CURE Talks Cancer

In 2015, Maryland Governor Larry Hogan had only been in office for five months when he was diagnosed with an advanced, aggressive form of non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma. Then, after achieving remission, he was diagnosed with a common form of skin cancer in 2018. But thanks to an attentive health care team, and the help of his friends, family, and fellow patients, today he’s cancer-free and sharing his story. 

In this week’s episode of CURE Talks Cancer, Hogan spoke with us about what it was like to go through cancer not once but twice, and why he considers every day a gift.

Cancer can throw a person’s life into turmoil and take the focus off a patient’s career for a time. But what rights does a patient have when it comes to the workplace?  In this week’s episode of the “CURE Talks Cancer” podcast, Monica Bryant, chief operating officer of Triage Cancer, joins us to discuss the various legal rights patients and their caregivers have when seeking reasonable accommodations to maintain their employment. Additionally, Bryant, a cancer rights attorney, highlights how patients can go about navigating their jobs, as well as the rights they have amidst the COVID-19 pandemic.

Chemotherapy-associated hair loss is an unfortunate side effect of cancer treatment that many patients receiving treatment sadly face. However, devices known as cold caps, which have been shown to safely help patients receiving treatment for solid tumors keep a significant percentage of their hair, have grown in popularity as of late. 

In this week’s episode of the “CURE Talks Cancer” podcast, we spoke with Dr. Julie Nangia, an assistant professor at Baylor College of Medicine, about how cold caps work, as well as how effective the product is and what, if any, side effects patients should expect to experience. 

“A lot of people used to think that breast reconstruction was optional because it was cosmetic, but data showed that it had a huge psychological impact,” Nangia said in the interview. “The same kind of data are emerging about chemotherapy-induced alopecia.”

Additionally, Nangia, who is a breast cancer specialist, highlights how the management of hair loss in a patient receiving treatment for cancer is more important than was once thought. 

Just six weeks after getting married, Whitney O’Connor was 30 years old when she was diagnosed with breast cancer for the first time. After going through treatment that involved chemo, surgery, and more, Whitney found herself facing breast cancer a second time just a few years later, thanks to a rare genetic condition called Li-Fraumeni Syndrome, which predisposes her to developing cancer.

This week, Whitney took a break between proton beam therapy sessions to talk with CURE about what it was like to face breast cancer twice, and how this journey taught her to create her own silver linings – and led to the creation of an organization that aims to empower other women going through breast cancer, too. 

The treatment paradigm for metastatic urothelial carcinoma has shifted significantly over the last decade with immunotherapy and precision medicine. In this episode of the “CURE Talks Cancer” podcast, we spoke with Dr. Elizabeth Plimack, chief of the Division of Genitourinary Medical Oncology at Fox Chase Cancer Center, Temple Health, and Dr. Sumanta (Monty) Pal, from City of Hope Comprehensive Cancer Center, about metastatic urothelial.  The experts discussed the treatment landscape for this disease, how patients can learn more about their options and what they have to look forward to on the horizon.

In this episode of the “CURE Talks Cancer” podcast, sponsored by Regeneron and Sanofi Genzyme, we spoke with Dr. Jonathon Leventhal about skin cancer and what individuals should know about the disease. The Yale School of Medicine expert discussed the different types of skin cancer, signs and symptoms of the disease, and certain causes to be aware of.

While it’s true that telemedicine has become more widely used as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, all signs are pointing to it being a part of the new normal as we look to the future. With that, genetic counselors are now being trained to meet with patients virtually to ensure those with a genetic predisposition to cancer are still being taken care of despite the lack of face-to-face visits. 

In this week’s episode of the CURE Talks Cancer podcast, we spoke with Dana Farengo Clark, a genetic counselor at UPenn’s Basser Center for BRCA, to discuss the work being done at the center for genetic counseling, and how telemedicine is just as important now, more than ever, in identifying an individual’s risk for cancer and exploring their options once they have that information.

Many patients who are currently receiving treatment for cancer, or are in remission, are aware of some of the crippling side effects associated with treatment. However, as one breast surgical oncologist notes, many patients are unaware of the gynecologic health side effects that are associated with not just breast cancer treatment, but for other cancer treatments as well. 

In this week’s episode, we spoke with Dr. Kristin Rojas, a breast surgical oncologist and gynecologic surgeon, who recently led a discussion during Susan G. Komen Greater New York City’s Sex and Breast Cancer Conference about the gynecologic changes patients experience during and after cancer treatment.

Rojas, who is also director of the Maimonides Urogenital, Sexual Health And Intimacy Center (MUSIC) Program, addresses why the topic of gynecologic health is a taboo subject when it comes to cancer treatment, as well as what patients can do to treat those changes. Additionally, she offers advice to patients who may be hesitant to discuss the symptoms with their health care provider. 

After experiencing what he described as “debilitatingly itchy skin” in 2009, former professional soccer player and “Survivor: Africa” winner Ethan Zohn went from winning the ultimate prize on the popular reality show to taking on a rare form of Hodgkin lymphoma not once, but twice. But thanks to a regimen of intense treatments and two stem cell transplants from his brother, Zohn was declared cancer-free in 2013 and went on to return to the 40th season of “Survivor” earlier this year in the Winners At War competition. This week, we’re talking with Zohn about how his time on “Survivor” helped him take on cancer multiple times – and about how he never lets a crisis go to waste.

Many patients who are diagnosed with cancer and receive subsequent treatments experience life-altering side effects including fatigue, sleep disturbances and changes in appetite and taste. However, one such change patients can experience, decreases in libido and sexual desire, doesn’t always receive as much attention as the others.  

In this week’s episode, we spoke with Dr. Elizabeth Poynor, a gynecologic oncologist and advanced pelvic surgeon, who recently led a discussion during Susan G. Komen Greater New York City’s Sex and Breast Cancer Conference about how patients can work to improve their sexual health while facing cancer and its treatments.

Poynor, who discussed how a breast cancer diagnosis can impact a patient’s libido, encourages her patients not just to survive, but thrive by speaking with their doctors.

“We want to have a healthy life and a joyful life and for many women, not all, their sexuality is a component of it,” Poynor said in an interview with CURE®.