Real Talk About Breast Cancer

There is no way around it, breast cancer is hard. But as our guest today will tell you, trying to remain upbeat throughout treatment can have a positive impact on your life. Amy Elizabeth Chalmers Hicks brings a unique perspective. She was adopted so she doesn’t know her biological family’s health history, leaving her to navigate two cancer diagnoses without the insights many rely on to understand risk. However, despite these unknowns, when she found a lump, she stayed at ease, started treatment right away, surrounded herself with people who were loving and supportive and made a deep commitment to keeping a positive attitude. She is here today to share her inspiring story with us.

Men often don’t think of themselves as having breasts. For men, it’s their chest or their “pecs.” So it may come as a surprise to learn men are at risk of breast cancer. The fact is men have breast tissue and can get breast cancer. In the U.S., less than 1% of all cases occur in men, but it does happen. Today we are joined by Jake Messier, a man living with metastatic breast cancer, after being misdiagnosed twice and finally learning in August 2024 that it had advanced. Jake openly shares his story across active social media platforms and is dedicated to spreading awareness of male breast cancer, as well as the distinct mental and physical health struggles that go largely unaddressed when a man is navigating what is typically seen as a woman’s disease.

As we close out the year, we’re shining a light on the quiet, powerful work happening every day inside Komen’s Patient Care Center. In this special episode, we sit down with two of our remarkable patient navigators — Marcela Orozco and Ladoya Mayfield — to share the biggest impact stories of the year. From helping Spanish-speaking callers break through language barriers to supporting Houston communities facing some of the highest burdens of breast cancer, Marcela and Ladoya bring humanity, hope and heart into the lives of people going through one of their hardest moments.

We are thrilled to be joined by the co-founder of the Home Edit. She is an Emmy-nominated, NY Times best-selling author, a mom, a wife and a breast cancer survivor - the amazing Clea Shearer. Clea is here to talk about her shocking breast cancer diagnosis at the age of 40, the ongoing reconstruction complications that she has had to endure over the past three years and the unexpected lessons that have come with all of it. Clea’s new book is aptly called Cancer is Complicated and she is here to tell us all about how true that statement really is!

Children can be one of life’s greatest blessings. Breast cancer survivors Alex Miles-Stiffler and Sara Galher-Barlow long for larger families but their diagnoses put those dreams farther and farther out of reach. Alex struggled to start a family before her diagnosis. The heart ache she felt after two miscarriages was unbearable at times, and her fertility challenges only grew after breast cancer treatment, but she wasn’t giving up on the family she dreamed of having. Sara always knew she wanted several children. She was blessed with a precious daughter prior to being diagnosed, but her cancer was aggressive and treatment couldn’t wait. She had to forego egg preservation, and the uncertainty of fertility along with the cost of fertility treatments will make it harder to grow her family.

nowledge is power, and when it comes to breast cancer, having access to accurate, up-to-date information can make all the difference. That’s why Susan G. Komen is committed to providing trusted educational resources that empower patients, caregivers and families to make informed decisions about their care. Today we are joined by Jessica Thompson, who is both a survivor and health communication scientist, to walk us through where the breast cancer community can turn to find comprehensive, unbiased information, what they will find there and the vigorous review process that Komen uses to create its content, starting with their long standing partnership with Dana-Farber/Harvard Cancer Center.