Breastcancer.org Podcasts: Experts discuss research & issues
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Triple-Negative Breast Cancer and the TRIM37 Protein
Is the TRIM37 protein one reason why Black women are more likely to be diagnosed with triple-negative breast cancer? Dr. Sanchita Bhatnagar discusses her research.
Apr 4, 2025
It’s been known for many years that Black women are twice as likely as white women to be diagnosed with triple-negative breast cancer. If diagnosed with this type of breast cancer, Black women are also more than twice as likely to die from the disease than women of other races and ethnicities. Researchers have been studying a number of factors that may play a role in these disparities.
Dr. Sanchita Bhatnagar’s research has found that cells that have too much TRIM37 protein are much more likely to become cancerous. She and her colleagues also have found that the breast tissue of Black women are much more likely to have high levels of TRIM37.
Listen to the episode to hear Dr. Bhatnagar explain:
- how she began studying the TRIM37 gene
- how a variant in the TRIM37 gene that causes more of the TRIM37 protein to be made is more common in Black women that white women
- how a medicine that targets the TRIM37 protein could help stop triple-negative breast cancer from metastasizing
- next steps for her research
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Winter 2025 Breast Cancer Research Round Up
Have you been diagnosed with metastatic hormone receptor-positive breast cancer or DCIS? Dr. Kevin Fox discusses the latest research.
Apr 18, 2025
Can people diagnosed with metastatic hormone receptor-positive breast cancer avoid chemotherapy and take a CDK4/6 inhibitor instead? Do people diagnosed with DCIS need to have surgery? Will there soon be another oral selective estrogen degrader available?
Breastcancer.org medical advisor Dr. Kevin Fox explains the details of the studies and what they mean for you.
Listen to the episode to hear Dr. Fox discuss these studies:
- Young-PEARL: Ibrance plus Aromasin, along with ovarian suppression, offers better progression-free survival than Xeloda for pre-menopausal women with metastatic hormone receptor-positive, HER2-negative breast cancer who had previously received tamoxifen.
- PATINA: Adding Ibrance to standard-of-care first treatments for metastatic hormone receptor-positive, HER2-positive breast cancer increased progression-free survival by more than a year.
- EMBER-3: Imlunestrant led to longer progression-free survival than standard therapy if the cancer had an ESR1 mutation among people with estrogen receptor-positive, HER2-negative advanced-stage breast cancer. Adding Verzenio to imlunestrant improved progression-free survival compared to imlunestrant alone, whether the cancer had an ESR1-mutation or not.
- COMET: Can people with low-risk DCIS just be monitored instead of having surgery with or without radiation?
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Breast Cancer Doesn’t Care About Gender
What is it like to be a member of the trans community and diagnosed with breast cancer? Ash Davidson shares his story.
May 2, 2025
Ashton Davidson was diagnosed with breast cancer during gender-affirming top surgery. He faced some unique challenges and situations during and after treatment.
Listen to the episode to hear Ash explain:
- the emotions he felt when diagnosed
- how he decided to become an outspoken advocate
- how he lives authentically in the face of adversity
- how he finds joy, especially today
Listen now or read the transcript.
Episode image photo credit: Ann Alva Wieding
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The Research METAvivor Funds
METAvivor President Dr. Kelly Shanahan discusses the research the organization supports.
May 16, 2025
By 2030, researchers estimate that about 246,000 people will be living with metastatic breast cancer. METAvivor is the first organization dedicated to raising awareness of, and funding research on, stage IV breast cancer. Dr. Kelly Shanahan, current METAvivor president, has been living with metastatic disease for 11 years.
Listen to the episode to hear Dr. Shanahan explain:
- how METAvivor started funding research
- the funding process
- why private funding is so important in today’s political climate
- what she’s most fearful of
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Lifestyle Risk Factors and Breast Cancer Mortality
Dr. Samantha El Warrak’s research found that a diet high in red meat was most linked to dying from breast cancer.
May 27, 2025
At the 2025 American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) Annual Meeting, Dr. Samantha El Warrak presented the results of her research on how five lifestyle factors affect the risk of dying from breast cancer.
Listen to the episode to hear Dr. El Warrak explain:
- the five risk factors included in the study
- which risk factors were most linked to breast cancer mortality
- what the results mean for women diagnosed with breast cancer
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Top Breast Cancer Research at ASCO 2025
Dr. Eleonora Teplinsky explains DESTINY-Breast09, ASCENT-04, and SERENA-6.
Jun 2, 2025
The 2025 American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) Annual Meeting featured five days of presentations and educational sessions on all types of cancer. Dr. Eleonora Teplinsky, a board-certified medical oncologist at the Valley-Mount Sinai Comprehensive Cancer Center in Paramus, NJ, summarizes the top breast cancer research.
Listen to the episode to hear Dr. Teplinsky discuss:
- The SERENA-6 trial, which found that if metastatic hormone receptor-positive, HER2-negative breast cancer develops ESR1 mutations during the first hormonal therapy treatment, switching to camizestrant from an aromatase inhibitor before the cancer grows improves outcomes.
- Results from the DESTINY-Breast09 trial showing that the combination of Enhertu (chemical name: fam-trastuzumab-deruxtecan-nxki) and Perjeta (chemical name: pertuzumab) is a better first treatment for metastatic HER2-positive breast cancer than the current standard of THP chemo.
- The ASCENT-04/KEYNOTE-D19 trial, which found that people with metastatic PD-L1-positive, triple-negative breast cancer fared better with the combo of Trodelvy (chemical name: sacituzumab govitecan-hziy) and Keytruda (chemical name: pembrolizumab) as a first treatment compared to people who received chemotherapy and Keytruda.
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Making Sure Exercise is Part of Cancer Care
Dr. Katie Schmitz discusses how to integrate exercise into care treatment plans, as well as a study showing exercise improved survival in people with colon cancer.
Jun 2, 2025
At the 2025 American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) Annual Meeting, Dr. Katie Schmitz chaired a session on ways to ensure that exercise is part of every cancer treatment plan. She also talked about how results of the CHALLENGE trial in colon cancer might apply to breast cancer.
Listen to the episode to hear Dr. Schmitz explain:
- strategies doctors can use to make exercise an integral part of cancer care
- how people can afford and stay motivated to exercise
- the results of the CHALLENGE trial, which found that three years of exercise after colon cancer treatment improved disease-free survival (how long people lived without the cancer coming back) and overall survival (how long people lived whether or not the cancer came back)
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Financial Toxicity and Breast Cancer: How Doctors Can Help
Dr. Fumiko Chino offers advice and suggestions on how to navigate financial difficulties.
Jun 3, 2025
At the 2025 American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) Annual Meeting Fumiko Chino, MD, summarized her presentation on how doctors can help the people they care for overcome financial issues. She also offered some strategies for patients.
Listen to the podcast to hear Dr. Chino explain:
- some specific resources for people with cancer
- why people with breast cancer may have the most financial issues
- her top three recommendations for people having financial hardship
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Managing Hormonal Therapy Side Effects
World-renowned breast cancer expert Dr. Hope Rugo offers strategies for the most troubling side effects.
Jun 11, 2025
At the 2025 American Society of Clinical Oncology Annual Meeting, Hope Rugo, MD, chaired a session on managing the side effects of new breast cancer treatments and also presented information on how to manage the side effects of hormonal therapy medicines, which are used to treat hormone receptor-positive breast cancer.
Listen to the episode to hear Dr. Rugo explain:
- ways to manage the side effects of tamoxifen and the aromatase inhibitors
- why talking to your doctor about side is crucial to managing them
- her advice for people who are having side effects from hormonal therapy medicines
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Breast Cancer Doesn’t Care Whom You Love
Jaci Field, a member of the LGBTQ+ community, shares her story.
Jun 27, 2025
Four years after giving birth to her son, Jaci Field was diagnosed with breast cancer at age 39.
Listen to the episode to hear Jaci discuss:
- her breast cancer experience and her advocacy work
- the discrimination she’s faced, both because of her race and whom she chooses to love
- how she finds joy
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Managing the Emotions of Metastatic Breast Cancer When You’re Young
Therapist Kelly Grosklags helps Melissa Jenkins moderate a special Virtual Community Meetup on managing the emotions you feel after being diagnosed with metastatic breast cancer at a young age.
Jul 11, 2025
This podcast is the audio from a special Virtual Support Group featuring guest moderator Kelly Grosklags.
Listen to the podcast to hear Kelly and Community members discuss:
- why you might not want to share tough emotions with the people in your life
- how to tell someone you need them to listen, not fix things
- how different members of the group shared their diagnosis with family and friends
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Health Insurance and Disability for People Living With Metastatic Breast Cancer
Triage Cancer CEO Joanna Doran answers questions on how people with metastatic disease can best navigate health insurance and disability issues.Jul 25, 2025
This podcast is the audio from a special Virtual Support Group meetup featuring guest moderator Joanna Doran.
Listen to the podcast to hear Joanna and Community members discuss:
- Medicaid changes that may happen, including the work requirement
- the long-term disability approval process
- having both Medicaid and Medicare
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Diagnosed With Breast Cancer While Pregnant
Rafaela Dreisin shares her journey through diagnosis, treatment, and giving birth.
Aug 8, 2025
At the start of her second trimester, Rafaela Dreisin was diagnosed with breast cancer at the age of 36.
Listen to the episode to hear Rafaela discuss:
- how she and her doctors decided on a treatment plan
- how she coped with experiencing the excitement of being pregnant and the fear of her diagnosis at the same time
- her advice for other people in the same situation
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Teaching the Immune System to Fight Cancer
A new type of drug may be able to make the immune system attack cancer. Dr. Benjamin Schrank explains his research.
Aug 22, 2025
Antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs) are a relatively new type of medicine for breast cancer. Enhertu (chemical name: fam-trastuzumab-deruxtecan-nxki) and Dato-DXd (brand name: Datroway) are two ADCs used to treat breast cancer.
Dr Benjamin Schrank and colleagues have developed a new type of ADC that combines an antibody with a toxin — called an antibody-toxin conjugate — that teaches the immune system to recognize and attack cancer cells.
Listen to the episode to hear Dr. Schrank explain:
- the antibody and the toxin component of the medicine
- how the new medicine works
- possible side effects
- next steps for the research
Listen now or read the transcript.
Episode image photo credit: The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center
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Chelsea’s Story: Diagnosed With Breast Cancer at 25
After genetic testing showed she had a BRIP1 mutation, Chelsea Vangrol’s doctor sent her for a baseline mammogram at age 25.
Sep 9, 2025
A medical assistant at Elizabeth Wende Breast Care in Upstate New York, Chelsea Vangrol had seen young women diagnosed with breast cancer. But she never expected to be one of them. She shares her experience of being diagnosed with DCIS at age 25 so other people in a similar situation will know they’re not alone.
Listen to the episode to hear Chelsea discuss:
- strategies she used to cope with stress and fear
- the factors she considered when making treatment decisions
- what she’d like other people who are diagnosed with breast cancer in their 20s to know
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TNBC Can Change Hormone Receptor Status If It Comes Back
Triple-negative breast cancer may come back as hormone receptor-positive disease about a third of the time.
Sep 23, 2025
Triple-negative breast cancer is negative for both estrogen and progesterone receptors. So, it’s hormone receptor-negative. People diagnosed with this type of breast cancer aren’t offered hormonal therapy to reduce the risk of recurrence (the cancer coming back) because it’s thought that they wouldn’t be effective.
Dr. Lisa Newman and colleagues published research that found that among people diagnosed with early-stage triple-negative breast cancer, nearly 33% of the recurrences or second primary breast cancers were hormone receptor-positive. This means the hormone receptor status had changed when the cancer came back or when there was a new cancer. The results raise this question: Should people with triple-negative disease be offered hormonal therapy to reduce the risk of recurrence?
Listen to the episode to hear Dr. Newman explain:
- how she decided to investigate this issue
- why the results surprised her
- what the results mean for someone who’s been diagnosed with triple-negative breast cancer with a high risk of recurrence
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