Real Talk About Breast Cancer

A breast cancer diagnosis can bring a wide range of emotions, including shock, fear, sadness and anger. These feelings are normal. Some people find joining a support group or talking to a counselor or therapist helpful in coping with these feelings. Today’s guest is a Komen staff member and a licensed clinical social worker with experience helping patients through the transitions that they face through their cancer diagnosis and treatment. Here today to talk to us about the impact of diagnosis on mental health and some helpful strategies to help cope is Amy Culver.

[00:00:00] Adam Walker: Support for The Real Pink Podcast comes from Merck, from Susan G. Komen. This is Real Pink, a podcast exploring real stories, struggles, and triumphs related to breast cancer. We’re taking the conversation from the doctor’s office to your living room. Welcome to the Komen Health Equity Revolution podcast series. Each month…

The breast health inequities that Black women in the U.S. experience are a social imperative that calls for collective action. Black women are about 40% more likely to die from breast cancer than white women. To help address these inequities in Indianapolis, a group of community organizations recently came together to host a discussion about community-based resources that service breast cancer patients, to identify resource gaps and to discuss how they can work collectively to ensure Black women have access to the breast health care and support they need in their community. Lisa Hayes, the Director of Women’s Health at Gennesaret Free Clinic and Executive Director of Pink-4-Ever Ending Disparities, is here today to tell us about this initiative and how this community is coming together to collectively use their resources to support the women in their area.

[00:00:00] Adam Walker: From Susan G Komen, this is Real Pink, a podcast exploring real stories, struggles, and triumphs related to breast cancer. We’re taking the conversation from the doctor’s office to your living room. This is Real Talk, a new podcast series where we’re going to break down the stigmas and feelings of embarrassment…

Current law requires insurance companies to cover the cost of annual mammograms for women over the age of 40, without any cost to the woman. Unfortunately, individuals at a higher risk of breast cancer or those requiring follow-up imaging due to an abnormal mammogram result will likely be facing hundreds to thousands of dollars in patient cost sharing. Komen strongly supports policies that eliminate the out-of-pocket cost of these medically necessary tests. Today’s guest was diagnosed with breast cancer after having to pay nearly $2,000 out-of-pocket for diagnostic tests, all before she even got to treatment. She was grateful she could afford it, but now wants to help other women to make sure they have the resources they need to get their appropriate diagnosis. Renee Williams White is here today to share more about her story, the importance of screening and how she recently played a part in helping Susan G. Komen’s Center for Public Policy pass legislation in Maryland to do just that.

Breast cancer screening and early detection play an important role in your health. Screening tests can help detect breast cancer at an early stage when the chances of survival are highest. In this episode, we will dive into the importance of screening and how that can help with early detection. As part of this conversation, we will also discuss why genetic counseling and testing is so important, along with the importance of having discussions about family health history, especially in Black families. Joining us for this discussion is Sharon Anderson, who is living with metastatic inflammatory breast cancer.