Best Breast and Gynecological Cancer Podcasts
[ad_1]
Breast cancer is the second most common cancer among women, but 2,300 cases are diagnosed in men each year. Women are about 100 times more likely to be diagnosed with breast cancer and account for 240,000 cases in the United States annually, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
Another 94,000 cases of gynecological cancers — which include cervical cancer, ovarian cancer, uterine cancer, vaginal cancer, and vulvar cancer — are diagnosed every year, according to the CDC. Since cervical cancer is the only gynecological cancer that can be detected through routine screening, it’s important to know the signs and symptoms, and to advocate for yourself at the doctor’s office.
Cancer podcasts hosted by doctors and medical organizations can be helpful sources of information, but if you’ve been diagnosed with breast or gynecological cancer, sometimes you just need to level with someone who has been affected by cancer and understands the nuances. These hosts have been through it and aren’t afraid to talk about the tough stuff — and neither are their guests. These podcasts cover topics like survivorship, advocacy, caregiving, grief, entrepreneurship, and more.
Cervivor Podcast
When she was just 25 years old, Tamika Felder was diagnosed with cervical cancer. She faced chemotherapy and radiation and surgery to remove her cervix and uterus, along with judgment some people showed toward her cancer diagnosis, which was linked to a sexually transmitted infection (STI).
Felder founded Cervivor, a global community of patient advocates who work to increase access to education about cervical cancer, influence decision-makers, and create change in an effort to end cervical cancer. Felder also hosts the organization’s monthly podcast.
“This podcast was started out of a need to share our stories. Not only because of the stigma of HPV that is associated with cervical cancer, but for those who think cervical cancer is an easy cancer,” Felder says.
According to the CDC, 90 percent of cervical cancer is caused by the human papillomavirus (HPV), and nearly all cervical cancer can be prevented by the HPV vaccination. A combination of the vaccine and screenings make cervical cancer one of the most preventable types of cancer — but not everyone knows this. Felder hopes that by creating a network of advocates around the world, Cervivor will be able to help people understand how they can prevent and even eliminate cervical cancer. The Cervivor Podcast is for cancer thrivers, clinicians, and even people who haven’t been affected by the disease.
“For patients, I hope they feel supported and seen. For clinicians, I hope that it helps them better serve patients. For the general audience, I hope it spreads awareness and leads to understanding and empathy, as well as increased HPV vaccinations and cervical cancer screenings,” says Felder.
The archives are filled with the kind information people with a cervical cancer diagnosis may not even be aware they need. The first episode, “Dry Panties, Depends, and Urine. What Does This Have to Do With Cervical Cancer?!” is a great example. But where the podcast really shines is with its thriver stories. “There is considerable loss and trauma with any chronic illness. With cervical cancer some of the top issues are sexual dysfunction and loss of fertility. That plays not only into the physical issues of a cervical cancer diagnosis, but the emotional well-being of patients as well. Sharing these stories via the podcast provides an additional layer of community, support, and resource sharing,” says Felder. “It’s a reminder that you are not alone.”
Where to start Felder recommends season 1 episode 5: “Acceptance of Death: How She Is Making Her Story Matter, With Guest Lisa Moore.” “What seems like a difficult episode to listen to is truly empowering and inspirational,” she says. Moore recorded the interview four months before cervical cancer took her life. “She knew she was dying. There was no miracle happening, and she had accepted that. To this day I am still in awe of her vulnerability. She didn’t have to share in that way, but she wanted to. She wanted people to know what cervical cancer had not only done to her but taken away from her,” says Felder.
In a video, Moore, who was diagnosed with cervical cancer at age 26, tells Cervivor, “If I can help someone else from going through this, that’s the best I have to offer.”
Listen to Cervivor Podcast
Down There Aware
At 32 years old, Alex Massey was told she would never get to experience being pregnant. She had been diagnosed with stage 1 endometrial cancer. The recommended treatment was a total hysterectomy. “It was a devastating surgery for someone who had always looked forward to carrying and giving birth to a baby,” Massey says.
Endometrial cancer is the most common type of uterine cancer, and uterine cancer is one of the few types of cancers that’s actually on the rise in the United States. According to the CDC, uterine cancer cases rose by 0.7 percent year over year from 1995 to 2015, and deaths climbed by 1 percent every year.
Black women are twice as likely to be diagnosed with uterine cancer in their lifetimes, according to the National Cancer Institute. But regular screening can catch the cancer early, when it’s treatable, and knowing the signs and symptoms increases the chances uterine cancer will be detected early.
“I had several very common endometrial cancer symptoms prior to diagnosis and they were all dismissed for an array of reasons, including my weight and family history,” says Massey.
More than anything, she recalls being shocked by her diagnosis. “My cancer journey completely interrupted and changed the trajectory of my life. Not that you can ever be prepared for such news, but I felt especially shocked because none of my doctors had ever discussed symptoms or risk factors for endometrial cancer with me,” says Massey. “I had no idea what signs to look for or that endometrial cancer was even a possibility. In fact, I was actually told by a gynecologist that I was too young to get this type of cancer.”
Massey parlayed her shock into action. She wanted to make sure other women knew both the signs of uterine cancer and how to advocate for themselves, and created Down There Aware with her mother and cohost, Mary, in early January 2020 to do just that. The podcast offers a unique multigenerational perspective on all things uterine health and what every person with a uterus needs to know about their risk of cancer.
“Since starting the podcast with the goal of spreading the word about endometrial cancer, we have both become increasingly aware of all five types of gynecologic cancers, and the common issues surrounding awareness, research, and funding,” says Massey.
“We now consider DTA an advocate for holistic gynecologic health and wellness and we want to open conversations with physicians to help them understand the patient perspective.”
They also want to raise awareness about how data is showing new trends in who is getting diagnosed with uterine cancer, which was previously thought to only impact postmenopausal women, and the importance of advocating for your own health. “If there is one thing we want our listeners to take away from the podcast, it would be the importance of having an annual pelvic exam. Beyond that, it is extremely important for women to advocate for themselves during an annual doctor’s visit and to be prepared. You know your body better than anyone else, so if something seems off, speak up until your questions are answered thoroughly,” says Massey.
Where to start The Masseys did an episode titled “Did They Really Just Say That?” in which they discuss the things people said to them and others about cancer and caregiving that made them cringe. For cancer thrivers and caregivers, it’s a source of solidarity, and a good listen for anyone looking for tips on what to say to someone who has recently been diagnosed with any type of cancer.
Listen to Down There Aware
Sips With Survivors
Randalynn Vasel was 36 years old when her doctor told her she had ovarian cancer and that it was aggressive. She was a single mom of two young kids and living in St. Louis when she underwent a six-hour debulking surgery, surgically induced menopause , and found out that she also had endometrial cancer. Nine-hundred miles away, in Denver, Vicki Campana was 37 years old and trying for a baby when she was diagnosed with 3A granulosa cell tumor (GCT) ovarian cancer. After six months of chemo and failed fertility preservation, Campana tested positive for the ATM gene mutation, which put her at a higher risk of breast cancer. She opted to have a preventive mastectomy.
Ovarian cancer is the second most common gynecological cancer in the United States and causes more deaths than any other type of gynecological cancer, the CDC reports. “Neither of us knew a thing about ovarian cancer before our diagnosis and we don’t share the same type of ovarian cancer,” notes Vasel. The two met on Instagram, when Vasel slid into Campana’s DMs back in 2017 asking if she was going to share her story on World Ovarian Cancer Day. “What started as two ovarian cancer survivors chatting back and forth turned into us meeting by chance,” Vasel says, referring to the time, nine months after that initial message, when the thrivers just happened to both be vacationing in Florida and were able to meet in person for the first time.
The two kept in touch, and in April 2021, they debuted their podcast, Sips With Survivors. The weekly episodes cover useful cancer information such as “What Is a Chemo Bag?” and topics specifically geared toward caregivers who are looking for insight on how to help their loved one navigate their ovarian cancer diagnosis. They also feature guests who discuss their cancer journeys. The duo’s conversations come so easily, you’d never guess the two have hung out in person only a couple of times. “We hope listeners find that our personalities come through and we make the hard topics a bit easier to listen to,” says Vasel. “By sharing our journey and how we’ve navigated everything from diagnosis to survivorship, we hope it helps one person feel not as alone.”
Where to start The “It’s OK to Change” episode is a great discussion about the ways people change over time, especially after a traumatic experience. It opens up a post-cancer discussion that talks about how cancer can change the way you behave in other areas of your life.
Listen to Sips with Survivors
Breast Cancer Conversations
At 34 years old, Laura Carfang was diagnosed with Stage 2B breast cancer after she found a lump. But that wasn’t the beginning of her journey. She actually spent two years prior getting dismissed by doctors and told that the lump was nothing — until she started noticing dimpling and changes in the skin.
“It was only when the lump was growing that my doctor said I should get a diagnostic mammogram — I had never had one before,” recalls Carfang, now 41, once a strict vegan with no family history of breast cancer.
The recommended treatment was chemotherapy, radiation and a bilateral lumpectomy that included axillary node dissection, which revealed that three nodes were involved.
And, while Carfang documented her experience by uploading YouTube videos about her port, her scars and what it was like to lose her hair, when she finished treatment at the end of 2017, she felt a big void.
“I remember saying to my husband ‘what do I do next?’ she says. “I just had this life-changing experience and a life-threatening disease. This puts things into perspective of what’s important, what’s next and how short life is.”
The couple decided to create Surviving Breast Cancer, a non-profit that provides education, community, inspiration, support and hope to anyone going through breast cancer. One year later, the couple launched Breast Cancer Conversations, their weekly podcast (each one airs on Monday) and, since then, they’ve aired over 200 episodes. They have listeners in over 81 countries and have 120,000 downloads to date.
“We wanted to get information out there in as many ways possible in a variety of modalities,” says Carfang, podcast host and executive director of the non-profit. “You can go to YouTube to watch our videos, to our website if you’re up at midnight Googling and want content, listen to the podcast while you’re multitasking or get inspiration while you’re in the chemo chair.”
Where to start Carfang did an episode titled “Understanding Breast Cancer Screening Modalities With Experts Dr. Dibble and Dr. Rauch,” in which she was joined by two experts in breast cancer imaging. The three discussed the latest advancements in breast cancer diagnosis and treatment. Carfang calls this an “excellent start” for anyone interested in learning more about breast cancer — and all that this podcast has to offer.
Listen to Breast Cancer Conversations
Our MBC Life
For Victoria Goldberg, executive producer of Our MBC Life, each episode is personal — and critical.
That’s because she was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2004 when she was 43, and then faced another diagnosis when her cancer spread to her liver.
“I’m lucky that there has been so much progress in my cancer subtype,” says Goldberg, who is on long-term disability and works on the podcast as a volunteer. “I have one of the most aggressive cancers, but I’m still here ten years later.”
And when she met Lisa Laudico, another metastatic breast cancer survivor at a support group in New York City who suggested launching a podcast, Goldberg was all in. The two then began working with SHARE Cancer support, a national nonprofit that supports breast and gynecologic cancer patients.
“At the time, I had no idea what a podcast was,” she says of the podcast’s inception in 2020. So far, 60,000 listeners in 132 countries have tuned in over the past three years.
The goal of the podcast, which airs in two seasons, spring and fall, with an episode airing every other Wednesday, is to explore life with metastatic breast cancer from the perspective of the people living with this disease and the experts who partner with MBC patients to help make their lives better. So far, the team has aired 130 episodes.
“When it comes to stage 4 cancer, it’s known to be terminal and not curable—that’s the premise we live with,” she says. “It’s the only stage of breast cancer that kills because every other earlier stage is still curable. With our podcast, we wanted to turn our listeners into advocates for themselves. Our mission was also to create a safe space for people living with metastatic cancer.”
Where to start The team did an episode titled “Lara MacGregor: How To Decline Well With Hope,” which features a patient at the end of her life. One of the podcast’s most downloaded episodes, Lisa Laudico, founder of the podcast recorded this conversation with MacGregor, a patient advocate and founder of a non-profit. “This is a raw and honest conversation between two remarkable women about living and dying,” Goldberg says. “We don’t shy away from difficult topics.”
Listen to Our MBC Life
GOSH Podcast
In British Columbia, Canada, there’s a small team of researchers, mostly from the University of British Columbia, who work tirelessly on GOSH, Gynecologic Oncology Sharing Hub, a podcast they created to make sure there was an open space for real and evidence-based discussion on gynecologic cancers.
Stephanie Lam, a researcher, who launched the podcast with Nicole Keay, a cervical cancer survivor, in 2020 says the podcast was really Keay’s idea and, since its inception the team has created such episodes as “Resilience and Wellness: Navigating Ovarian Cancer with Knowledge and Advocacy,” “How Does a Cancer Diagnosis Impact the People You Love” and “Equitable Access to Cervical Cancer Testing.”
“When Nicole was receiving treatment, I remember her saying that she wished there was a way to connect with other stories and understand what’s happening, research wise,” Lam says. “That’s why we share the stories of gynecologic cancer patients and survivors and connect with researchers and clinicians who are working behind the scenes to improve the lives of people with gynecologic cancers.”
During each monthly episode — they’ve aired four seasons to date — the team tries to cover topics along the spectrum of the continuum of care.
“From prevention to early detection to treatment to survivorship, we try to cover everything someone with gynecologic cancer might need,” Lam says.
Where to start In its third season, the team produced an episode titled “Gynecologic Cancer: Your Journey,” aimed at empowering and supporting gynecologic cancer patients on their challenging journeys. This episode is a collaboration between cancer patients and a diverse team of medical experts and specialists.
Listen to GOSH
Additional reporting by Kaitlin Sullivan.
[ad_2]
