Episode 6: Meditation Mondays with Barbara Chutroo
Welcome to the next episode of our Meditation Mondays series, created with MBC patients in mind.
In today's meditation, we will be focusing on how in meditation we're listening to ourselves and finding space to open up and offer ourselves the attention and the care.
Report Back From ASCO 2023: What’s the Latest News in MBC Research?
Dr. Sherry Shen, breast oncologist from Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, breaks down the recent research from the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) 2023 Annual Meeting. She will present new findings in Metastatic Breast Cancer research.
TJT with Dar #1: The Difference Between Joy and Happiness
On this episode of Think Joy Thursday, we will be exploring the difference between happiness and joy. We will share some scientific research that has been done to determine if we are pre-disposed to being joyful and will delve into ways to help you spot true joy. We will explore how to have joy even if you are experiencing difficult life circumstances by sharing ways to find joy when confronted with both the big and small challenges of life.
Roberta Lombardi and Infinite Strength
Roberta Lombardi wanted to do something for the Connecticut moms and kids with breast cancer, but that *something* quickly morphed into a nonprofit effort to help break through barriers in the lives of moms with MBC. Laser focused on single moms with kids under 19 living at home and financial need, Roberta took her nonprofit (she calls it her fourth child) nationwide in mid-2023 and is already serving women in 27 states. While providing 6 months of financial support to approved applicants remains the core of Infinite Strength, Roberta has added to the support through one-day local (Connecticut) mom-and-kid retreats, in-person and online panels with some of the best experts in cancer care, a 2024 MBC conference, and a groundbreaking effort to change the picture through the Connecticut Coalition of Oncologists. This is a woman who does not sit still and we are so lucky to have her as an ally for people living with MBC. This episode may inspire *you* to get out there and do something!
Episode 5: Meditation Mondays with Barbara Chutroo
Welcome to the next episode of our Meditation Mondays series, created with MBC patients in mind.
In today's meditation, we will be focusing on having a sense of being in community, having the support of the community.
OMBCL Shorts #2: Dr. Erika Hamilton with Top Takeaways from ASCO23
Our second OMBCL Shorts features Dr. Erika Hamilton answering questions about her top takeaways from ASCO23. In this 20-minute interview we covered important updates on the CDK4/6 inhibitors for both early-stage and metastatic breast cancer, as well as research on a new HER3 ADC and the first AKT inhibitor for MBC.
MBC Life: Quakes, Aftershocks, and Hope
Welcome to the Our MBC Life Summer Season 2023. In this episode Victoria Goldberg is joined by clinical psychologist and author Sarah Mandel to discuss her book and her insights into life and death, trauma and healing. parenting and hope. Sarah’s book, Little Earthquakes is a beautiful, honest, and thoughtful memoir of how a healthy 36-year-old, who is about to give birth to her second baby, lives through an experience of getting de novo MBC diagnosis and its horrific aftermath.
Episode 4: Meditation Mondays with Barbara Chutroo
Welcome to the next episode of our Meditation Mondays series, created with MBC patients in mind.
There are a lot of principles of meditation or of the practice that contains meditation.
Being with the truth of whatever is here in this moment with compassion and without judgement and knowing that we're not any one thing because we are constantly changing, is at the heart of this practic
Living in the Public Eye with MBC: An Interview with Kelly Crump
Anne Woodward sits down with a special guest to discuss the in’s and outs of having MBC while living in the public eye. Get ready folks, pull up a chair you are not going to want to miss hearing from Kelly Crump, the first ever sports illustrated swimsuit model photographed while posing on a picturesque beach in a gorgeous swimsuit with a mastectomy scar for all the world to see. In this incredible interview Kelly explains how she embraced social media to live out loud and in doing so harnessed all the attention to be an inspiration and help her 30,000 + followers.
Episode 3: Meditation Mondays with Barbara Chutroo
Welcome to the next episode of our Meditation Mondays series, created with MBC patients in mind.
Why do we meditate? We meditate to be aware of ourselves, and we meditate to concentrate, and we meditate to develop compassion.
Our meditation leader is Barbara Chutroo, a longtime meditator, experienced meditation teacher, and an MBC patient.
OMBCL Shorts #1: Dr. Stephanie Graff & Her Steps For Those Newly Diagnosed MBC
Our inaugural OMBCL Shorts features Dr. Stephanie Graff talking about what she does when someone is newly diagnosed with MBC. This season, we had a 3-part series for people newly diagnosed and we couldn't resist getting her take on the topic. And we're so glad we asked!
The Rising Rates of BC & MBC in Young Women, Including Pregnancy & Post-Partum Diagnoses
If you don't hear much about the rising rates of all stages of breast cancer, including MBC, in young women, you're not alone. De novo MBC rates (when Stage 4 MBC is found at the first diagnosis) are rising "exponentially", and fastest among women between the ages of 25 and 39, but not in older women. These trends are alarming to researchers. Perhaps most shocking of all: half of young women diagnosed with breast cancer under 45 have a postpartum diagnosis, defined as being within 10 years from their youngest child's birth, and that is something that rarely gets covered or explained. We'll explore it all in this episode, including the possible causes, recommendations for testing and even contraception for young women, and the research and clinical leaders working to make this a top priority in the BC & MBC space. It's difficult to consider, and dense, we know. But so important and important to share with all the young women in our lives. Not to scare them, but to inform and empower them.
Recent Advances, Controversies, and Emerging Trends in MBC
Over the last 20 years, advances in HER2 targeting treatments, antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs), immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs), and cyclin-dependent kinase 4 and 6 inhibitors (CDK4/6is) have prolonged survival and changed the breast cancer treatment landscape. Success leads to more questions about optimal drug sequencing, mechanisms of resistance, and how to overcome that resistance. Let’s ask Dr. Stephanie Graff to help us tackle these topics and more.
Episode 2: Meditation Mondays with Barbara Chutroo
Welcome to the Meditation Mondays series, created with MBC patients in mind and designed for people who want to assist their body's natural tendency to repair and heal. The focus of this episode is practice of awareness. When we meditate, what do we learn about ourselves?
Our meditation leader is Barbara Chutroo, an MBC patient herself. Barbara is a longtime meditator and experienced meditation teacher. She's also a movement therapist and a clinical social worker.
Living Alone with MBC
Living with metastatic breast cancer is hard enough, but for those who are single or do not have a primary caregiver, living alone with MBC can be especially challenging. With some extra planning and working out who can support you, however, it is possible to continue to live alone well even when you have MBC. In this episode, we speak with four amazing ladies from the US & Canada, who generously share their experiences, feelings, and plans for living alone while navigating MBC. We then discuss some helpful resources for finding social & emotional support, legal & financial resources, and coordinating care. Finally, we end by sharing Lesley Kailani Glenn’s story of deciding to leave a thirty year marriage while diagnosed with MBC. Join us for this real but hopeful discussion! *Note: individuals in this episode share their thoughts on medical aid in dying as one part of this rich conversation.
Newly Diagnosed with MBC: Tests, Terms, & Tips with Dr. Rebecca Shatsky
Being diagnosed with MBC can feel like you’ve been dropped into a dangerous and alien landscape, one whose inhabitants speak a new and confusing language. Numb and bewildered, you face a mountain of medical decisions—each with seemingly high stakes. The last in Our MBC Life’s 3-part series for people newly diagnosed with MBC, this episode's interview with Dr. Rebecca Shatsky, interspersed with experienced-patient voices, sheds light on cancer types, tests, and treatment—and empowers listeners to navigate this challenging new terrain with understanding, knowledge, and confidence.
Newly Diagnosed & Trailblazing: An Interview with Michelle Anderson-Benjamin
In this episode, Our MBC Life sits down with patient and advocate Michelle Anderson-Benjamin, founder of The Fearless Warrior Project. During the pandemic, Michelle was diagnosed with early-stage breast cancer and then with metastatic breast cancer shortly after she completed initial treatment. An experienced healthcare professional, a mom of two kids, and a wife who poured all her energy into others, Michelle says the diagnosis of MBC put a "battery in her back" to refocus attention on herself. This candid conversation has a lot to offer those newly diagnosed with MBC, and will inspire all of us.
Newly Diagnosed with MBC: Keeping Your Balance on the Emotional Rollercoaster
Hearing the words “you have metastatic breast cancer” is devastating. Whether your diagnosis comes de novo or months, years, or even decades after treatment for early-stage breast cancer, there is no way to prepare for the terror, anger, despair, and sense of freefall that follows. You’ll hear from oncology social worker Lisa Nelson and a candid group of patients on the challenges of processing the diagnosis.
Episode 1: Meditation Mondays with Barbara Chutroo
This guided meditation was recorded during one of Share Cancer Support’s support groups for patients with metastatic breast cancer. The meditation leader is Barbara Chutroo, who is a member of the group. We intend to publish a new meditation episode on the third Monday of every month
MBC Advocacy: Finding Purpose in Adversity
After a Stage IV Metastatic Breast Cancer (MBC) diagnosis, patients and the people around them are often left reeling and looking around to figure out how to make some sort of meaning from the trauma. The guests and representatives from LBBC and METAvivor on this episode share how finding purpose in the midst of adversity has helped them to truly LIVE with MBC. Don’t forget to listen all the way to the end as guest producer, Abigail Johnston, has some specific calls to action to share!