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!

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.

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.

Jumping hurdles to get the treatments you want is the reality for people living with MBC. Add systemic racism into the healthcare mix and it’s clear that more needs to happen, and soon, to create equity and greater diversity in one of the most important tools in the MBC toolbox: clinical trials. In this episode, we check in with Stephanie Walker, who led the BECOME project and spearheads the Black Wo(Men) Speak Symposium, patient advocate and clinical trial participant Rev. Dr. Tawana Davis, and Patient Navigator Valarie Worthy. How does systemic racism affect what Black patients learn about MBC clinical trials? And how can those who need it most break down barriers to the best care?

What can we, as patients, do to strengthen our communication and relationships with our oncologists? This episode of Our MBC Life, the first in our MBC 101 series, includes perspectives, insights and suggestions from both sides of the critical doctor-patient relationship