Podcasts about cancer survivors

Christine started modeling at 11. 30 years later, she started a long series of aggressive treatments for breast cancer. She later noticed that so many stories about breast cancer, whether fiction or otherwise, tend to end in tragedy. Things have come a long way, and Christine herself is proof. It's time to start telling the stories of triumph.You can find Christine's book, Walk Beside Me, as well as her other ventures at https://christinehandy.com/.This guest was booked using PodMatch! Interested in being a guest on the show? Reach out to us at https://www.podmatch.com/member/tombarnardpodcast.

In 2000, Katie Couric underwent a live colonoscopy on national television following the death of her husband, Jay Monahan, from colorectal cancer at age 42. The broadcast demystified a procedure many Americans feared, led to an estimated 20% increase in colonoscopy screenings, and became one of the clearest examples of how public storytelling can change healthcare behavior.This episode examines how celebrities, journalists, filmmakers, and entertainers helped reshape the public conversation about cancer during a period when survivorship was becoming increasingly visible. As breakthroughs in targeted therapies, immunotherapy, and early detection allowed more people to live beyond cancer, public figures used their platforms to encourage screening, reduce stigma, and accelerate research. Their influence extended far beyond awareness campaigns, helping transform cancer from a private diagnosis into a national public health conversation.Central to this story is Laura Ziskin, the Hollywood producer behind Pretty Woman and the Spider-Man films, whose metastatic breast cancer diagnosis inspired the creation of Stand Up To Cancer. Working alongside Couric and leaders from entertainment, journalism, and biomedical research, Ziskin championed a new funding model that required multidisciplinary scientific collaboration, helping accelerate discoveries that contributed to multiple FDA-approved cancer therapies. The episode also highlights the advocacy of actor Patrick Dempsey, whose family's experience with ovarian cancer led to the creation of the Dempsey Center, expanding support for patients and caregivers beyond medical treatment.The story also asks what celebrity advocacy often leaves unsaid. Financial toxicity, caregiver burden, chronic pain, mental health, and the long-term effects of treatment rarely receive the same attention as dramatic diagnoses or breakthrough cures. As cancer survivorship continues to evolve, the greatest challenge may not be convincing people to care about cancer, but helping them understand what it truly means to live with and beyond it.RELATED LINKSStand Up To Cancer⁠Katie Couric Media⁠Dempsey Center⁠American Association for Cancer Research⁠National Cancer Institute⁠Dana-Farber Cancer Institute | Adult Survivorship Program⁠FEEDBACKLike this episode? Rate and review The Cancer Mavericks: A History of Survivorship on your favorite podcast platform. For more information, visit CancerMavericks.com. Please send any questions to podcasts@matthewzachary.com.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

In 2006, a landmark report titled Closing the Gap: Research and Care Imperatives for Adolescents and Young Adults with Cancer confirmed what young survivors had been saying for years. While survival rates for children and older adults had steadily improved, adolescents and young adults had experienced decades of stalled progress. They had become cancer's lost generation.This episode explores how young adult survivors transformed their shared isolation into one of the most influential grassroots movements in cancer advocacy. Diagnosed during the years typically devoted to education, careers, relationships, and starting families, patients between the ages of 15 and 39 confronted challenges that extended far beyond treatment. Fertility preservation, sexual health, employment, financial toxicity, insurance, and long-term quality of life were rarely discussed in oncology clinics, leaving many to navigate survivorship alone.The episode follows advocates including Tamika Felder, Lindsay Avner, Heidi Adams, Doug Ulman, and Dr. Archie Bleyer, whose research and advocacy fundamentally changed how medicine understands adolescent and young adult cancer. Through organizations including Planet Cancer, Fertile Hope, the Lance Armstrong Foundation, and later Stupid Cancer, survivors built online communities, educational resources, conferences, and national partnerships that challenged long-standing assumptions about cancer care. Their work helped establish fertility preservation as a standard discussion before treatment, expanded research dedicated to adolescent and young adult oncology, and elevated quality of life as a critical clinical outcome alongside survival.The movement also demonstrated the power of lived experience to reshape medicine. Survivors became researchers, educators, nonprofit founders, and policy advocates, insisting that cancer care account not only for years of life saved, but for the lives patients hoped to build afterward.What began as a search for peers evolved into a national movement that permanently transformed adolescent and young adult oncology. Today, dedicated research programs, clinical fellowships, survivorship resources, and patient advocacy organizations continue to build on the foundation these young cancer mavericks created.RELATED LINKSNational Cancer Institute | Adolescent and Young Adult (AYA) Cancer Program⁠Closing the Gap: Research and Care Imperatives for Adolescents and Young Adults with Cancer⁠American Society of Clinical Oncology | Fertility Preservation Guidelines⁠Stupid Cancer⁠Livestrong Foundation⁠Journal of Adolescent and Young Adult Oncology⁠FEEDBACKLike this episode? Rate and review The Cancer Mavericks: A History of Survivorship on your favorite podcast platform. For more information, visit CancerMavericks.com. Please send any questions to podcasts@matthewzachary.com.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Survivor: Africa winner Ethan Zohn joins Rev. Dr. Robin Swan for a powerful conversation about cancer, cannabis, resilience and finding purpose after a life-changing diagnosis. Ethan's life had already taken him from professional soccer to winning CBS's Survivor: Africa when, at age 35, he was diagnosed with a rare form of Hodgkin lymphoma. What followed was an intense medical journey involving chemotherapy, radiation, clinical trials and two stem cell transplants. In this episode, Ethan shares his personal experience with medical cannabis and how it became part of the way he managed some of the physical and emotional challenges surrounding cancer treatment and recovery, including nausea, pain, sleep difficulties and anxiety. Ethan and Robin also discuss the changing conversation around cannabis in professional sports, the importance of responsible education and advocacy, and why patients need honest information when making decisions about their health. The conversation goes far beyond cancer. Ethan explains how surviving a life-threatening illness reshaped his sense of purpose and strengthened his commitment to helping others. He discusses Grassroot Soccer, the nonprofit organization he co-founded that uses the power of soccer to improve the health and lives of young people around the world, as well as Kicking Back, his High Times series exploring the intersection of soccer, cannabis and community. In this episode: Ethan's journey from professional soccer to winning Survivor: Africa Being diagnosed with Hodgkin lymphoma at age 35 Chemotherapy, radiation, clinical trials and two stem cell transplants Ethan's personal experience using cannabis during cancer treatment and recovery Cannabis for nausea, pain, sleep and anxiety The emotional and psychological challenges of cancer survivorship How attitudes toward cannabis are changing in professional sports Cannabis education, responsible use and patient advocacy Turning personal crisis into purpose The story and mission behind Grassroot Soccer Ethan's Kicking Back series with High Times Soccer, cannabis and community Using lived experience to help others facing serious illness Learn more about Ethan Zohn Ethan Zohn:https://ethanzohn.com Grassroot Soccer:https://grassrootsoccer.org Cannabis Health Radio Visit:https://cannabishealthradio.com If this conversation could help someone you know, please share the episode. Subscribe to Cannabis Health Radio for more conversations with patients, advocates, researchers and others exploring cannabis, health and healing. Connect with Cannabis Health RadioVisit us at CannabisHealthRadio.comExplore products and resources from Swan ApothecaryFollow Cannabis Health Radio on Facebook and InstagramImportant DisclaimerThe views and opinions expressed by guests on Cannabis Health Radio (CHR) are their own and do not necessarily reflect those of CHR, its hosts, producers, affiliates, or sponsors. CHR is not responsible for statements or opinions expressed by its guests.Nothing presented in this episode constitutes medical advice, diagnosis, treatment, or a recommendation regarding what you should do. This content is provided for informational and entertainment purposes only. Always consult a qualified healthcare professional regarding your health, medical conditions, medications, or treatment decisions. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Recorded live at the Healing Pen & A Mic journaling workshop in St. Paul, this episode brings you straight into the room.Nancy stepped out of a afternoon of writing alongside fellow cancer patients and survivors to sit down with host Talaya Dendy. Diagnosed with acute promyelocytic leukemia in 2018, Nancy speaks with quiet honesty about the specific kind of isolation that can follow you even in a crowded room. She shares what happened when treatment ended and the appointments stopped, how her perspective on healing transformed, and what keeps her grounded when disconnection creeps back in.If you have ever felt isolated after a diagnosis or wondered what comes next when treatment stops, this conversation offers a space to process those feelings alongside people who understand.✨ Episode Highlights:01:32 Nancy shares her 2018 leukemia diagnosis and its sudden onset01:45 What it feels like to write in a room surrounded by people who understand: "a freeing sensation and just a validation"02:37 The reality of feeling alone even when supported by medical staff and family03:33 Redefining healing as an ongoing practice rather than a quick fix04:03 Practical advice for navigating isolation after a diagnosis04:33 The abrupt transition after chemo ends and the quiet that followsAbout the Guest: Nancy Tepley-Mimbach was diagnosed with acute promyelocytic leukemia in 2018. She joined the Healing Pen & A Mic workshop seeking the community connection that felt missing after her active treatment ended.Take the Next StepAttend a Workshop (Twin Cities): Join us for the next Healing Pen & A Mic journaling workshop on Saturday, October 4th. Save your spot: https://bit.ly/healingpenwaitlist

In 2006, the Institute of Medicine published From Cancer Patient to Cancer Survivor: Lost in Transition, concluding that millions of Americans were surviving cancer only to find themselves navigating a healthcare system unprepared for life after treatment. The report challenged oncology to recognize that curing cancer was not the end of care, but the beginning of survivorship.This episode explores how the growing cancer survivorship movement exposed the long-term consequences of cancer treatment that medicine had largely overlooked. As survival rates improved following the National Cancer Act of 1971, millions of survivors faced chronic fatigue, neuropathy, infertility, cognitive impairment, financial hardship, employment discrimination, anxiety, depression, and post-traumatic stress. These were not rare complications. They became defining features of survivorship for many patients.Drawing on the work of oncologist Dr. Patricia Ganz, survivor advocate Ellen Stovall, and researchers, clinicians, and survivors across the country, the episode examines how survivorship research expanded beyond recurrence and mortality to include quality of life, psychosocial care, rehabilitation, and long-term follow-up. Their efforts helped establish survivorship care plans, multidisciplinary survivorship clinics, and a broader understanding that cancer affects every aspect of a person's life long after treatment ends.The episode also confronts persistent inequities in survivorship care. Insurance coverage often ends when treatment stops, supportive services remain inconsistent, financial toxicity continues to drive medical hardship, and racial, geographic, and socioeconomic disparities still influence who receives comprehensive follow-up care. For many survivors, finishing treatment simply marks the beginning of another struggle.Modern oncology increasingly recognizes that surviving cancer is measured by more than years of life. It is also measured by quality of life, dignity, access to care, and the ability to rebuild a future after treatment. That evolution remains one of the most significant legacies of the cancer survivorship movement.RELATED LINKSNational Academy of Medicine | ⁠From Cancer Patient to Cancer Survivor: Lost in Transition⁠National Cancer Institute Office of Cancer Survivorship⁠American Society of Clinical Oncology | Survivorship Compendium⁠CancerCare⁠HopeWell Cancer Support⁠National Coalition for Cancer Survivorship⁠FEEDBACKLike this episode? Rate and review The Cancer Mavericks: A History of Survivorship on your favorite podcast platform. For more information, visit CancerMavericks.com. Please send any questions to podcasts@matthewzachary.com.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

YES PLUMMERS We've got a bonus episode for you today. Butts brings in Matty Fox, a real influencer who tells all about: - His huge following - Home work outs - Beating Cancer - Almost becoming a state-leaguer & Much More! Matt Fox: https://www.bodyweightbuilt.com/ https://www.mattcfox.com/ Www.instagram.com/mattycfox Enjoy plums and remember to GET THE KNEES UP! Send us your voice messages here: https://memo.fm/200pluspodcast/ Produced by Ben Raimondo 200 PLUS 2026 Membership: https://www.patreon.com/c/200PLUS 200 PLUS Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/200pluspod/ Nick Butler: https://www.instagram.com/nick_butler10/ Charlie Comben: https://www.instagram.com/charliecomben/ Darcy Cameron: https://www.instagram.com/darcy_cameron/ Sam Draper: https://www.instagram.com/draper/ Clubby Sports: https://www.instagram.com/ClubbySports To get in contact with Clubby Sports email Hello@ClubbySports.com

In 1967, breast surgeon Dr. Harold P. Freeman arrived at Harlem Hospital expecting to treat cancer. Instead, he confronted a healthcare system where poverty, racism, lack of insurance, and institutional barriers often determined who lived long enough to receive treatment. Patients frequently arrived with advanced disease, not because medicine lacked answers, but because access to care had failed them.This episode explores how cancer survivorship expanded beyond medical breakthroughs to include healthcare access, health equity, and organized advocacy. Building on the early work of the National Coalition for Cancer Survivorship (NCCS), it examines the recognition that surviving cancer depended not only on research, but also on whether patients could navigate a fragmented healthcare system.Freeman responded by creating one of the nation's first patient navigation programs at Harlem Hospital in 1990. Community-based navigators helped patients overcome practical barriers including insurance, transportation, appointments, communication, and fear. The model dramatically improved timely diagnosis and treatment, increased breast cancer survival in Harlem, and ultimately inspired the Patient Navigator Outreach and Chronic Disease Prevention Act of 2005, establishing navigation as a cornerstone of modern oncology care.The episode also follows cancer survivor Ellen Stovall, whose leadership transformed survivorship into a national policy movement. Through the NCCS, she united advocates across cancer types, fought for insurance protections, expanded access to clinical trials, helped shape the creation of the Office of Cancer Survivorship at the National Cancer Institute, and organized the landmark 1998 National March for Cancer Survivorship in Washington, D.C. Her work reframed survivorship as a public policy issue rather than a personal experience.Together, Freeman and Stovall demonstrated that scientific progress alone could not eliminate disparities in cancer outcomes. Their work established two enduring principles that continue to shape oncology today: patients need someone to help them navigate care, and survivors must have a voice in the policies that govern it. Modern cancer survivorship depends on both.RELATED LINKSNational Coalition for Cancer Survivorship⁠Harold P. Freeman Patient Navigation Institute⁠National Cancer Institute Office of Cancer Survivorship⁠Patient Navigator Outreach and Chronic Disease Prevention Act of 2005⁠American Cancer Society⁠Tuskegee Study Timeline | Centers for Disease Control and Prevention⁠FEEDBACKLike this episode? Rate and review The Cancer Mavericks: A History of Survivorship on your favorite podcast platform. For more information, visit CancerMavericks.com. Please send any questions to podcasts@matthewzachary.com.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

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“I truly believe that being aware of and proactive about skin changes has saved me from the worst-case scenario that my dad went through with skin cancer” Those are the words of skin cancer survivor Liz Farrell, who joined Anton to discuss the importance of getting checked.

“I truly believe that being aware of and proactive about skin changes has saved me from the worst-case scenario that my dad went through with skin cancer” Those are the words of skin cancer survivor Liz Farrell, who joined Anton to discuss the importance of getting checked.

Welcome to a very, very, very special bonus episode of Out of Patients, and one unlike anything published on this feed before. For nearly 20 years, Matthew Zachary has handed these microphones to patients, caregivers, doctors, advocates, troublemakers, and people with something worth saying. This time, he handed them to his daughter. Hannah Greenzweig grew up around this show, and now she has commandeered the studio with 3 of her wonderfully creative high school friends to talk about something they built entirely themselves. There is an enormous amount of Dad Pride baked into this episode, along with the strange and wonderful realization that sometimes your kid grows up, takes your chair, takes your microphone, and produces a better show without you.Hannah Greenzweig, Michael Aidinov, Gwendolyn Baldini, and Astronomy are student artists from the Roundabout Youth Ensemble at James Madison High School in Brooklyn. Working alongside teaching artists from Roundabout Theatre Company, they spent a school year creating an original play from the ground up, writing every scene, developing every character, and producing the performance themselves.Instead of discussing a Broadway production, they dissect one they invented.Their play, Subject Matter, began with a room full of improbable ideas. Murderous bounce houses, pirate family sagas, underwater adventures, courtroom dance battles, and birthday parties at math museums all competed before the group settled on an absurd rivalry between New York's fictional History Museum and Math Museum. From there, they built a fully staged comedy about institutional competition, sabotage, oversized personalities, and the unexpected discovery that history and mathematics need each other more than either side wants to admit.The conversation pulls back the curtain on a creative process most audiences never see. The students explain how scenes evolved through constant rewrites, how characters emerged from improvisation, how costumes came together with last minute ingenuity, and how rehearsals often collapsed into uncontrollable laughter. They recount cutting favorite ideas, solving production problems with limited resources, and trusting each other enough to keep rewriting until the story worked.The episode also captures something harder to script: teenagers speaking honestly about collaboration without adults translating their experience. They celebrate classmates who stepped into unexpected roles, teachers who quietly held the production together, and the strange joy of creating something that exists only because everyone showed up.It is a conversation about theater, friendship, education, creativity, and what happens when 4 young artists get the microphones and the adults get out of the way.RELATED LINKSRoundabout Theatre CompanyRoundabout Youth EnsembleJames Madison High SchoolFEEDBACKLike this bonus episode? Rate and review Out of Patients on your favorite podcast platform. For guest suggestions or sponsorship email podcasts@matthewzachary.comSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

A man is struck by a car on the streets of Los Angeles. In the emergency department, a CT scan ordered to look for traumatic injuries reveals something nobody expected: a mass in his colon. Days later, sitting across from Dr. Belinda Waltman, he calls the accident “a blessing in disguise.” Then he changes the subject. He is less worried about cancer than about whether he can afford to miss another day of work. In this season finale of Standard Deviation, host Dr. Oliver Bogler explores what happens when biomedical science collides with the realities of the healthcare safety net. Dr. Waltman, a primary care physician in Los Angeles County, specializes in expedited cancer workups for uninsured and underinsured patients. Every diagnosis arrives carrying another set of questions about housing, transportation, food insecurity, wages, and survival that rarely appear in medical records or scientific literature. For years, Waltman carried those stories without knowing how to bring them into the academic record. As a full-time clinician without a research lab, grant funding, or publication pipeline, she faced barriers familiar to many working scientists and physicians whose most important observations happen outside traditional research settings. With support from the Life Science Editors Foundation's JEDI program, those experiences became The Margins Matter, a narrative medicine essay published in JAMA that argues the social realities surrounding cancer care are not background details. They are part of the disease itself. Bogler traces how editorial mentorship transformed lived clinical experience into published scholarship while asking a larger question about who gets to shape the scientific record. The conversation examines cancer care, Medicaid, health-related social needs, medical publishing, and the structural incentives that determine which stories become evidence and which disappear from view.The result is a conversation about documentation, visibility, and why the margins of medicine often determine who survives long enough to benefit from its advances.RELATED LINKSDr. Belinda Waltman⁠The Margins Matter | JAMA⁠The Margins Matter | PubMed⁠Life Science Editors Foundation⁠FEEDBACKLike this episode? Rate and review Out of Patients on your favorite podcast platform. For guest suggestions or sponsorship email podcasts@matthewzachary.comSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

In 1986, 23 survivors, physicians, nurses, attorneys, and community organizers gathered in Albuquerque, New Mexico, for a weekend that would permanently change the language and politics of cancer. Working late into the night, they debated not only strategy, but identity, ultimately declaring that from the moment of diagnosis, every person with cancer is a survivor.This episode traces the social and political forces that gave birth to the modern cancer survivorship movement. As advances in early detection and treatment allowed more people to live beyond cancer, survivors discovered that finishing treatment did not mean returning to normal life. Many faced employment discrimination, loss of insurance, social stigma, infertility, chronic health complications, and a healthcare system that viewed survival as the end of care rather than the beginning of a new chapter.Against the backdrop of the civil rights, disability rights, and community health movements of the 1960s and 1970s, physicians, activists, and survivors challenged medicine's paternalistic culture and demanded a greater voice in decisions affecting their lives. Central to this story are physician and survivor Dr. Fitzhugh Mullan, whose landmark 1985 essay, Seasons of Survival, redefined survivorship as a lifelong continuum, and community organizer Katherine Logan, whose determination united dozens of grassroots organizations into what became the National Coalition for Cancer Survivorship.The coalition's founding established principles that continue to shape oncology today. Survivors were no longer defined solely by disease or treatment outcomes. Their experiences became evidence. Their voices became essential to clinical research, healthcare policy, and patient advocacy. By redefining survivorship as an ongoing experience rather than a destination, the movement challenged medicine to recognize the lasting physical, emotional, financial, and social consequences of cancer.The ideas forged during that weekend in Albuquerque became the foundation of modern cancer survivorship. Nearly 40 years later, the coalition's defining principle, that survivorship begins at diagnosis, continues to influence cancer care, research, policy, and the way millions of people understand life after cancer.RELATED LINKSNational Coalition for Cancer Survivorship⁠National Cancer Institute Office of Cancer Survivorship⁠The New England Journal of Medicine⁠Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA.gov)⁠Library of Congress | Civil Rights History Project⁠White Coat, Clenched Fist by Fitzhugh Mullan⁠FEEDBACKLike this episode? Rate and review The Cancer Mavericks: A History of Survivorship on your favorite podcast platform. For more information, visit CancerMavericks.com. Please send any questions to podcasts@matthewzachary.com.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Trent Nikolic speaks with Nadia Rosin, CEO of Head and Neck Cancer Australia.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In 1971, President Richard Nixon signed the National Cancer Act, transforming cancer research with an unprecedented federal investment and launching what became known as the War on Cancer. The legislation did not emerge from scientific discovery alone. It was the culmination of decades of relentless advocacy by researchers, philanthropists, journalists, and patients who believed cancer demanded the same national commitment that had put astronauts on the Moon.This episode traces the origins of the cancer survivorship movement by returning to a time when cancer was rarely discussed in public, many physicians withheld diagnoses from their patients, and surgery offered few lasting cures. It follows the pioneering work of pathologist Dr. Sidney Farber, whose early chemotherapy research challenged conventional thinking, and Mary Lasker, whose political strategy, fundraising, and public campaigns helped transform cancer from a private tragedy into a national public health priority. Together, they built the coalition that reshaped federal support for oncology research and forever changed the relationship between science, government, and the American public.The story then turns to journalist and breast cancer survivor Rose Kushner, whose refusal to accept the standard one-step radical mastectomy challenged nearly a century of surgical dogma. Working alongside surgeon Dr. Bernard Fisher, Kushner helped bring evidence-based medicine to breast cancer treatment through randomized clinical trials that demonstrated less invasive surgery could achieve equivalent outcomes. Their efforts changed clinical practice, strengthened informed consent, and helped establish the principle that patients should participate in decisions about their own care.The breakthroughs explored in this episode extended far beyond new treatments. They redefined the role of patients in medicine, accelerated clinical research, and laid the foundation for modern cancer survivorship. The movement that followed would not simply help more people live longer. It would change what surviving cancer meant.RELATED LINKSNational Cancer Institute⁠National Cancer Act of 1971⁠American Cancer Society⁠Dana-Farber Cancer Institute⁠National Library of Medicine⁠The New England Journal of Medicine⁠FEEDBACKLike this episode? Rate and review The Cancer Mavericks: A History of Survivorship on your favorite podcast platform. For more information, visit CancerMavericks.com. Please send any questions to podcasts@matthewzachary.com.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Death is a topic most of us avoid...until we can't.But what if talking about it early actually gave us more peace, not less? In this episode, Leah sits down with Dr. Susan Abernethy, founder of Mudança Healing, whose path from naturopathic medicine and nonprofit leadership (including Make-A-Wish) led her to become an end-of-life doula.Susan shares how having honest conversations early, especially after a cancer or dementia diagnosis, can ease the pressure of rapid-fire medical decisions, bring clarity to what really matters, and offer real comfort to both patients and the families who love them. We get into the practical side too: the gaps hospice care often leaves behind, the toll caregiving takes on families, and why services like respite matter so much. Susan also walks us through the tools she uses in her workshops—from Death Decks to checklists—to help individuals and organizations get ready for what's ahead, not just legally, but practically and emotionally.This conversation is a gentle reminder: planning for the end isn't morbid. It is an act of care for the people you love.Connect with Susan: www.mudancahealing.comand on Instagram @mudanca_healingResources mentioned in this episode:All There Is with Anderson Cooper https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/all-there-is-with-anderson-cooper/id1643163707Death, End-of-Life, and Dementia Decks https://thedeathdeck.com/collections/shop-all-decksA Good Death by Margaret Rice https://bookshop.org/a/103670/9781911632146Learn more about end-of-life doulas at https://inelda.org/Leave a message and let us know what you liked about the episode!Support the showBecome a member of The Cancer Pod Community! Support the podcast and gain access to exclusive content and more! Join today on Buy Me a Coffee or Patreon.Check out thecancerpod.com! Looking for more information? The website has blogs, merch, and all of the episodes listed by season and category. Shop the Bookshop! The shelves at Bookshop feature books by authors who have been on the show and other fav books.Buy The Cancer Pod merch! Whether it's a cozy hoody or a handy water bottle, we have something for everybody.Have a comment or suggestion? Email info (at) thecancerpod (dot) com Follow @TheCancerPod on social media:InstagramBlueskyFacebookLinkedInYouTube

Long before cancer survivors organized into a movement, Hollywood had already shaped how Americans understood the disease. Films rarely used the word “cancer,” physicians often withheld diagnoses from patients, and the people who survived were almost nowhere to be found on screen.Recorded before The Cancer Mavericks: A History of Survivorship became a documentary series, this bonus conversation explores where the project first began. Matthew Zachary sits down with his mother, Roz Greenzweig, a retired educator and lifelong film enthusiast whose memories of classic cinema became an unexpected lens for understanding how cancer was portrayed throughout the twentieth century.Together, they revisit landmark films including Dark Victory, Love Story, and other iconic portrayals that reflected an era when cancer was treated as unspeakable, inevitable, and almost always fatal. Their conversation contrasts those carefully constructed Hollywood narratives with the lived reality of a family confronting a brain cancer diagnosis in 1995, revealing how popular culture both reflected and reinforced the fears surrounding the disease.The discussion also foreshadows many of the themes explored throughout the documentary series: the evolution of patient advocacy, the emergence of cancer survivorship, the role of caregivers, and the power of storytelling to influence public understanding. Before policy changed, before advocacy organizations grew into national movements, conversations like these were already challenging long-held assumptions about what cancer looked like and who had the right to tell its story.Consider this the prologue to The Cancer Mavericks. Before the movement found its history, it began with a family trying to make sense of the stories they had inherited.RELATED LINKSAmerican Cancer Society⁠National Cancer Institute⁠American Film Institute⁠ER (NBC)⁠50/50 (Official)⁠Chasing Life (ABC Family Archive)⁠FEEDBACKLike this episode? Rate and review The Cancer Mavericks: A History of Survivorship on your favorite podcast platform. For more information, visit CancerMavericks.com. Questions? Email podcasts@matthewzachary.com.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

What would you do if you were told you might only have two years to live?In this inspiring and deeply practical episode of Linda's Corner Podcast, I sit down with Glenn Sturm — bestselling author, astrophotographer, attorney, decorated military officer, and cancer survivor — to discuss multidisciplinary cancer care, emotional resilience, and what it really takes to fight for joy and quality of life after a devastating diagnosis.Glenn's life story is extraordinary. A graduate with honors from the University of Florida Levin College of Law and a decorated military officer with more than three decades of service, Glenn built a remarkable career as both a lawyer and leader. But in 2009, his life changed overnight when doctors discovered he had aggressive T-cell lymphoma.The diagnosis came completely out of the blue. Glenn didn't even realize he had been screened for cancer. Doctors told him there was no cure — only management — and estimated he might survive for only two years.That was seventeen years ago.Since then, Glenn has endured continuous chemotherapy and more than 55 surgeries, yet he continues to live a meaningful and fulfilling life. His perspective is powerful and refreshingly honest. Glenn openly shares what people are rarely told about surviving cancer: how important it is to protect your energy, maintain emotional resilience, and intentionally pursue hope and joy.One of the central themes of our conversation is the importance of multidisciplinary cancer care. Glenn explains why creating a collaborative treatment team can dramatically improve outcomes for cancer patients. He shared research suggesting that multidisciplinary approaches may reduce mortality rates anywhere from 14% to 90% compared to isolated or solo treatment strategies. His upcoming book, More Than Hope, explores these integrated cancer care approaches in greater depth.We also discuss the importance of quality of life during treatment. Glenn shares how finding the right medication dramatically improved his energy levels, which in turn improved both his daily life and longevity. As Glenn explains, improving quality of life is not just about comfort — it can also help people live longer. A true win-win.Beyond medicine, Glenn speaks candidly about the emotional side of survivorship and the daily decision to keep moving forward. His message is grounded in practical emotional survival and the belief that while we cannot control every circumstance, we can choose how we respond. As Glenn says, “Only you can stop you.”This episode is a powerful reminder that hope is not passive. It's something we actively build through connection, resilience, strategy, and purpose.You can learn more about Glenn Sturm and his work at:Glenn Sturm Official WebsiteGlenn is the author of several bestselling books, including:Cancer Set Me FreeWarriors Hate WarSyzygiesThe Great American Eclipse of 2017More Than Hope (upcoming)If you or someone you love has been impacted by cancer, chronic illness, or difficult life challenges, this episode offers practical wisdom, encouragement, and a hopeful reminder that life can still hold meaning, joy, and purpose — even in the middle of hardship.Listen, Share, and SupportIf this episode resonated with you, please share it with someone who may need hope today.Be sure to subscribe, leave a rating and review, and help us spread more healing and inspiration to the world.Free Resource for HealingIf you're ready to release stress, calm your mind, and begin healing from within, visit:

Kirsten Eom studies everything that goes into getting a cancer survivor from their front door to a doctor's office: insurance, transportation, follow-up care, and more. The UT Health San Antonio researcher has found that a surprising number of survivors stop seeing doctors once initial treatment ends. Now she's working to build a statewide registry to track the barriers keeping them away.

You survived cancer — so why does no one talk about what comes next? In this solo episode, Jen opens up the five conversations every survivor should be having, but almost no one starts: hormones, intimacy, mental health, purpose, and energy. These are the quiet struggles that hit after treatment ends, when the appointments stop and everyone else exhales — and you're left figuring out how to feel like yourself again. This is your permission slip to break the silence. Jen walks through each conversation with warmth and honesty, naming the things survivors feel but rarely say out loud — and giving you one real conversation to start and one small step to take this week for each. In this episode: Why hormone changes after treatment aren't "you falling apart" — and how to advocate for yourself with your care team The intimacy conversation nobody prepares you for (and it's about way more than sex) Why finishing treatment can be one of the hardest mental health moments of the whole journey How cancer rearranges your sense of purpose — and why that's not ingratitude Cancer fatigue vs. regular tired, and how to protect your energy without guilt Whether you're newly out of treatment or years into survivorship, this episode will make you feel seen — and give you the words for something you've been carrying. ➡️ Your challenge this week: Pick the ONE conversation that made your chest tighten. That's the one you need most. Take one small step — send the text, book the appointment, or say the honest thing out loud. If this episode spoke to you, share it with a survivor who needs to hear they're not the only one. And come tell Jen which of the five hit home — solo episodes like this come straight from your questions. Not today, Cancer.

Rebecca Bloom is a former employee benefits and executive compensation attorney who spent more than 25 years helping women navigate cancer, work, insurance, disability coverage, and financial survival. She is the founder and author of When Women Get Sick, a book built from decades inside the legal, workplace, and patient advocacy systems most people only discover after diagnosis.Bloom started in Big Law at Simpson Thacher handling employee benefits and compensation work she originally chose to pay off student loans. Then her mother was diagnosed with breast cancer. Suddenly the language she used in corporate law offices became the language of survival at home. Explanation of benefits forms. Coverage disputes. Second opinions. Disability protections. Medical leave. Bills no one could explain.That collision changed the direction of her life.In this episode, Bloom explains how serious illness quietly turns patients into unpaid administrators managing paperwork, logistics, financial risk, and emotional labor while trying to survive treatment. She breaks down how employer based health insurance shapes nearly every aspect of cancer care in America and why women often carry the invisible burden of protecting everyone else from discomfort while they themselves fall apart.The conversation digs into workplace power, the illusion of the healthcare “safety net,” caregiver exhaustion, and the class divide hiding underneath patient empowerment culture. Bloom explains why educated, insured women with resources still struggle to navigate healthcare bureaucracy and what happens to patients without those advantages.This episode explores cancer care, health insurance, employee benefits, patient advocacy, workplace protections, caregiving, and the structural incentives that force sick people to become project managers of their own survival.RELATED LINKSRebecca BloomWhen Women Get SickBay Area Cancer ConnectionsSimpson Thacher & BartlettFEEDBACKLike this episode? Rate and review Out of Patients on your favorite podcast platform. For guest suggestions or sponsorship email podcasts@matthewzachary.comSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Ann Keil Dux is a person of significance. Former TV journalist, Emmy Award winner and cancer survivor, she has lived a remarkable life. You will be inspired by this whip smart, executive communications coach and strategist. Ann talks about the important soft skills fueled by emotional intelligence. She dives into high impact communication moments and how we should react authentically. Show up as the best version of yoursefl. Communicate from your real self from real places. Consider active verbs that describe you and connect with those words. Self proclaimed as THE GLUE, connect with Ann Keil Dux on LinkedIn or www.DuxCommunications.com. Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/success-made-to-last-legends--4302039/support.

Jerry McCormick, longtime journalist, educator, and prostate cancer survivor, shares how he transformed a life-threatening diagnosis into a mission to educate Black men about early prostate cancer detection and proactive healthcare. Jerry chats about the cultural barriers to care, the power of honest storytelling and his work to build support networks and advocacy platforms for men's health. Listen Where You Live!About Spotlight and Cloudcast Media  "Spotlight On The Community" is the longest running community podcast in the country, continuously hosted by Drew Schlosberg for 20 years.  "Spotlight" is part of Cloudcast Media's line-up of powerful local podcasts, telling the stories, highlighting the people, and celebrating the gravitational power of local.   For more information on Cloudcast and its shows and cities served, please visit www.cloudcastmedia.us. Cloudcast Media | the national leader in local podcasting.   About Mission Fed Credit Union  A community champion for over 60 years, Mission Fed Credit Union with over $6 billion in member assets, is the Sponsor of Spotlight On The Community, helping to curate connectivity, collaboration, and catalytic conversations.  For more information on the many services for San Diego residents, be sure to visit them at https://www.missionfed.com/

At 21, Liana Werner-Gray was diagnosed with a 3.7-centimeter tumor after years of eating refined sugar, fried food and fast food nearly every day. She sits down with Dr. Josh Axe to discuss the food, lifestyle and spiritual changes she credits with transforming her health, including green juice, broccoli sprouts, restorative sleep and healthier food swaps. They also explore seed oils, sugar addiction, emotional trauma and the deeper issue Liana believes food alone could never fix. Uncover what's really going on in your body with advanced biomarker testing for hormones, thyroid, and metabolism— plus a 1-hour consultation with a Senior Health Advisor! →  http://mybloodwork.com Thank you to our sponsors! Sunlighten Sauna: https://get.sunlighten.com/axepodcast Manukora Manuka Honey: https://manukora.com/axe Caraway Home: carawayhome.com/drjoshaxe (Use code DRJOSHAXE) for an exclusive discount Watch The Dr. Josh Axe Show every Monday & Thursday on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@drjoshaxe?sub_confirmation=1

Air Date - 22 July 2026Join Host Marc Lainhart – The Intuitive Prospector™ this Wisdom Wednesday as Marc welcomes pioneering Psychotherapist and Cancer Survivor, Ms. Heather A. Lee, who will help fill a critical gap in the national conversation on Psychedelic healing. At a moment when psychedelic medicine is moving from the margins to the mainstream, debated in Congress, studied at Johns Hopkins University and NYU, and embraced by a growing number of clinicians, one important voice emerges from the national conversation: women's. In her new book, Heather shares powerful stories of women's transformation through psychedelic healing. These real-life testimonials are from women who navigated some of the hardest transitions of their lives, including cancer diagnoses, sexual trauma and abuse, loss of a spouse, estrangement from children, confronting mortality, and post-sixty identity. The book arrives amid increasing public and scientific interest in the therapeutic potential of psychedelic substances. Rather than focusing solely on research, “The Psilocybin Sessions” centers on the lived experiences of women, offering readers a deeply personal and human perspective on a rapidly evolving field.Please join us for another inspiring, encouraging, educational, healing, motivational, and transformational show! “Prospecting to discover the diamond within and the many hidden gems all around us!”#HeatherALee #MarcLainhart #InspiredLivingAbout the GuestHeather Lee is one of the first leading psychedelic-assisted psychotherapists with 25+ years of clinical experience in integrative mental health. She has mind-body training from Harvard University and specializes in helping women build emotional resilience through transformational psilocybin experiences. She is a keynote speaker and leads international retreats that blend science, soul, and plant medicine to support healing, growth, and lasting inner peace. She is the author of “The Psilocybin Sessions: Real-Life Stories of Women's Awakening with Psychedelic Medicine” (Modern Wisdom Press). With 25+ years of clinical experience in integrative mental health and mind-body training from Harvard University, Heather Lee is one of the first leading psychedelic-assisted psychotherapists in the U.S.WEBSITE: https://heatheralee.com/Visit the Inspired Living show page https://omtimes.com/iom/shows/inspired-living-radio/Connect with Marc Lainhart at http://www.marclainhart.com/Subscribe to our Newsletter https://omtimes.com/subscribe-omtimes-magazineConnect with OMTimes on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/Omtimes.Magazine/ and OMTimes Radio https://www.facebook.com/ConsciousRadiowebtv.OMTimes/X/Twitter: https://twitter.com/OmTimes/Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/omtimes/LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/2798417/Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/omtimes/

Most people spend their lives trying not to feel broken, but poet and spiritual philosopher Mark Nepo believes that breaking is actually where life begins. In this deeply moving conversation from Making Space, the New York Times bestselling author of The Book of Awakening sits down with Hoda Kotb to pull back the curtain on how we can stay open, even when we are hurting, overwhelmed, or just trying to get through the day. Mark reflects on the wisdom he gained from his own life threatening cancer diagnosis and a debilitating back surgery, sharing how he learned to ground himself in the present when fear threatened to take over. He and Hoda explore his newest book, The Language of the Soul, discussing why the words we choose matter in a world that often feels divided. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Jim McCarthy talks to cancer survivor Evan Gear, associate pastor at Independent Presbyterian Church in Savannah, GA. Special thanks to Nathan Clark George for our opening and closing instrumental. Nathan serves as the Pastor of Worship alongside Kevin DeYoung at Christ Covenant Church in Matthews, NC. You can access Nathan's fantastic catalog here.

Vasanta Pundarika built her career inside healthcare investment banking before launching Lotuspring, an advisory firm focused on women's health and behavioral health. She spent nearly 20 years advising healthcare systems, treatment providers, and growth stage companies on mergers, financing, and operational strategy while watching the industry repeatedly misunderstand the people it claimed to serve.The conversation starts unexpectedly with anthropology, bread, and language. Vasanta explains how she spent years changing the pronunciation of her own name to make other people comfortable before eventually reclaiming it. That thread opens into a much larger discussion about adaptation, identity, and what institutions quietly train people to tolerate.From there, the discussion moves into behavioral health, women delaying care, and the invisible labor that healthcare business models routinely ignore. During COVID, Vasanta noticed men's behavioral health units refilled faster than women's units. The reason had nothing to do with demand. Women were still home managing caregiving responsibilities, children, aging parents, and households while their own mental health collapsed in the background.The episode examines what happens when healthcare companies become “snazzy big brands” before building real clinical substance underneath. Vasanta describes the tension between mission and margin inside healthcare startups, private equity backed care models, and behavioral health expansion. The conversation pushes on who benefits when healthcare scales aggressively, who absorbs the operational pressure, and how patient trust erodes long before executives notice it on a dashboard.They also discuss patient advocacy culture, anthropology as systems analysis, healthcare capitalism, prior authorization, investor language, and why some clinically excellent companies never survive long enough to scale.RELATED LINKSVasanta PundarikaLotuspringWomen's Health HorizonsSakhi for South Asian SurvivorsNACDPrinceton University Anthropology DepartmentFEEDBACKLike this episode? Rate and review Out of Patients on your favorite podcast platform. For guest suggestions or sponsorship email podcasts@matthewzachary.comSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

What if the symptoms you're fighting aren't the real problem? In this powerful episode of The Story Engine Podcast, I sit down with functional medicine pioneer and bestselling author Dr. Jill Carnahan to explore her extraordinary journey from a 25-year-old battling aggressive breast cancer and Crohn's disease to becoming one of the leading voices in root-cause medicine. Dr. Jill shares how a seemingly healthy childhood on a family farm exposed her to hidden environmental toxins, setting the stage for a health crisis that would ultimately transform her life's mission. Through her own healing journey, she discovered that true health isn't just physical—it's deeply connected to our emotional resilience, spiritual perspective, and willingness to ask better questions. But this conversation goes far beyond disease and diagnosis. We dive into why modern healthcare is failing both patients and practitioners, the burnout epidemic among clinicians, and the critical importance of treating people as human beings rather than collections of symptoms. Dr. Jill reveals the mindset shifts that helped her overcome seemingly impossible odds, why curiosity may be one of the most powerful healing tools available, and how she's now helping an entirely new generation of practitioners rediscover the humanity at the heart of medicine. If you've ever struggled with chronic illness, felt unheard by the medical system, or wondered how adversity can become your greatest gift, this episode is one you won't forget.

Rob Rene spent 25 years in Fortune 500 enterprise tech before five near-death experiences, including cancer, ignited a radical pivot to build Exodus Strong, a faith-based wellness company powered by AI. Top 3 Value Bombs 1. Your body is your true business infrastructure; optimize it first, and everything downstream improves. 2. Corporate experience can be a massive advantage in startups if you leverage systems, discipline, and real-world sales lessons. 3. The future of entrepreneurship is leverage through AI; founders who build systems early will outpace those relying on hustle alone. Check out Rob's website for exclusive offers. Access the Total Body Reset Kit and bonus tools. Learn about AI-powered business systems for founders - Exodus Strong Sponsors HighLevel - The ultimate all-in-one platform for entrepreneurs, marketers, coaches, and agencies. Learn more at HighLevelFire.com. Nexus Install - Have a high-ticket offer? Nexus Install builds you a custom LinkedIn prospect booking system designed to generate more quality sales calls. Email JLD at John@EOFire.com to learn more.

Brad Power spent years advising major corporations on systems design, process engineering, and decision making before lymphoma shoved him into the patient side of American healthcare. Instead of accepting the experience at face value, he started reverse engineering the machinery around cancer itself. Brad is the founder of Cancer Patient Lab and Open Cancer AI, two projects built around a blunt reality most patients discover too late: the healthcare system rewards people who know how to navigate it. Everyone else risks getting steamrolled by information asymmetry, insurance barriers, administrative friction, and institutional incentives designed around efficiency instead of human survival.The conversation starts with Harvard Business Review and Tumblr blogs before moving directly into the darker architecture underneath modern cancer care. Power explains how hospitals optimize for throughput, how insurance companies reward operational consistency over personalized medicine, and why many patients quietly end up needing a crash course in oncology, reimbursement policy, and behavioral psychology while fighting for their lives.The discussion digs into CAR-T therapy, functional testing, AI assisted decision support, and the growing collision between personalized medicine and standardized care pathways. Power argues that engaged patients often get better outcomes because they learn how to push for off guideline treatments, contest denials, and ask smarter questions. The counterpoint lands hard: patients should never have needed to become experts in the first place.The episode also explores the cultural consequences of AI entering cancer care. OpenAI advertising, data privacy, trust erosion, pharmaceutical influence, and “agentic AI” all collide inside a healthcare economy already drowning in distrust. Power sees artificial intelligence as a force multiplier for patient literacy and access. The larger system still decides who gets approved, who gets delayed, and who gets left behind.By the end, the conversation lands exactly where modern healthcare keeps forcing people to land: survival increasingly depends on learning how the machine works before the machine works on you.RELATED LINKSBrad PowerCancer Patient LabOpen Cancer AIHarvard Business ReviewResearch to the PeopleCAR T Cell TherapyFEEDBACKLike this episode? Rate and review Out of Patients on your favorite podcast platform. For guest suggestions or sponsorship email podcasts@matthewzachary.comSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

At just 16 years old, Hayden Laufgraven heard the words no teenager expects:"You have leukemia."What followed was hospitalisation, chemotherapy, a bone marrow transplant, remission, relapse, another transplant, months of isolation, and learning how to never give up. In this deeply moving episode of Talking Smack 415, Jamie the Great and I sit down with Hayden to talk about what it's really like to be diagnosed with Acute Myeloid Leukemia (AML) as a teenager, the emotional toll of the diagnosis and surviving cancer, and the often-overlooked reality of PTSD after cancer treatment.Hayden shares his remarkable perspective on resilience, friendship, identity, and why surviving cancer doesn't mean the journey is over.Whether you've experienced cancer yourself, love someone who has, or simply need a reminder of the strength of the human spirit, this conversation will stay with you long after it ends. Hayden is wise beyond his years. In this episode we discuss:What it's like being diagnosed with Acute Myeloid Leukemia (AML) at age 16The signs and symptoms that led to his leukemia diagnosisChemotherapy, remission, relapse, and undergoing two bone marrow transplantsHow donor registries and bone marrow matching workThe physical and emotional impact of cancer treatmentPTSD and trauma after surviving cancerRebuilding strength after months of chemotherapy and isolationThe importance of friendship, family, and community during illnessMental resilience and finding hope through uncertaintyLife after cancer and returning to college, sports, and everyday lifeHayden's honesty, maturity, and optimism offer an extraordinary reminder that resilience isn't about pretending you're fearless—it's about continuing to move forward anyway.Follow Hayden on TikTok: @haydenlaufIf this episode resonates with you...Please subscribe, rate, and review Talking Smack 415. Sharing this episode may help someone navigating cancer, supporting a loved one through treatment, or healing from the invisible emotional scars that often remain after remission.Cancer changes lives—but so does hope.Share this episode with your friends and family who love to laugh.  Subscribe to Talking Smack 415 and leave us a rating and review so more peeps can find us for laughter and friendship to feed your soul!  

Avery HeffernanBS, School of Education and Human Sciences, 2021CERT, School of Education and Human Sciences, 2024Office Associate, UAB Department of PediatricsMore InformationAvery Heffernan - LinkedIn

Our guest this week is Damian Buchman of Wauwatosa, WI, disability advocate, cancer survivor and father of three adopted children.  This is Part 2 of the interview with Damian. At age 12, Damian was diagnosed with osteosarcoma, a rare and aggressive bone cancer, in his right leg.  Seven months later and after undergoing chemotherapy, limb-salvage surgery, and remission, he was also diagnosed with osteosarcoma in his left leg.  His physicians believed surviving two primary bilateral osteosarcomas was extraordinarily unlikely.  Because of his cancer treatments, he has undergone more than three dozen major knee replacement and revision surgeries over the years and lives with a permanent ambulatory disability.Damian and his wife, Elizabeth, have been married for 18 years.  Unable to have children of their own, due to Damian's cancer treatments, the couple adopted three children as newborns: Lenon (10), Harrison (12) and Jackson (14), who has ADHD.Rather than allowing disbility to define him, Damian has dedicated his career to expanding opportunities for people with disabilities. He is the founder of:The Ability CenterWisconsin Adaptive Sports Association, and The Opportunity Center initiative, an ambitious vision for a universally accessible recreation and wellness destination.We also learn about Damian's journey as an adaptive athlete. This is the concluding segment of this two-part interview.It's a remarkable story about beating the odds, overcoming a life-time of obstacles, living a full and meaningful life and creating opportunities for countless others.  Show Notes -Phone – (262) 385-5738Email – damian@tacwi.orgLinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/damianbuchman/The Ability Center - https://tacwi.org/Wisconsin Adaptive Sports Assn - https://www.wasa.org/The Opportunity Center - https://tocwi.org/Website: https://www.damianbuchman.comSpecial thanks to all those who supported the SFN U.S. Tour, a month-long, 50-state, 60+ stop tour that took place from May 21 to June 21, 2026: to strengthen and grow the Special Fathers Network and distribute 1,000+ complimentary copies of our new book: Dads Raising Children With Special Needs & Disabilities: A Guide For 21st Century Dads. Special Fathers Network –SFN is a dad to dad mentoring program for fathers raising children with special needs. Many of the 900+ SFN Mentor Fathers, who are raising kids with special needs, have said: “I wish there was something like this when we first received our child's diagnosis. I felt so isolated.  There was no one within my family, at work, at church or within my friend group who understood or could relate to what I was going through.”SFN Mentor Fathers share their experiences with younger dads closer to the beginning of their journey raising a child with the same or similar special needs. The SFN Mentor Fathers do NOT offer legal or medical advice, that is what lawyers and doctors do. They simply share their experiences and how they have made the most of challenging situations.Check out the 21CD YouTube Channel with dozens of videos on topics relevant to dads raising children with special needs - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCzDFCvQimWNEb158ll6Q4cA/videosPlease support the SFN. Click here to donate: https://21stcenturydads.org/donate/Special Fathers Network: https://21stcenturydads.org/  

By the time the paper hit version 71, Dr. Nirosha Murugan had already done the hard part. The data were real. The experiment had worked. A team of researchers had used a wearable bioreactor to trigger limb regeneration in frogs, a result with obvious implications for regenerative medicine. But the science still wasn't getting over the line. The problem wasn't the work. It was the translation.On this episode of Standard Deviation, host Oliver Bogler talks with Dr. Nirosha Murugan, a biophysicist and Tier II Canada Research Chair in Tissue Biophysics at Wilfrid Laurier University, about what happens when a scientist working at the edges of quantum biology, bioelectricity, and tissue regeneration runs headfirst into the unwritten rules of academic publishing. Murugan's research asks biologists to think beyond molecules and chemistry alone, and to consider the physical signals, electromagnetic fields, and invisible forces that shape development and healing. It is ambitious science. It is also exactly the kind of work that can make gatekeepers nervous.Bogler follows Murugan through the less glamorous part of discovery: the hidden curriculum of getting a paper published, securing scientific credibility, and learning that data do not simply “speak for themselves.” Murugan describes how jargon buried the pitch of her own work, how a lack of editorial support left her at a disadvantage, and how the JEDI program at the Life Science Editors Foundation paired her with a former journal editor who taught her how to structure a manuscript, write a cover letter, and survive peer review.The result was publication in Science Advances, but the larger story is about power. Who gets taught the rules of biomedical research. Who has access to grant writers, editors, and institutional polish. Who is left to brute-force their way through the maze. And how one scientist, having finally found the map, now makes sure her own trainees do not have to learn it the hard way.RELATED LINKSDr. Nirosha Murugan⁠Wilfrid Laurier University⁠Life Science Editors Foundation⁠JEDI Program⁠Science Advances paper on limb regeneration⁠FEEDBACKLike this episode? Rate and review Out of Patients on your favorite podcast platform. For guest suggestions or sponsorship email podcasts@matthewzachary.comSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Dr. Jess Peatross trained in conventional medicine and worked as a hospitalist before she started questioning why so many chronically ill patients kept getting worse inside the healthcare system she trusted. Her perspective carries weight because she spent years following every protocol exactly as taught before walking away from hospital medicine entirely.Raised in Huntington, West Virginia during the opioid crisis, she entered medicine believing the system existed to heal people. Instead, she found hospitals driven by billing codes, liability management, and pharmaceutical dependence while patients with chronic illness, autoimmune disease, mold exposure, and chronic pain cycled endlessly through appointments and prescriptions.Dr. Peatross explains what pushed her toward functional medicine, cannabis therapy, and prevention focused care after watching patients improve only after leaving conventional treatment pipelines behind. The conversation tackles physician burnout, chronic illness stigma, healthcare incentives, and the growing collapse of trust between patients and institutions.The discussion also moves into supplements, environmental toxins, ultra processed food, and the uncomfortable economics behind keeping people permanently sick but continuously billable. Dr. Peatross describes the professional backlash that comes with challenging medical orthodoxy while Matthew connects her experience to the broader erosion of public trust across American healthcare.Together they unpack what happens when patients stop believing the system can help them and start searching elsewhere for answers.RELATED LINKSDr. Jess PeatrossInstagramMarshall UniversityBrave New WeedFEEDBACKLike this episode? Rate and review Out of Patients on your favorite podcast platform. For guest suggestions or sponsorship email podcasts@matthewzachary.comSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Our guest this week is Damian Buchman of Wauwatosa, WI, disability advocate, cancer survivor and father of three adopted children. At age 12, Damian was diagnosed with osteosarcoma, a rare and aggressive bone cancer, in his right leg.  Seven months later and after undergoing chemotherapy, limb-salvage surgery, and remission, he was also diagnosed with osteosarcoma in his left leg.  His physicians believed surviving two primary bilateral osteosarcomas was extraordinarily unlikely.  Because of his cancer treatments, he has undergone more than three dozen major knee replacement and revision surgeries over the years and lives with a permanent ambulatory disability.Damian and his wife, Elizabeth, have been married for 18 years.  Unable to have children of their own, due to Damian's cancer treatments, the couple adopted three children as newborns: Lenon (10), Harrison (12) and Jackson (14), who has ADHD.Rather than allowing disbility to define him, Damian has dedicated his career to expanding opportunities for people with disabilities. He is the founder of:The Ability CenterWisconsin Adaptive Sports Association, and The Opportunity Center initiative, an ambitious vision for a universally accessible recreation and wellness destination.We also learn about Damian's journey as an adaptive athlete. It's a remarkable story about beating the odds, overcoming a life-time of obstacles, living a full and meaningful life and creating opportunities for countless others.  Show Notes -Phone – (262) 385-5738Email – damian@tacwi.orgLinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/damianbuchman/The Ability Center - https://tacwi.org/Wisconsin Adaptive Sports Assn - https://www.wasa.org/The Opportunity Center - https://tocwi.org/Website: https://www.damianbuchman.comSpecial thanks to all those who supported the SFN U.S. Tour, a month-long, 50-state, 60+ stop tour that took place from May 21 to June 21, 2026: to strengthen and grow the Special Fathers Network and distribute 1,000+ complimentary copies of our new book: Dads Raising Children With Special Needs & Disabilities: A Guide For 21st Century Dads. Special Fathers Network –SFN is a dad to dad mentoring program for fathers raising children with special needs. Many of the 900+ SFN Mentor Fathers, who are raising kids with special needs, have said: “I wish there was something like this when we first received our child's diagnosis. I felt so isolated.  There was no one within my family, at work, at church or within my friend group who understood or could relate to what I was going through.”SFN Mentor Fathers share their experiences with younger dads closer to the beginning of their journey raising a child with the same or similar special needs. The SFN Mentor Fathers do NOT offer legal or medical advice, that is what lawyers and doctors do. They simply share their experiences and how they have made the most of challenging situations.Check out the 21CD YouTube Channel with dozens of videos on topics relevant to dads raising children with special needs - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCzDFCvQimWNEb158ll6Q4cA/videosPlease support the SFN. Click here to donate: https://21stcenturydads.org/donate/Special Fathers Network: https://21stcenturydads.org/  

Dr. Jeff Musgrave, PT, DPT, shares 3 research-based tips to improve results with those who have survived cancer!

What does it take to keep going when things get tough?In this episode of the Market Maker Podcast, Anthony Cheung is joined by endurance cyclist, two-time cancer survivor and motivational speaker James Golding for a conversation about resilience, mental toughness and performing under pressure. While James has completed some of the world's toughest endurance challenges, this isn't a podcast about cycling. It's about the mindset behind sustained success and how anyone can apply those lessons in their career.Together they explore how to deal with rejection, overcome self-doubt, recover from setbacks and stay focused on long-term goals. Whether you're preparing for interviews, working in investment banking, trading, or simply looking to become more resilient in your professional life, this episode is full of practical insights that can be applied immediately.If you've ever wondered what separates those who thrive under pressure from those who give up, this is an episode you won't want to miss.(00:00) Introduction(01:30) James Golding's Story(06:20) Why Cycling Changed Everything(10:33) Cycling Across America(14:28) Building Resilience(24:12) Small Wins Matter(28:35) The Power of Reflection(32:21) Overcoming Self-Doubt(35:30) Performing Under Pressure(41:52) Why Your Team Matters(50:05) Dealing with Rejection(55:46) Tour de France Challenge21 stages of the Tour de France in just 12 days - DONATEJames Speaker enquiries - info@onestepatatimeuk.com

Becca sits down with one of her closest friends, Asha Mevlana, for an honest conversation about becoming a single mom by choice. Asha opens up about choosing the sperm donor route, raising her son with complete honesty about his story, building the village of support every parent needs, and the life lessons she's determined to pass on. It's a heartfelt, eye-opening episode about redefining what family looks like, and why there's no one right way to become a parent.Purchase Asha's book, To Hell With NO! Adventures In Finally Saying YES!: https://www.ashamevlana.com/book Thank you for supporting our sponsors!BabyGang is presented by Better Help. Sign up and get 10% off at https://BetterHelp.com/BABYGANGSkylight Frames: Go to https://MySkylight.com/BABYGANG for $30 off your 15-inch Calendar.HERS: Ready to reach your goals? Visit https://forhers.com/babygang to get personalized, affordable care that gets you.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Farla Efros is a senior retail executive and former CEO who built and sold companies before facing her own breast cancer diagnosis. She brings that same operational mindset into a healthcare system that expects patients to manage complexity while they are at their most vulnerable.She was on a client call in Spain when the diagnosis came through. A clear mammogram had missed it. An MRI caught it. Within hours, she was ordering binders, building a plan, and structuring her treatment like a turnaround strategy. Every appointment became a meeting. Every doctor faced an agenda with dozens of questions. She paid out of pocket for PET scans that were denied and hired a third party firm to validate her treatment path when her own doctors resisted outside input. The conversation tracks what happens when a high-functioning executive enters a system built on delay, denial, and fragmentation. Efros describes negotiating for tests, managing physician relationships, and assembling an “executive board” of advisors across conventional and alternative care. She calls the experience “the worst client I ever had,” exposing how administrative burden shifts onto patients and families.The tension sits between what worked for her and what is inaccessible to most. Her approach requires confidence, time, and fluency in navigating power. The system rewards that behavior while quietly failing patients who cannot replicate it. Insurance coverage still left her paying out of pocket. Doctors pushed standard protocols over precision medicine. Survivorship offered little support once treatment ended.This episode examines how cancer care operates as a series of incentives rather than a coordinated system, and why patients are forced to become operators just to get through it.RELATED LINKSFarla EfrosFarla Efros on LinkedInF*ck CancerF*ck Cancer on AmazonAccentureCTOAMPULL QUOTES“I treated cancer like the worst client I ever had.”“They wouldn't approve the test, so I paid for it myself.”“Every appointment was a negotiation.”FEEDBACKLike this episode? Rate and review Out of Patients on your favorite podcast platform. For guest suggestions or sponsorship email podcasts@matthewzachary.comSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

What do you do when life changes in an instant?In this powerful and deeply inspiring episode, I sit down with Tim McDonald—research advocate, speaker, podcast host, and author of From Patient to Advocate: Turning Survivorship into Impact. Tim shares his remarkable journey from a life-altering stage IV cancer diagnosis to becoming a voice of hope, change, and advocacy for others.At age 52, thriving in his career and with no family history of colorectal cancer, Tim heard the words no one expects: “You have cancer.” Not only that—but it had already progressed to stage IV and spread to his liver.What followed wasn't just a fight for survival.It became a mission.

Fan Mail: Tell Wendy how you're saying yes to yourself!In this episode, Wendy sits down with Cara Lockwood, a USA Today bestselling author. When Cara was diagnosed with breast cancer, she discovered something unexpected: you don't have to be positive to be strong. You can fight cancer salty, sarcastic, and real. In this conversation, she talks about the power of authenticity, the mythology of toxic positivity, and why the universe responds to your vibration, not your words.They explore:Why vulnerability isn't weakness, and how being honest about fear, anger, and overwhelm is actually the strongest choice you can makeYou still get to decide: how to maintain agency and power even when crisis feels like it's driving the busFocus as a superpower: how intentionally looking for joy (an English muffin with jam or a cup of tea) grounds you and helps change what's possibleCara's whole philosophy is about refusing to choose between authenticity and strength. You don't have to fake positivity to access joy. You don't have to deny the hard thing to focus on what you love. What matters is your vibration, your focus, and your willingness to stay real about where you are while choosing what brings you alive. That's how you keep your power: not by pretending everything's fine, but by refusing to let the hard thing be the only thing.Connect with Cara:CaraTheAuthor.comHer Books: caratheauthor.com/authorInstagram: instagram.com/cara.the.authorLinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/cara-tanamachi-lockwood-benoit-563b5040Referenced in this Episode:A Course in Miracles (Wendy's favorite links):apps.apple.com/us/app/acim-remind/id737568020amazon.com/Course-Miracles-Combined-Quality/dp/1883360242?tag=syty-20marianne.com/acim/________________________________________________________________________________________Connect with Wendy:LinkedinInstagram: @wendy.harropFacebook: Phineas Wright HouseWebsite: Phineas Wright House PWH Farm StaysPWH Curated Experience and TravelInterested in being a guest on the show? Send your pitch to podcast@phineaswrighthouse.comPodcast Production By Shannon Warner of Resonant Collective Want to start your own podcast? Let's chat!If this episode resonated, follow Say YES to Yourself! and leave a  5-star review. It helps more women in midlife discover the tools, stories, and community that make saying YES not only possible, but powerful.

Send us Fan MailRane Bowen is a seasoned software and web developer with over 20 years of experience in the technology sector. Originally from New Zealand, Rane now resides in Melbourne, Australia, where he combines his passion for technology and yoga. He is the co-host of the Flow Artist Podcast alongside his wife, Jo Stewart, a yoga teacher and author. Rane is the creator of innovative platforms like Sound Made Scene and Guest Made Simple, designed to enhance the podcasting experience. He is also a yoga teacher who has used yoga as a tool for healing and personal growth.Visit Rane: https://gardenofyoga.com.au/Key Takeaways:Rane Bowen has a rich background in software development and utilizes his skills to enhance podcasting through AI-driven tools like Sound Made Scene.His experience as a yoga teacher and cancer survivor gives him a unique perspective on combining technology with holistic practices.The advances in AI are transforming industries, but Rane underscores the importance of using these tools responsibly and creatively.Platforms like Sound Made Scene and Guest Made Simple aim to simplify the podcasting process by automating tedious tasks and improving workflow.Rane highlights the significance of approaching tech innovations with both optimism and skepticism to balance progress with ethical considerations.Check out:

Skate, Paint, Heal: Rewiring Trauma into Flow with Brett Ashby Contemporary Performance Artist with 20+ Years of International Practice Creating Portrait Paintings While Rolling and Exploring Human Connection Brett Ashby is a multidisciplinary artist working in painting, photography, video, sculpture, and installation, grounded in formal training and over two decades of international practice. He innovatively merges movement-driven painting with live performance, notably painting while skateboarding, to dissolve fear, balance, and synchronicity into layered, expressive works. His distinctive, gestural style unites physicality with compositional discipline, making each artwork a dynamic record of being present. Ashby's art radiates energy, vulnerability, and deep human connection, inviting the viewer to feel the resonance of body, space, and collective experience.Linkshttps://www.brettashby.com/https://www.instagram.com/brettashbyartist@brettashbyartist Tagspodcast for creatives,creative podcast,podcast creator interviews,professional podcast,creative podcasts,podcast host interviews,creative podcast ideas,Artist,Cancer Survivor,Entrepreneur,Entrepreneurial Mindset,Mental Health,Music Producer,Painter,Performing Arts,Trauma Recovery,Visual ArtsSupport PEG by checking out our Sponsors:Download and use Newsly for free now from www.newsly.me or from the link in the description, and use promo code “GHOST” and receive a 1-month free premium subscription.The best tool for getting podcast guests:https://podmatch.com/signup/phantomelectricghostSubscribe to our Instagram for exclusive content:https://www.instagram.com/expansive_sound_experiments/Subscribe to our YouTube https://youtube.com/@phantomelectricghost?si=rEyT56WQvDsAoRprRSShttps://anchor.fm/s/3b31908/podcast/rssSubstackhttps://substack.com/@phantomelectricghost?utm_source=edit-profile-page

In 2020, Emily Mendenhall drove from Washington, DC to Okoboji, Iowa, a town of 800 that swells to 200,000 every summer, and walked into a pandemic that looked nothing like the one dominating national headlines. Inside gas stations and bars, masks marked you as an outsider. In one stop, a man told her family they would not be served if they kept theirs on. Her 6 year old daughter cried, confused. Mendenhall, a medical anthropologist at Georgetown University, did what she always does. She started asking questions. Over months, she interviewed neighbors, former classmates, and local officials, including her own brother in law who helped lead the local COVID response. The result became Unmasked, a case study in how community identity, economics, and politics shaped public health decisions in real time. That work led directly into her latest book, Invisible Illness: A History, from Hysteria to Long COVID, where she tracks a much older problem. Patients with chronic illness, especially women, often fail to meet medicine's demand for proof. Without a clear diagnosis, they lose access to care, insurance coverage, and legitimacy. Mendenhall argues that long COVID did not create this failure. It exposed it.This conversation centers on how healthcare systems reward certainty and punish complexity. Long COVID clinics send patients to 17 specialists without resolution. Insurance structures require diagnoses that many conditions cannot provide. Medical training still struggles to integrate trauma, mental health, and chronic disease into a coherent model of care.Mendenhall brings lived experience into the conversation. After COVID, she dealt with months of fatigue and escalating anxiety that altered her baseline health. She does not claim the label of long COVID, but she understands how quickly the system becomes harder to navigate once symptoms stop fitting clean categories. The stakes are not theoretical. In the United States, access to healthcare, disability benefits, and treatment still depends on whether a condition can be measured, coded, and reimbursed. For millions living with invisible illness, the burden of proof becomes the illness itself.RELATED LINKSEmily MendenhallInvisible Illness: A History, from Hysteria to Long COVIDScience PoliticsGeorgetown UniversityFEEDBACKLike this episode? Rate and review Out of Patients on your favorite podcast platform. For guest suggestions or sponsorship email podcasts@matthewzachary.comSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Join us as Tim McDonald shares his inspiring journey through cancer, mental health challenges, and community advocacy. Discover practical tips for managing stress, the power of community, and how writing and podcasting can be therapeutic."We can't control what happens, only how we react."Chapters00:00 Facing the Diagnosis: A Journey Begins01:50 The Power of Community and Advocacy05:33 Mental Health and Survivor Guilt09:28 Finding Purpose Through Writing11:41 Practical Mental Health Strategies15:40 Advice for Navigating Tough Times"Pretending it's not there is not healthy."Other Takeaways*Mental health challenges during cancer treatment*The role of community and support groups in recovery*Writing and podcasting as therapeutic tools*Stress management techniques: walks, reflection, and perspective*The importance of control over reactions, not events*Building advocacy for chronic illness and mental healthSupport the showEnjoy the show and thank you for being here. Please subscribe to stay current and share with a friend who could use this episode.All questions for the host or guest: Email Danica at PodcastsByLanci@gmail.com.This show is brought to you by Living Proof TBI Coaching specializing in recovery for Traumatic Brain Injury Survivors, Families, and CaregiversCRISIS LINE: DIAL 988

At 25, Jace Yawnick was building a career in health and wellness sales, chasing growth, status, and the usual young adult fantasy of getting somewhere fast. Then his body stopped cooperating. Fatigue turned into chemotherapy. The diagnosis was primary mediastinal B cell non Hodgkin lymphoma, and the rest of his life split into before and after. Now in remission, he talks about cancer the way people actually live it, not the way nonprofits package it. He gets into survivorship, mental health, young adult isolation, and the deadening absurdity of prior authorization. One of the sharpest parts of the conversation lands on a simple American insult disguised as policy: treatment innovation means very little when insurance can still deny the scan, the drug, or the next step. Jace has seen that firsthand, including during routine monitoring after active treatment. This episode tracks what happens when a young cancer patient becomes a public voice and refuses to play mascot. It covers oncology, insurance, remission, advocacy, and the long mental hangover that follows survival. It also names the part too many institutions dodge: the system works great right up until it doesn't, and when it fails, patients get handed the bill, the panic, and a camera if they want anyone to care. RELATED LINKSJace Beats CancerJace Yawnick on LinkedImConquer Cancer ArticleCURE Today ArticlePyure BrandsFEEDBACKLike this episode? Rate and review Out of Patients on your favorite podcast platform. For guest suggestions or sponsorship email podcasts@matthewzachary.comSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

At 20 years old, newly arrived from Puerto Rico and trying to build a future in science, Benjamin Suarez Jimenez found himself sitting in front of two senior faculty members accused of plagiarism. He knew the material. He had done the work. His mistake came from failing to cite class notes during an exam because nobody had told him that was expected. In a matter of minutes, he watched what felt like his entire career flash before him.On this episode of Standard Deviation, host Oliver Bogler examines the hidden architecture of academic science through the experiences of Dr. Benjamin Suarez Jimenez, Assistant Professor at the University of Rochester and a neuroscientist studying PTSD, anxiety, trauma, and spatial cognition through virtual reality and video game environments.Benjamin traces his path from Puerto Rico to the mainland United States, through the NIH, Columbia University, and eventually to leading his own laboratory. Along the way, he encountered a series of barriers that had little to do with scientific ability and everything to do with access to unwritten rules. From academic gatekeeping to grant writing expectations, he learned that success in biomedical research often depends on knowledge that never appears in a textbook.Oliver explores how those invisible obstacles shape careers, influence research funding, and determine who gains access to opportunity. The conversation also examines the Justice, Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion Program at the Life Science Editors Foundation, which pairs scientists from underrepresented backgrounds with experienced scientific editors. Through that mentorship, Benjamin transformed a critical grant proposal into a successful pilot award that helped launch an NIH R01 application.The discussion extends beyond one scientist's experience. Benjamin describes helping a former mentee navigate dissertation roadblocks that threatened her graduation, illustrating how institutional bureaucracy can delay careers and discourage talented researchers. Together, they explore the hidden administrative burden, cultural barriers, and bias that many scientists carry alongside their research, and what happens when someone who receives support turns around and opens the door for others.RELATED LINKSLife Science Editors FoundationBenjamin Suarez Jimenez LabDr. Benjamin Suarez JimenezBenjamin Suarez JimenezFEEDBACKLike this episode? Rate and review Out of Patients on your favorite podcast platform. For guest suggestions or sponsorship email podcasts@matthewzachary.comSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.