Ten Years Blue in a Sea of PinkThere's a lot I've learned since my breast cancer diagnosis in early 2014. It's obviously a dramatic, even traumatic diagnosis, but, as a guy, hearing "sorry, but you have breast... By Rod Ritchie3 min readBookmark for laterReactions0reactionsComments1 comments
Dr. Deanna Attai: Ground-Breaking Breast Surgeon and EducatorDr. Deanna Attai has had a distinguished career as a breast surgeon. Dr. Attai graduated with honors from Georgetown University School of Medicine in 1990. She then completed residency at... By Rod Ritchie4 min readBookmark for laterReactions0reactionsComments0 comments
Helping Men Come to Terms With Their Breast Cancer DiagnosisNot everyone understands that breast cancer is a genderless disease. This was even more so when I was diagnosed with stage 3 inflammatory breast cancer 10 years ago. At the... By Rod Ritchie3 min readBookmark for laterReactions0reactionsComments2 comments
From MBC Patient to MBC AdvocateNew York resident Victoria Goldberg has been a metastatic breast cancer (MBC) patient advocate for 7 years. She was initially diagnosed with early-stage cancer in 2004, triple-positive with HER2/PR/ER receptors... By Rod Ritchie5 min readBookmark for laterReactions0reactionsComments0 comments
Navigating "Pinktober" as a Male Breast Cancer PatientOctober, Breast Cancer Awareness Month, or BCAM, is often referred to as "Pinktober." For men with the disease, it's a particularly awkward month. Nearly 10 years on from diagnosis of... By Rod Ritchie3 min readBookmark for laterReactions0reactionsComments0 comments
Finding Your TribeSince there are many different types of breast cancer, finding your tribe for practical help and support on social media may take time. And, patients dealing with a Stage IV... By Rod Ritchie3 min readBookmark for laterReactions0reactionsComments0 comments
Author Q&A: From Whispers to Shouts: The Ways We Talk About CancerAs a breast cancer patient and advocate, a former oncologist and a journalist, Dr. Elaine Schattner was well placed to write the history of cancer from the times of very... By Rod Ritchie5 min readBookmark for laterReactions0reactionsComments1 comments
Interview with Abigail Johnson; Stage IV Patient Advocate ExtraordinaireAbigail Johnston, Esquire, is a dynamic patient activist and writer on metastatic breast cancer. A lawyer since 2002 in Florida, diagnosed with Stage IV Metastatic Breast Cancer (MBC) in March... By Rod Ritchie5 min readBookmark for laterReactions0reactionsComments0 comments
Breast Cancer Awareness Month: How We Can Improve ItBreast Cancer Awareness Month (BCAM) was initiated by the American Cancer Society and a pharmaceutical company to ensure every woman was aware of this disease, and to promote mammography as... By Rod Ritchie2 min readBookmark for laterReactions0reactionsComments0 comments
An Interview with Mara: An Inspiring StoryMara, who lives in London, Ontario, has been described by her M.O. as, "a miracle walking around." She was diagnosed with Inflammatory Breast Cancer, Stage IIIB, in May 2015, aged... By Rod Ritchie5 min readBookmark for laterReactions0reactionsComments0 comments
A Breast Cancer Manifesto for MenAlthough around one percent of new cases diagnosed are males, going through breast cancer treatment affects people regardless of their gender. Therefore, patient advocates for men with this disease are... By Rod Ritchie3 min readBookmark for laterReactions0reactionsComments0 comments
Men: Know Your Breast Cancer RiskNational Men’s Health Month in June, is the time men are reminded to take stock of their breast cancer risk. So very often, when it comes to getting timely treatment... By Rod Ritchie2 min readBookmark for laterReactions0reactionsComments1 comments
Breast Cancer Women Rock: A Man’s PerspectiveAs we wrap up Women’s Health Awareness Month, it’s the perfect time to sing the praises of breast cancer women. Over the past eight years, as a male breast cancer... By Rod Ritchie2 min readBookmark for laterReactions0reactionsComments0 comments
Genderless Breast Cancer Research: We Need MoreBreast cancer is a genderless disease with research concentrated on only one gender. Historically, males and other genders have been mostly excluded from clinical trials for drugs to treat breast... By Rod Ritchie2 min readBookmark for laterReactions0reactionsComments1 comments
Judy Perkins; Breast Cancer Immunotherapy PioneerImmunotherapy has been hailed as the brave new world for the treatment of cancers. One type of immunotherapy, adoptive cell therapy, uses T-cells from the patient’s own immune system as... By Rod Ritchie3 min readBookmark for laterReactions0reactionsComments0 comments
Advocating For All Stages of Breast CancerPatient advocates living with early-stage breast cancer are often advised to stay in their lane, rather than take up the cause for metastatic patients. At least that was true until... By Rod Ritchie3 min readBookmark for laterReactions0reactionsComments0 comments
Good News For Male Breast Cancer PatientsWorldwide, male breast cancer patients account for about one percent of new cases. In the U.S. 2,710 new cases of invasive breast cancer will be diagnosed this year. About 530... By Rod Ritchie2 min readBookmark for laterReactions0reactionsComments0 comments
The New Normal Part 2: Breast Cancer Patients and the PandemicIn May 2020, I wrote about how breast cancer people had COVID-19 covered because treatment “leads us to either adapt to our new situations or live in a world where... By Rod Ritchie4 min readBookmark for laterReactions0reactionsComments0 comments
Advocating for Advanced Breast Cancer PatientsBreast cancer advocate and friend Martha Carlson is a force to be reckoned with. When you read her Twitter bio: “Stage IV breast cancer patient advocate, writer, dreamer, kayaker, with personal... By Rod Ritchie5 min readBookmark for laterReactions0reactionsComments0 comments
An Advanced Breast Cancer PrognosisFor many newly diagnosed advanced breast cancer patients, the first thing they want to know once they are over the shock of the diagnosis is, what is my prognosis? Many... By Rod Ritchie3 min readBookmark for laterReactions0reactionsComments0 comments