On today’s episode, I am speaking with Nediva Monroe. Nediva was diagnosed with stage 1 breast cancer in 2014 and right around the time of her 5 year cancerversary, was diagnosed with metastatic breast cancer to her bones. On today’s episode, she takes us back to those moments of finding out she had metastatic disease in 2019 and shares what her treatment has been like — discussing the challenge of never being done with treatment and balancing the really hard moments and grief with the joy of living. We talk about mental health, financial toxicity, pink washing and Breast Cancer Awareness Month, the importance of research and much more. October 13th is Metastatic Breast Cancer Awareness Day and despite all the progress made in breast cancer, approximately 43,000 women will die of metastatic breast cancer in the United States in 2023. This episode offers a glimpse into what it is like to live with MBC and if you are looking to donate, Metavivor and Breast Cancer Research Foundation are incredible organizations that support MBC research.

On today’s episode, I am speaking with Lisa Orr. Lisa Orr is a proud wife and mother of two boys, ages eight and six, who lives just north of Boston, Massachusetts. She is a four-year triple negative breast cancer survivor (diagnosed at age 31) and the Director of Marketing for Elephants and Tea and the Steven G. Cancer Foundation. Elephants and Tea is a magazine for and by adolescent and young adult (AYA) cancer patients, survivors and caregivers telling their stories. On today’s episode, Lisa talks abut her diagnosis and treatment, where she was when she got the call with her biopsy results, and how she has spent that day each year going forward. We talk about relationships and parenting during treatment and beyond, communication and the importance of caregiver support.

On today’s episode, I am speaking with Betty Dicker. Betty was diagnosed with a BRCA2 mutation when her sister was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2010. Betty had a prophylactic salpingo-oophorectomy (removal of fallopian tubes and ovaries) to reduce her ovarian cancer risk. She had been planning on a bilateral mastectomy but life got in the way. She was undergoing breast cancer surveillance with MRI and mammograms but in 2021, she was diagnosed with ductal carcinoma in situ. As she was undergoing planning for her breast reconstruction, she was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. On today’s episode, she talks about being a previvor, her cancer treatment, survivorship, survivor’s guilt, mental health and more.

On today’s episode, I am speaking with Terri Conneran. Terri was diagnosed with stage 3 non small cell lung cancer in 2017 and has had multiple recurrence since then. Several years after her diagnosis, she found out that her cancer expressed the KRAS biomarker (KRAS mutation) and she went looking for a group or community of other people who also had the KRAS mutation but she didn’t find any — and so, she created KRAS Kickers to bring them together. What started initially as a Facebook group is now a global non profit. Their mission is simple: KRAS Knowledge + Research + Advocacy = Survivorship. The goal is to connect people to current research, resources & a community in order to Kick Cancer’s KRAS! Today, Terri shares her story, talks about cancer biomarkers in general and focuses a lot on patient advocacy and finding your community, which is of utmost importance.

On today’s episode, I am speaking with Dr. Jennifer Caudle. Dr. Caudle is a board-certified family medicine physician, Associate Professor at Rowan University School of Medicine. She regularly appears as an on-air health expert for local and national news networks, including the TODAY Show, CNN, PBS and many others. She is regularly quoted and published in magazines and media outlets such as Shape, CNN Opinion, Prevention, Cosmopolitan and others. In the past year, Dr. Caudle’s mother was diagnosed with breast cancer and has recently completed active treatment. We talk about what it was like being a doctor and a daughter and caregiver during this time. Being a caregiver can be challenging and stressful and Dr. Caudle shares her experiences. We also speak about what family medicine is, Dr. Caudle’s background and journey, breast cancer screening, and a few tips about what we should be doing now in terms of the upcoming flu season.

On today’s episode, I am speaking with Dr. Amy Comander. Dr. Comander is a breast oncologist at the Massachusetts General Hospital Cancer Center, the Director of Breast Oncology and Cancer Survivorship at the Mass General Cancer Center in Waltham and at Newton Wellesley Hospital, and Medical Director of the Mass General Cancer Center in Waltham. She is the Director of Lifestyle Medicine at the Mass General Cancer Center (the first cancer center to have a dedicated lifestyle medicine program!) She is also an Instructor in Medicine at Harvard Medical School and is dedicated to improving the quality of life, well-being, and outcome of individuals with cancer through important lifestyle interventions, including exercise, diet, and mind/body interventions. She truly practices what she preaches and is an avid marathon runner and has run ten consecutive Boston Marathons so far. In collaboration with Dr Beth Frates, she has launched “PAVING the Path to Wellness,” a 12-week lifestyle medicine-based survivorship program for women with breast cancer and is the first oncologist on the Board of Directors of the American College of Lifestyle Medicine.

Dr. Comander shares the 6 pillars of lifestyle medicine and why they are each important (hint: lifestyle medicine is much more than just diet and exercise). If you are looking to build on healthy habits, improve health and reduce risk of disease through healthy living, this episode is for you! Check out more of her work on Instagram @dramycomander.

On today’s episode, I am speaking with Dr.Shaghayegh DeNoble. Dr. DeNoble is a board-certified obstetrician and gynecologist, fellowship trained in minimally invasive gynecologic surgery, and a women’s health expert with a focus on menopause and sexual health. She is the founder of Advanced Gynecology of North Jersey. This conversation is a 30 minute crash course in gynecology- we cover it all. We talk about sexual health concerns and genitourinary syndrome of menopause – and ways to address those issues. Dr. DeNoble talks about when to start seeing a gynecologist, how often you need to come (hint: annually for a pelvic exam!), cancer screening, red flags to watch for, hot flash management and much more! You can find Dr. DeNoble at @yourgyndoc on Instagram and at https://www.advancedgynnj.com.

On today’s episode, I am speaking with Shari Todd. Shari is a 48 year old mom of two and was diagnosed with stage 2 ER+/PR+/HER2- invasive ductal carcinoma in January 2022. She went through surgery, chemotherapy and radiation and is currently on endocrine therapy. At the end of radiation, she developed rectal bleeding and was diagnosed with an early stage colon cancer and required surgery.

On today’s episode, I am speaking with Fitz Koehler. Fitz is an author, keynote speaker, fitness expert, professional race announcer, mom, and breast cancer survivor. She has a Master’s Degree in Exercise and Sport Sciences and has been teaching fitness around the world for decades. In early 2019, Fitz was diagnosed with breast cancer. Fitz shares both the struggles and triumphs she experienced during her treatment and beyond. After her diagnosis, Fitz wrote “My Noisy Cancer Comeback: Running at the Mouth, While Running for My Life” and most recently, she wrote the book “Your Healthy Cancer Comeback: Sick to Strong” which is a powerful resource to slow decline during treatment and regain overall health during recovery. We talk about the power and thrill of race announcing and the incredible program Fitz started called The Morning Mile. You can find Fitz on Instagram @ fitzness and at http://www.fitzness.com. This is a powerful and inspirational conversation that you don’t want to miss.

On today’s episode, I am speaking with Angela Pohl. Angela is an ultramarathon runner who was training for a 100 mile race when she was diagnosed with breast cancer in early 2021. Angela was initially a guest on the podcast back in September 2021 and is back now to talk about life now that she completed active treatment over a year ago. She received neoadjuvant chemotherapy with TCHP, had a bilateral mastectomy, radiation, and Kadcyla. About a year ago, she decided to transition to a plant-based lifestyle and she shares what her experience has been like, tips and tricks to start making small changes to your diet and what running looks like now. You can find Angela on instagram at @goodrunning26.2. If you have been wanting to incorporate more plants into your diet, this is the episode for you!