The Burn

Whitney was diagnosed with a rare genetic disorder called the Li-Fraumeni Syndrome. She has been diagnosed with breast cancer twice – the first time at 30 and then again at 32.  While her diagnosis of Li-Fraumeni Syndrome provided the hint to a cancer mystery, it also gave Whitney a built-in support system because the gene ran in her family. In this episode, Whitney reads from her piece “The Cancer Gene” from Wildfire Magazine’s 2021 “Family” issue.

More about Whitney: https://www.instagram.com/boobiequeenchronicles/

More about The Boobie Queen Company: https://www.boobiecrowns.com and  https://www.facebook.com/boobiequeenchronicles

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Tamira Jubber was 29 when she was diagnosed with breast cancer. Her story is one about finding meaning in life experiences that spanned from a childhood in Zimbabwe to a sudden departure to the US, and then to a breast cancer diagnosis that ran parallel to her sister donating a kidney to a stranger. This is the story of one woman asking why her life path has led where it has, and discovering some answers along the way through the help of a few decades’ view and some unexpected twists that led to chance encounters. In this episode, Tamira reads her piece “‘Linda: My Tamoxifen Tester‘” from Wildfire Magazine’s 2021 “Bay Area Young Survivors” issue. 

More about Tamira: https://www.instagram.com/meandher2neu/

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Learn about Wildfire writing workshops: https://www.wildfirecommunity.org/workshops

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Other resources mentioned in this episode include:

https://www.baysnet.org

https://onestopcbdbusiness.com

Megan-Claire Chase was diagnosed with lobular breast cancer at 39 after watching her mother go through her own cancer.  Her mom was still very much in need of caregiving when Megan was diagnosed and this led to some hard truths about being a daughter and a caregiver to a parent. What do you do when you need love and nurturing while at the same time being that for a parent? In this episode, Megan reads her piece “‘When Cancer Worlds Collide‘” from Wildfire Magazine’s 2018 “Caregivers” issue. More about Megan-Claire: 

https://www.instagram.com/warriormegsie/

https://twitter.com/warriormegsie

https://warriormegsie.com

https://blogs.webmd.com/breast-cancer/megan-claire-chase

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Sondra Price was diagnosed at 20, 24, and 28 with malignant phyllodes tumors that led to two lumpectomies, a bilateral mastectomy, implant reconstruction, and an explant to flat closure. She found her way to flat closure on her chest the long way around, and because of that, she’s now a fierce advocate for others to truly know what their breast surgery options are. Because the truth is, if you don’t know your options, you don’t really have any. Sondra is the President of a non-profit organization called Flat Closure Now, and the co-founder of the website BS Breast Cancer. In this episode, Sondra reads her piece “The Road to Advocacy” from Wildfire Magazine’s 2020 “Changemakers” issue.

More about Sondra: https://www.instagram.com/sondrarprice/.

Flat Closure NOW https://www.instagram.com/flatclosurenow/

BS Breast Cancer https://twitter.com/bsbreastcancer

NowThis video featuring Melanie Testa and Sondra https://www.facebook.com/NowThisNews/posts/2905998266156945

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Denise Archer was diagnosed with Triple Negative breast cancer at 45. She is a maker that has been sewing since she was 15 years old. Denise reads her piece “The Uneven Thread of Synchronicity” from the 2020 “Survivorship” issue of Wildfire Magazine. This is the story of a woman using hobbies as a lifeline to carry us through survivorship. Her story is about works in progress: the sewing in your hand, stitching your story into the fabric of your family story, of generations of women holding needle and thread, and also the work in progress that is your body after a cancer diagnosis.

More about Denise https://www.instagram.com/h.o.m.u.n.c.u.l.u.s/.

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Learn about Wildfire writing workshops: https://www.wildfirecommunity.org/workshops

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Our guest today is Meaghan Calcari Campbell from San Francisco who was diagnosed at 32 with Stage 2 Triple Positive breast cancer.  She is reading a piece she wrote titled “Dear One” from the 2021 “Bay Area Young Survivors” issue of Wildfire Magazine.  It is a story about a life transformed by what cancer took away.  It is our first about another path to motherhood. A circuitous path that began in not wanting it and ended in needing a community to make it happen.

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More about Meaghan: https://www.instagram.com/calcarious/.

More about Bay Area Young Survivors: https://www.baysnet.org.

Today we are going to hear a piece about legacy - breast cancer as legacy, storytelling as legacy. Whether it is a gift received or a gift given, something passed knowingly or subconsciously.  The power of storytelling as legacy is important for the teller and the recipient.  Our guest is Lisa Laudico, reading her piece “Legacy” from the 2020 “Family” issue of Wildfire Magazine.  In the summer of 2017, Lisa became the 4th generation in her family to be diagnosed with breast cancer but the only one to be diagnosed at Stage IV de novo.   Lisa lives with her family in Connecticut.  She is the creator of Our MBC Life Podcast.

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More about Our MBC Life: https://www.ourmbclife.org/about. 

More about SHARE Cancer Support: https://www.sharecancersupport.org.

Our guest today is Jessica Lynne who was diagnosed with breast cancer at 43. After she was diagnosed, she learned certain thoughts and patterns no longer served her. She grew up with a strong family story of independence. An independence worn like armor to protect against life’s bumps and bangs. That is until one day she learned it was the one thing hurting her more than anything else. When she reached out for support during her treatment, she became amazed and grateful.  Today, Jessica is here to read her piece “I Was Alone Until Wasn’t” that appears in Wildfire Magazine’s 2021 “Community” issue.

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More about Jessica Lynne: https://www.instagram.com/mommajfox/. 

Our guest today is Tova Wolking, an attorney from Oakland, California.  She is reading her piece “Swim” from Wildfire Magazine’s 2021 “Bay Area Young Survivors” issue. In the wake of Tova’s mom passing away, breast cancer took root in her body. She was diagnosed with stage 3, hormone positive breast cancer at age 43.  She also discovered she was positive for the BRCA 2 gene mutation.  This is the story of one woman asking how to find the key to unlocking her own grief about her breast cancer when her mother took so many of those answers with her when she died.  Note of warning for sensitive listeners, this episode touches upon loss and suicide. 

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More about Bay Area Young Survivors at https://www.baysnet.org.

In this episode, our guest Dana Donofree reads her piece “10 Years Learning to Love a New Body” from Wildfire Magazine’s 2020 “Body” issue. Some of the hardest aspects of being diagnosed with breast cancer come long after chemo, surgeries, or radiation.  For many, the trauma of what was just endured begins to affect our mental health profoundly and needs to be talked about more - like the long term effects of needing to take back the body.  Our guest today is Dana Donofree who was diagnosed with stage I, HER2+ breast cancer at 27.  A decade later she represents those walking around with both mental and physical side-effects. In that time, she has created a business to help others address the difficulties she faced. She is the founder of the brand AnaOno Intimates based in Pennsylvania.  This episode contains explicit language.

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Learn more about Dana and AnaOno:

https://www.instagram.com/daynadono/

https://www.anaono.com

https://www.instagram.com/anaonointimates/

https://twitter.com/AnaOnoIntimates

https://www.facebook.com/anaonointimates