Category: News

Celebrating Generosity: An Important Part of Nonprofit Work

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Change is the only constant. How many times have we heard that? In today’s fast-paced world nonprofit organizations must remain nimble when seeking support that includes volunteer and financial support to help run a nonprofit. And yet, it is often the constant supporters over time that make a nonprofit believe their impact is part of the greater community. Celebrating generosity is a very important part of nonprofit work. Giving Season in Nonprofit Work I am writing this blog in the middle of November. Thanksgiving holiday is in November. It is a time when families make the effort to be together and reflect on what they are grateful for and to reminisce about what makes them unique as a family unit. There is great diversity in family units, but it is in the gesture of gratitude that brings us together, no matter what that looks like. Similarly, as nonprofit leaders we Continue Reading →

The Voice for a Community in Breast Cancer

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Many people who have had or currently have breast cancer choose to be the voice for a community in breast cancer. This week, as I prepare for Plastic Surgery the Meeting I will be using the hashtag #PSTM24 on my social media platforms to share the latest in surgical techniques and the newest innovations from industry that results in better patient outcomes and care in breast reconstruction. Each Voice in the Breast Cancer Community is Unique My focus is on breast cancer and breast reconstruction surgery after mastectomy. Not all patient advocates and voices in breast cancer identify with the same platform. We have each positioned ourselves through time, training, and passion to share our personal stories while at the same time providing scientific and evidence-based information to the unique communities we serve. It is a robust community with folks that include community voices in: Since opening DiepCFoundation in 2016, Continue Reading →

Book Review: Phoenix Rising, Empower & Transform Through Breast Reconstruction

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I like to spend warm, slow, summer days reading. This book review is long overdue. I promised the author, Mark Clemens MD, I would do so, and I even said so in this DiepCFoundation interview we did on BIA/ALCL in early 2024. Dr. Clemens, it is a magnificent addition to my bookshelf and resource page. As promised, a book review: Phoenix Rising, Empower & Transform Through Breast Reconstruction. Phoenix Rising Arrives in the Mail I was very touched to find a lovely gift from Dr. Clemens in the mail soon after we met at the ASPS Fall 2023 conference. On the final day of the conference, I attended a panel discussion with two friends and international microsurgeons, Dr. Anne Dancey and Dr. Ruth Waters. The topic was on BIA/ALCL and Dr. Clemens was the moderator of an all-women scientific panel from around the world. Anne, Ruth, and I went to Continue Reading →

Credibility in the Noise – Social Media, Breast Reconstruction, and Your Experience

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What social media platforms do you use to find information about breast reconstruction? Is it TikTok, Facebook, Pinterest, Instagram, YouTube? This interview summary with Dr. Andrew Gassman of PRMA in San Antonio is about finding credibility in the noise – social media, breast reconstruction, and your experience. Dr. Gassman’s Interest in How Patients are Utilizing Social Media for Breast Reconstruction Dr. Andrew Gassman is a highly skilled and capable individual who knows DIEP flap breast reconstruction well. He joined the group at PRMA in January of 2021 and works with nine other microsurgeons who primarily perform autologous breast reconstruction for those affected by breast cancer. Before his time at PRMA he spent several years as an associate professor teaching future surgeons advanced breast reconstruction technique. He continues to be an active researcher. Our conversation addresses his interest in how patients want to chat, how to reach more people to offer Continue Reading →

A Retirement Tribute to Deanna Attai: This Batch is for You!

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Deanna J. Attai, MD announced her retirement this week on what else other than social media? I suspect for many, like me, it feels like a bittersweet announcement. My message to her comes from my experience as a patient advocate and organic gardener. Deanna has lived to work most of her professional life. Now I know she can engage fully in working to live. This is a retirement tribute to Deanna Attai. Dr. Attai, this batch is for you! Dr. Attai, the Breast Surgeon My first recollection of Dr. Attai is through social media. The hashtag #BCSM (breast cancer social media) was created by her, Alicia Staley, and the late Jody Schoger. The first #BCSM tweet chat occurred on July 4, 2011. Over the past thirteen years, a great deal has changed in social media. However, the community created by one hashtag, #BCSM changed the engagement between breast cancer patients Continue Reading →

The Value of the Co-Surgeon Model in Breast Reconstruction

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This episode of the DiepCJourney podcast covers two very important topics. It includes the value of the co-surgeon model in microvascular breast reconstruction. We will also tackle a subject matter I am not an expert on but have a great deal of experience in. I will admit it is an uncomfortable topic for me because I am not an expert. The topic is insurance coverage in breast reconstruction. I want to say that I have NOT come to understand the complexities of insurance but have gained a great deal of empathy for those in the breast cancer community who deal with these complexities, and that includes patients and surgeons. My guest, Dr. Minas Chrysopoulo, discusses the value of the co-surgeon model in breast reconstruction and insurance coverage concerns. Why this Topic and Why Now? I have chosen this topic not to appear to be controversial. It is a topic that Continue Reading →

Episode 51: Lymphedema Treatment and Surgery for Breast Cancer Patients

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March 1, 2024, was the first day of lymphedema awareness month. We hope you will share this information with the embedded podcast in your community for breast cancer patients affected by lymphedema providing them with the resources needed to treat this condition and let them know there are specialists in surgical treatment options as well. I am pleased to provide this summary of Episode 51: Lymphedema Treatment and Surgery for Breast Cancer Patients. A Specialist in the Field of Lymphedema Treatment My guest is Dr. Charles Anton Fries, Chief of Plastic Surgery and faculty surgeon at UT Health San Antonio and works as a microsurgeon with the team at PRMA, Plastic Reconstructive Microsurgical Associates, in San Antonio. The management of lymphedema has seen significant improvement in the past few years. We will educate, dispel some fears surrounding the possible occurrence of lymphedema, and bring you some resources for care. The Continue Reading →

The Rewards and Risks of Traveling for Patient Advocacy

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Let’s dispense with the not so good news first. It is far less than the good news I will write about regarding the rewards and risks of traveling for patient advocacy. The Risks of Traveling for Patient Advocacy Patient advocates I know go into this work with their eyes wide open when they travel to conferences or events for their work. We know what can and sometimes does happen. I wanted to talk about these first because they are short-lived risks. The fallout from any of the above items passes in a brief time. We deal with them as they happen knowing we will return to our advocacy work in no time because of dealing with any of the above-mentioned events. The Rewards of Traveling for Patient Advocacy This is the real magic sauce of being a patient advocate and traveling on behalf of the communities we serve. My work Continue Reading →

Episode 43: The Drain-Free DIEP Flap Concept

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DIEP flap breast reconstruction most often requires surgical drains for post operative care. Patients often mention to me they are awkward, can become infected at the suture site where they are attached, and are cumbersome to hide under clothing after surgery when going out in public. This is a summary of Episode 43: The Drain-Free DIEP flap Concept as it relates specifically to this type of autologous breast reconstruction. My guest on this episode of the DiepCJourney podcast has been in communication with me over the past year in anticipation of his published paper, Are Surgical Drains Needed in DIEP Flap Surgery? The Drain-Free DIEP Flap Concept. Dr. Nanidis and the Motivation for the Drain-Free DIEP Mr. Theo Nanidis, is a Consultant Plastic and Reconstructive surgeon with the NHS and private practice at The Royal Marsden. He graduated with distinctions from University College London Medical School in 2003 and completed Continue Reading →

A Counterpoint to a Recent Breast Cancer News Article

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I want to begin by saying the overarching message of the article is hopeful and promising news in breast cancer survival. A recent report, October 23, 2023, in Penn Medicine News, announced that a research team from the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania and the Abramson Cancer Center received a $10 million Department of Defense (DoD) grant. However, I would like to present a counterpoint to the opening statement of this recent breast cancer news article. Project LEAD Guides Me in This Counterpoint to the Article I attended NBCC’s Project LEAD in 2017 along with many other patient advocates. This program continues today training breast cancer advocates in the science, biology, and dissemination of information to the breast cancer communities we serve. I keep the well-organized, three-ring binder close at hand to this day to reference topics and sessions presented by world leading scientists and researchers Continue Reading →