings with Bill Henley.

She then met her (future) husband, Todd Carmichael of La Colombe Coffee Roasters, when he was a guest on Lauren’s show.

In 2005 Lauren married Todd, and shortly thereafter released her fourth CD, GOOD THINGS.

All while still singing for the Flyers, and writing music for some documentary films.

Lauren then won the LA Cinema Film Festival Award for Best Documentary, RACE TO THE BOTTOM OF THE EARTH.

Lauren’s passion for music is matched only by her passion for the charitable organizations she is committed to – MOMS DEMAND ACTION, EVERYTOWN, INTERNATIONAL JUSTICE MISSION, and the Gene Hart Memorial Fund where she helps oversee college scholarships and contributes to cancer research and patients.

Lauren is on the Board of Governors of the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences (known for the Grammy Awards) and is the chapter's Vice President. She also sits on the board of the Philadelphia Orchestra, has been on advisory boards for both Pennsylvania Hospital and The Philadelphia Zoo, and is an honorary Board member of the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society, Southern NJ. In 2007, Lauren was honored by the Society with its prestigious “Person of the Year” Award. She was named “Humanitarian of the Year” by the Friends of the American Cancer Society in 2010.

Lauren's voice, her courage, and her unwavering spirit have made her a beacon of hope for the cancer community. She's performed at countless cancer-related events, including “Hockey Fights Cancer,” using her talent to bring joy and inspiration to others.

In this episode, we will hear Lauren's inspiring story and how she has since dedicated her life to helping others going through the same thing. Join us as we speak to Lauren about her journey and the power of hope in the face of adversity.

We're honored to have her here with us on this episode.

Join us on this journey of hope and progress. Subscribe to Believe in Progress, the AACR Foundation's podcast, today, and be inspired by the incredible stories of those who have faced cancer with strength and resilience, and the medical professionals who are working to find new treatments and ultimately a cure.

Please do not forget to visit www.aacr.org to make a donation or to find helpful information and resources. Together we can make progress in the fight against cancer and bring hope to those who need it most. Please don't forget, cancer research saves lives.

For more information visit the AACR and our podcast here: https://www.aacr.org/get-involved/believe-in-progress-an-aacr-foundation-podcast/

This podcast was produced by the awesome people at CollegeCast LLC. Visit www.collegecastpodcasts.com for more information, or to check out our amazing podcasts.