Archive for February 2022

Fast-growing breast cancers can seem to come out of nowhere. That’s what it was like for today’s guest, Selena Smith-Albino [pronounced al-BEAN-oh], when she felt a lump in her left breast six months after getting a clean bill of health following a mammogram. The diagnosis of stage 3 invasive ductal carcinoma led to her decision to undergo genetic testing. Her test results would have repercussions for her entire family. Selena joins us today to share what she’s learned through her experiences that can help other women. Selena, thank you for being our guest!

After completing breast cancer treatment, many women want to leave the experience far behind them and not think about it again. That’s perfectly understandable. Others find that the experience changes their thinking about what they want to do with their life. Our guest today is one of those people. After two cancer diagnoses, she decided to devote her career to helping women navigate the challenges of breast cancer. She is a Community Programs Manager for Stand for H.E.R.—a Health Equity Revolution, a focused initiative to decrease breast cancer disparities in the Black community by 25 percent, beginning in the U.S. metropolitan areas where inequities are greatest. Joining us to walk us through her journey and talk about her work with Stand for H.E.R. is Kamesha Miles. Kamesha, welcome!

A range of factors can contribute to the development of breast cancer, a fact that Dr. Lauren McCullough, an Atlanta-based breast cancer epidemiologist, knows all too well. She studies a wide-range of contributing factors – from race and ethnicity, to genetics and other biomarkers. Black women are still diagnosed at later stages, with more aggressive tumors and are less likely to survive. But advances in research are leading to improvements in breast cancer care for Black women, and for all women. Here to tell us about her research and the advances we might see in the future is Dr. Lauren McCullough. Thank you for joining us; we’re so pleased to have you with us today!

Women don’t necessarily have to accept the first breast cancer diagnosis we receive; we can seek a second medical opinion. That’s what our next guest, Se’Nita Harris, did. And it proved to be a smart move. It turns out that her diagnosis of metaplastic breast cancer was inaccurate. She actually had triple negative breast cancer, which called for a different treatment. Se’Nita is here today to talk about the importance of women advocating for themselves. Thank you for joining us!