Breast Friends Cancer Support Radio

Join April Stearns as she talks about her breast cancer journey and the founding of the Wildfire Magazine and Writing Community. She wanted to create a space for women to understand their diagnosis and feel safe again, by helping people tell their stories and publish them. All focusing on Survivorship, allowing these stories to help others along the way. April also made the decision to have a unilateral mastectomy and stay flat, so we will talk about the emotions around that. In addition to the magazine, both digital and paper, April hosts writing workshops to help others learn the value of expressing their emotions through the written word and is the host of the weekly podcast, The Burn, highlighting experiences of women being diagnosed young.

Yvonne Nydigger joins us to walk through what happens to our emotions when our bodies are changed after breast cancer and how to work through it to love our bodies again! With so many changes in our bodies: reconstructed breasts or loss of them, scarring, weight loss or gain, hair loss, etc. - how are we supposed to feel good in our skin again? This is something that affects us physically, mentally and emotionally. It is how we feel about our bodies, but also how our bodies now function after cancer treatment. This is a lot to process and there is no simple fix, but we will explore a lot of ways to move forward.

Courtney, at high risk for breast cancer and a NP professionally, will talk to us about her experience with her mother, being diagnosed multiple times, finding her first lump in her early 20’s and being classified as high risk. How she handled the emotions and choices she made along the way, then her own cancer journey. Courtney is also a Brand Ambassador for Care+Wear, a company bridging fashion and function to change how the world looks at and feels about healthcare, providing items for healthcare workers and patients going through treatment. Finally, Courtney tells it like it is on social media, striving daily to educate and spread awareness and remind those going through treatment that they are not alone. She is a true warrior and tells it like it is!

Foundation 96 & The Importance of a Multi-Disciplinary Support Network for Those in and After Cancer Treatment. Karen Anderson, an Accredited Exercise Physiologist and Cancer Exercise Specialist, will discuss the things she has learned in her years of treating patients during and after cancer treatment. It often happens that when an individual finished cancer treatment, is when they feel the most lost. Who will help them with all of the side effects? What is the best treatment(s) for your physical and emotional health and physical well being? Karen has created a worldwide organization whose mission it is to provide an innovative online integrated and evidence-based supportive care community for people transitioning from cancer treatment to everyday life. Foundation 96 provides an online evidence based supportive cancer community for people transitioning from cancer treatment to everyday life. Our health consultants help to improve the quality of life for people who are experiencing symptoms and side e

Join us to meet Bryght CEO and Founder Luba Sasowski as she details her cancer story and discusses her company Bryght, a women owned and operated company, offering natural and effective products to address all skin concerns, for all areas, taking the shame out of talking about and caring for your intimate areas. In 2020, she was launching Bryght with $50K of new product to get out to market AND a global pandemic hit AND she was diagnosed with Triple Negative Cancer. Today she is thriving and keeping it real.

Why is it so important to connect with others who get it during and after cancer treatment? Often, there is a sense of isolation and loneliness at this time. Supportive friends and family may be around, but they may not know the right things to say or what to do. Breast Friends has developed a wonderful program we call Girls Nite Out. It serves to support sisterhood and we all need girlfriends! The monthly support groups are a time to share cancer journeys, interests and make new friends. Currently, three amazing women lead our Portland, Oregon area groups: Andrea Jarvis, Debbie Vuylsteke and Marianne McNally. They will be here to discuss why the GNO groups are so important in helping women move forward during and after cancer.

The Pink Hulk, which debuted in 2016, is Valerie David's award-winning solo show about her journey to become a 3-time cancer survivor with plenty of humor—guaranteed. Having had Non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma and Stage 2 breast cancer in the past, Valerie conquered a metastatic stage 4 breast cancer diagnosis, now with no evidence of disease, and she has added that to her show. Her show takes us through that journey and her resilience to fight back and kick cancer to the curb—you will laugh and you will cry at the same time. At the end of October, she was honored to put on 3 live shows in New York!

Pink Phoenix Dragon Boat Team is a non-profit group celebrating their 25th Anniversary this year. Pink Phoenix is the first all breast cancer survivor dragon boat team in the United States. Jan Walker, President of the non-profit will be here to talk about how this team was created, why it is still so important that it is thriving after 25 years and the sense of community it gives it's members!

Join Kristen Carbone, Founder of Brilliantly.co and woman impacted by breast cancer, as she discusses her family history and decision to have a prophylactic mastectomy along with reconstruction. From this decision and the changes it caused in her life, she created Brilliantly.co, a collection of products, stories and experiences for woman impacted by breast cancer. Brilliantly's mission is to celebrate resilient women who are seeking community and believe they can be whole again after breast cancer. It's flagship product, Brilliantly Warm is a wearable product for those women with breast reconstruction who need to warm up that area! Other programs by Brilliantly include a free exercise program as well as guided meditation and a portrait project for those in the Rhode Island Area. We will talk also about the importance of community in moving back toward becoming whole again.

Treatment has been completed and your follow-up visit is scheduled 6 months out, or a year, or you are 5 years out and not scheduled a follow-up visit. Now what? Learn what to ask, what to demand, and how to navigate the NEXT phase of cancer: Cancer Survivorship. Leslie Heron, nurse, nurse practitioner, nurse coach, owner of The Green Labyrinth, providing education and support for those addressing grief, loss and burnout is here to help!

Dr. Rachel Grob and her team interviewed 40 people from across the United States about their experiences with breast cancer, their interactions with healthcare, and how cancer is impacting their daily lives, identities, relationships, and much more. They then developed a resource to help share these stories. Today’s show dives into the research Rachel and her team are doing, what they heard from people about their experiences with breast cancer, and how the web-based resource they created can be useful for people with breast cancer, their family and friends, and other audiences. More information can be found here: https://www.healthexperiencesusa.org/Breast-Cancer/overview

Join me as I welcome back Yvonne Nydigger to discuss all things Metastatic Breast Cancer. We will highlight the story of one of our Young Warriors, Pamela George, who was diagnosed metastatic at age 23. She describes herself as thriving and surviving and doing everything she can to kick cancer's ass every day! We will talk stats, #stageIVneedsmore and what we can do to help those we love who are fighting this horrible disease.

Author and woman impacted by cancer, N.M. Charles discussed her book: “Mamas Afro is a Soldier Too – A Mom’s Cancer Diagnosis Explained.” The inner strength, drive, and determination of Mamas dealing with cancer are often unseen. That tenacity is much like a soldier going into battle. The Afro Soldier represents that drive. At the same time, it gives young children a visual understanding that Mama is going through a challenging period, but with the assistance of a fierce little warrior that is always by her side. N.M could not find a book to help her children while going through cancer treatment that represented her family, so she wrote one! Join us to learn more about it!

Kristy Tervo, PT, CLT-LANA from Compass Oncology, will walk us through an informative hour all about lymphedema. What is lymphedema? What are the sign sand symptoms? What is a compression garment and what does it do? What is manual lymph drainage? And so much more!

Meet Carrie Madrid, a true rock star who chose to go through treatment with the mantra of “laughter and lip gloss!” She took her own cancer diagnosis and turned it into an organization to help others with support and financial resources, has co-authored a book called “Handle with Care” and hosts a podcast “Handle with CARE: Cancer & Beyond.”

Kelly Grosklags is here to discuss Dying Is Not Giving Up,” an award-winning documentary changing how we have difficult conversations in patient care. In this 35-minute film, a woman shares her experience from her terminal diagnosis to her final days, revealing simple and impactful opportunities for providers to add compassion and empathy to their practice. This poignant documentary features the story of Judy Erdahl, a 57-year old woman dying of breast cancer. Erdahl recounts her experience from diagnosis to her final days, sharing her insights with her end of life therapist Kelly Grosklags. Along with information from her friends, family and oncologist Dr. Paul Zander, we are challenged to rethink our approach to this critical conversation and patient care thereafter.

Life has changed so much since early 2020 when we entered into a global pandemic. How do we handle the emotions of this and ease back into normal life when it is over? Dr. Shani Fox is here to discuss the challenges we have faced, especially those relating to cancer patients; the loss of physical and emotional connection, uncertainty of moving forward and the lessons we have learned. She will address the anxiety and possible dread for going back out in the world and the fear which accompanies it.

Yvonne Nydigger joins to talk about life after cancer, breast or any kind. How does life go on when your body and your mind are forever changed? This 3 part series will lead us in ways to dip our toes back in the water of every day life, setting goals and making plans for your best future without letting the past rule your life. Part 3 of a 3 part series.

Yvonne Nydigger joins to talk about life after cancer, breast or any kind. How does life go on when your body and your mind are forever changed? This 3 part series will lead us in ways to dip our toes back in the water of every day life, setting goals and making plans for your best future without letting the past rule your life. Part 2 of a 3 part series.

Yvonne Nydigger joins to talk about life after cancer, breast or any kind. How does life go on when your body and your mind are forever changed? This 3 part series will lead us in ways to dip our toes back in the water of every day life, setting goals and making plans for your best future without letting the past rule your life. Part 1 of a 3 part series.