Latest / Community D.C. / Community DC Susan G Komen with Jenni Chase, Chilli Amar & Valerie Nelson

Transcript

Community DC Susan G Komen with Jenni Chase, Chilli Amar & Valerie Nelson · Community D.C.

• 0:01
  Speaker 1: Good morning and thanks for listening to Community DC on
• 0:04
  Speaker 1: this iHeartRadio station. Jenny Chase here. Our topic this morning
• 0:08
  Speaker 1: is breast cancer. We're coming up on Breast Cancer Awareness
• 0:11
  Speaker 1: Month in October. We've got the Susan G. Komen More
• 0:14
  Speaker 1: Than Pink Walk coming up as well. Going to talk
• 0:16
  Speaker 1: about that this morning. But first, one of my colleagues
• 0:19
  Speaker 1: who has a very personal connection. to this issue and
• 0:23
  Speaker 1: this cause. Chilly Amar is here. Chilly, thanks for being
• 0:26
  Speaker 1: part of the program this morning.
• 0:27
  Speaker 2: Thank you for having me. This is a really amazing
• 0:29
  Speaker 2: thing that we're doing, and we look forward to this
• 0:32
  Speaker 2: event every year.
• 0:32
  Speaker 3: We do.
• 0:33
  Speaker 1: The Komen More Than Pink Walk. You have a connection
• 0:35
  Speaker 1: to this cause, maybe not what some people might think,
• 0:40
  Speaker 1: but you went through a really unique experience. Do you
• 0:42
  Speaker 1: mind sharing that and kind of giving our listeners an
• 0:46
  Speaker 1: idea why... Supporting Komen means so much to you.
• 0:50
  Speaker 2: So a little less than a decade ago, I had
• 0:53
  Speaker 2: a double mastectomy with reconstructive surgery and I never had
• 0:57
  Speaker 2: breast cancer. And the reason I did that is a
• 1:00
  Speaker 2: lot of women and even men who are predisposed to
• 1:03
  Speaker 2: breast cancer test positive for what's called either BRCA1 gene
• 1:08
  Speaker 2: or the BRCA2 gene. And I have the BRCA2 gene.
• 1:12
  Speaker 1: BRCA2, okay.
• 1:12
  Speaker 2: And I found that out because I lost my mother
• 1:16
  Speaker 2: to ovarian cancer when she was very young. She was
• 1:19
  Speaker 2: in her early 50s and She had been tested and
• 1:22
  Speaker 2: tested positive. And so we were advised, my sister and I,
• 1:26
  Speaker 2: to also get tested. And when we tested positive for that,
• 1:30
  Speaker 2: the advice that we were given, of course, we went
• 1:33
  Speaker 2: to many consultations, is to improve our chances of not
• 1:38
  Speaker 2: getting ovarian slash breast cancer is to take proactive measures.
• 1:43
  Speaker 2: So I had a hysterectomy first. And then I had
• 1:47
  Speaker 2: a prophylactic bilateral mastectomy with reconstruction. And we are called previvors.
• 1:54
  Speaker 2: I didn't even know it was such a thing, right?
• 1:56
  Speaker 2: So we never had to deal with the chemo, the cancer,
• 2:01
  Speaker 2: and all the mental anguish that comes from being diagnosed.
• 2:05
  Speaker 2: But we made a tough decision, hoping that we can
• 2:08
  Speaker 2: avoid falling into that category of being a survivor or
• 2:14
  Speaker 2: even passing from cancer.
• 2:16
  Speaker 1: Was there a period where you were unsure about what
• 2:19
  Speaker 1: you wanted to do? Was it a no-brainer or did
• 2:22
  Speaker 1: you hesitate?
• 2:23
  Speaker 2: You certainly hesitate because it is a major surgery, first
• 2:27
  Speaker 2: of all, right? There's the medical.
• 2:28
  Speaker 1: Part of it.
• 2:29
  Speaker 2: But also, as women, we are often very connected to
• 2:34
  Speaker 2: the very thing that sets us apart. You know, my.
• 2:39
  Speaker 2: Reproductive system.
• 2:40
  Speaker 1: It makes us very different from our male counterparts. They
• 2:43
  Speaker 1: can't do that.
• 2:44
  Speaker 2: So for me, it was a no brainer in that. Look,
• 2:48
  Speaker 2: I want to be around for my son, who is
• 2:51
  Speaker 2: at that time three.
• 2:52
  Speaker 5: Yeah.
• 2:53
  Speaker 2: And also my mother shouldn't have gone through this for nothing.
• 2:57
  Speaker 2: Like it was really for her to honor her. And
• 3:03
  Speaker 2: Angelina Jolie was, went through the same thing. And I
• 3:07
  Speaker 2: read an article about her. It's funny of all the people, right?
• 3:10
  Speaker 2: She had both those surgeries after she lost her mom.
• 3:14
  Speaker 2: And I thought, look, it's something that made sense to me.
• 3:17
  Speaker 2: And it's a decision that I made and I don't regret.
• 3:20
  Speaker 2: And by the way, even though recovery from mastectomy is hard,
• 3:26
  Speaker 2: The people that I kept thinking about are all the
• 3:28
  Speaker 2: women you and I get to meet every year when
• 3:30
  Speaker 2: we do this walk. The true survivors, the true warriors.
• 3:34
  Speaker 2: If they can go through this and the treatment, then
• 3:38
  Speaker 2: I certainly can do this.
• 3:40
  Speaker 1: How long was your recovery time? If you don't mind
• 3:42
  Speaker 1: me asking.
• 3:42
  Speaker 2: No, not at all.
• 3:43
  Speaker 1: If I say something, if I ask something too personal,
• 3:45
  Speaker 1: please just say no comment.
• 3:47
  Speaker 2: No, no. The mastectomy portion, which was the first chapter,
• 3:50
  Speaker 2: I'll call it, was physically really tough. It took about
• 3:55
  Speaker 2: four to six weeks to truly feel like myself. The
• 3:58
  Speaker 2: first two weeks are the toughest, which is what they'll
• 4:00
  Speaker 2: tell you. And I had support. which is everything. My husband,
• 4:06
  Speaker 2: my sister, my aunts, they came and helped with my
• 4:08
  Speaker 2: son and around the house. So because I had that support,
• 4:12
  Speaker 2: I was able to bounce back better. The reconstruction part
• 4:16
  Speaker 2: of it, like later the second chapter, that's a much
• 4:19
  Speaker 2: easier recovery, at least for me. And so, yes, it
• 4:24
  Speaker 2: was pretty intense, the mastectomy, but It's not something that
• 4:30
  Speaker 2: I think about today, like, oh, my gosh, woe is me,
• 4:33
  Speaker 2: all that pain I suffered. No, not at all. I
• 4:35
  Speaker 2: feel very grateful that I had the knowledge and the information.
• 4:39
  Speaker 1: And the ability to get that done. And just for
• 4:42
  Speaker 1: other folks who might be contemplating this same surgery. What
• 4:46
  Speaker 1: was the time between your mastectomy and then your reconstruction?
• 4:50
  Speaker 2: Because I never had cancer and I never had to
• 4:51
  Speaker 2: do radiation. It was just a matter of months. Whereas
• 4:55
  Speaker 2: typically a woman can't really have the reconstruction until she's
• 4:58
  Speaker 2: through with all... the treatment and then she's on the
• 5:02
  Speaker 2: other side of it and then she can move on
• 5:04
  Speaker 2: and make the changes and go forward.
• 5:07
  Speaker 1: Jill, I really appreciate you coming on and sharing your story.
• 5:10
  Speaker 1: You too are a warrior, just like so many other
• 5:12
  Speaker 1: women and men out there.
• 5:13
  Speaker 2: Well, thank you so much. And we really hope that
• 5:15
  Speaker 2: you can join us. at the Susan G. Komen More
• 5:19
  Speaker 2: Than Pink Walk because it is a very inspirational day.
• 5:21
  Speaker 1: It's all about hope.
• 5:22
  Speaker 2: That's exactly right.
• 5:23
  Speaker 1: Hope and love. All right. Now I'd like to welcome
• 5:26
  Speaker 1: our next guest. She is with Susan G. Komen. She
• 5:29
  Speaker 1: is the senior manager for federal policy and advocacy. Valerie Nelson,
• 5:35
  Speaker 1: it is great to have you back on. I can't
• 5:37
  Speaker 1: believe it's already this time of year again. It seems
• 5:39
  Speaker 1: like just yesterday we were at the 2025 More Than
• 5:42
  Speaker 1: Pink Walk.
• 5:43
  Speaker 5: It does, but it is that time of year again
• 5:47
  Speaker 5: where the pink starts to come out and we all
• 5:52
  Speaker 5: start together.
• 5:52
  Speaker 1: Okay, so we'll talk all about the walk here in
• 5:55
  Speaker 1: a little bit and what that day entails. But first,
• 5:59
  Speaker 1: let's just talk about breast cancer again. As a whole,
• 6:02
  Speaker 1: where are we in this country as far as the
• 6:05
  Speaker 1: number of people that this is affecting on a daily basis?
• 6:08
  Speaker 3: Yeah, absolutely.
• 6:09
  Speaker 5: Well, I think many of your listeners will know we've
• 6:12
  Speaker 5: made progress, which is fantastic. You know, about 40 years ago,
• 6:18
  Speaker 5: we were seeing people dying from breast cancer a lot
• 6:22
  Speaker 5: more often. But thankfully, since since the 1980s and 1990s,
• 6:27
  Speaker 5: we've had quite the reduction in breast cancer mortality. Mortality
• 6:31
  Speaker 5: has declined by just around 44%.
• 6:36
  Speaker 3: I don't know.
• 6:36
  Speaker 1: I don't know a lot about medicine, but that to
• 6:38
  Speaker 1: me seems pretty significant.
• 6:40
  Speaker 6: Right.
• 6:40
  Speaker 5: And that does, I mean, that translates to hundreds of
• 6:44
  Speaker 5: thousands of people who are, are still with us.
• 6:47
  Speaker 3: Right.
• 6:48
  Speaker 5: And those deaths being avoided, which is fantastic. And that's
• 6:52
  Speaker 5: been in large part, thanks to, you know, improved access
• 6:56
  Speaker 5: to early detection, improved treatments, uh, you name it, uh,
• 7:01
  Speaker 5: which came out of years and years of research and advocacy.
• 7:05
  Speaker 3: Um, but our job isn't done, unfortunately.
• 7:08
  Speaker 5: Um, in our lifetimes, about one in eight women in
• 7:13
  Speaker 5: their lifetime will be diagnosed with breast cancer, unfortunately. And
• 7:17
  Speaker 5: so this disease isn't going away. Um, In 2026, we
• 7:23
  Speaker 5: do estimate a little over 42,000 women and men will
• 7:26
  Speaker 5: lose their lives to breast cancer, many from metastatic disease.
• 7:31
  Speaker 5: Everyone is at risk of getting breast cancer. I want
• 7:34
  Speaker 5: to stress that. But your most common risk factors are
• 7:39
  Speaker 5: being born female or getting older. And those are two
• 7:43
  Speaker 5: things that many of us cannot avoid.
• 7:46
  Speaker 3: And so....
• 7:48
  Speaker 5: I think it's really important, especially these days, as we've
• 7:52
  Speaker 5: made that progress, that we really hang on to it
• 7:57
  Speaker 5: and keep striving to push forward more. We are seeing
• 8:03
  Speaker 5: these days rates of invasive breast cancer really increase at
• 8:07
  Speaker 5: a higher rate in women.
• 8:08
  Speaker 3: Under 50 than over 50.
• 8:10
  Speaker 1: Okay.
• 8:12
  Speaker 5: Which is, you know, I think as a young woman myself, really,
• 8:17
  Speaker 5: statistic that stands out. Only about 4% of breast cancers
• 8:22
  Speaker 5: occur in women younger than 40, but it is still
• 8:26
  Speaker 5: the leading cause of cancer deaths among women ages 20
• 8:30
  Speaker 5: to 39.
• 8:30
  Speaker 1: Wow. When you hear that, it really gives you pause
• 8:34
  Speaker 1: and makes you think. I may be wrong, and maybe
• 8:36
  Speaker 1: you can dispel this, but I think a lot of people...
• 8:39
  Speaker 1: still have the notion that cancer happens when you're older.
• 8:43
  Speaker 1: It will not happen to you until you're, say, my
• 8:45
  Speaker 1: age in your mid-50s.
• 8:47
  Speaker 3: For many people, that's true, right?
• 8:50
  Speaker 5: But unfortunately, we are seeing these trends in younger people and.
• 8:55
  Speaker 5: They younger people face their own unique set of challenges
• 9:01
  Speaker 5: in their cancer journey from child care to fertility to
• 9:07
  Speaker 5: you name it. People who are just starting out their
• 9:10
  Speaker 5: lives might not have are established in their careers or
• 9:15
  Speaker 5: their fields.
• 9:17
  Speaker 1: So and then this just comes out of left field,
• 9:19
  Speaker 1: this diagnosis.
• 9:20
  Speaker 6: Yeah.
• 9:20
  Speaker 1: Last thing you're expecting as a young woman is. starting
• 9:24
  Speaker 1: your life or in the prime of your life before 40.
• 9:27
  Speaker 1: I think a lot of us feel like, you know,
• 9:29
  Speaker 1: the 30s and 40s are kind of our prime. So
• 9:32
  Speaker 1: to think that this is something that could potentially affect
• 9:36
  Speaker 1: that age range, I think it's really something to stress.
• 9:40
  Speaker 1: I don't know that a lot of women are aware
• 9:42
  Speaker 1: that it can hit so early in life.
• 9:45
  Speaker 3: Yeah, absolutely.
• 9:46
  Speaker 5: Like I said, anyone anyone is at risk of getting
• 9:50
  Speaker 5: breast cancer, including men who often are left out of
• 9:54
  Speaker 5: that conversation.
• 9:55
  Speaker 1: I wanted to bring that up because people don't don't
• 9:58
  Speaker 1: realize that this is not just a female issue. only
• 10:00
  Speaker 1: gender disease. This does affect our fellas. I'd like to
• 10:04
  Speaker 1: talk a little bit for our listeners who may not
• 10:06
  Speaker 1: be as familiar. Can you share with us a little
• 10:08
  Speaker 1: bit about Susan G. Komen's mission and the work that
• 10:11
  Speaker 1: you're leading here in our community in the DMV?
• 10:14
  Speaker 3: Absolutely. It is my favorite subject.
• 10:17
  Speaker 5: So I think a lot of people are probably most
• 10:21
  Speaker 5: familiar with Coleman's work to bring awareness to the impact
• 10:27
  Speaker 5: of breast cancer and what that can have on individuals
• 10:30
  Speaker 5: and their loved ones.
• 10:32
  Speaker 3: We have been around for over.
• 10:35
  Speaker 5: 40 years in this space back when even talking about
• 10:40
  Speaker 5: breast cancer was taboo. Right.
• 10:42
  Speaker 3: And so.
• 10:43
  Speaker 5: to my point earlier, we've come very far and we've
• 10:47
  Speaker 5: been a pretty visible presence in communities across the country,
• 10:51
  Speaker 5: especially as we approach October, which is Breast Cancer Awareness Month. Yes.
• 10:55
  Speaker 5: We start to see pink ribbons pop up everywhere. But
• 10:59
  Speaker 5: I do always joke that we do a heck of
• 11:01
  Speaker 5: a lot.
• 11:01
  Speaker 3: More than that.
• 11:02
  Speaker 1: Of course, of course.
• 11:03
  Speaker 3: And a whole.
• 11:04
  Speaker 5: Lot more than what you may see from our races
• 11:07
  Speaker 5: and walks. So very simply, Susan G. Komen's mission is
• 11:12
  Speaker 5: to achieve a world without breast cancer, right? We are
• 11:16
  Speaker 5: perhaps best known for our work in breast cancer research.
• 11:21
  Speaker 5: We are the second largest funder of breast cancer research
• 11:24
  Speaker 5: in the country. We're second only to the federal government
• 11:27
  Speaker 5: that I know. I joke with a punch just a
• 11:29
  Speaker 5: little bit above our weight class.
• 11:31
  Speaker 3: In that sense.
• 11:31
  Speaker 5: But yeah, just this past June, we awarded around 15
• 11:37
  Speaker 5: and a half million dollars in grants for that cutting
• 11:40
  Speaker 5: edge breast cancer research. Two researchers who are really trying
• 11:44
  Speaker 5: to bring us closer to cancer. cures and treatments for
• 11:49
  Speaker 5: all breast cancers.
• 11:50
  Speaker 6: Yeah.
• 11:51
  Speaker 3: Um, that brought our.
• 11:53
  Speaker 5: Total since our founding to just above 1.1 billion going
• 11:58
  Speaker 5: to breast cancer research. So I think we are fairly
• 12:00
  Speaker 5: well known in that research space, but beyond the research, um,
• 12:05
  Speaker 5: we really seek to be a trusted voice, especially for
• 12:10
  Speaker 5: those who might be just starting on their breast cancer
• 12:13
  Speaker 5: journey themselves. Um, we have a really fantastic team here
• 12:17
  Speaker 5: at Komen dedicated to providing education on everything from your
• 12:23
  Speaker 5: basic breast health path practices to understanding the breast cancer
• 12:28
  Speaker 5: screening process all the way to navigating diagnosis, treatment, and
• 12:33
  Speaker 5: even palliative care.
• 12:34
  Speaker 3: So we are here for every step.
• 12:39
  Speaker 5: Of the journey, um, all of those educational resources are
• 12:42
  Speaker 5: available free and online. And it's been translated into many,
• 12:47
  Speaker 5: many languages to try to reach as far.
• 12:50
  Speaker 3: As we possibly can.
• 12:52
  Speaker 1: Yes, ma'am.
• 12:53
  Speaker 3: Which is so important to us.
• 12:55
  Speaker 5: We also, in our mission work, we try to reach
• 13:00
  Speaker 5: people in kind of a more hands-on capacity too.
• 13:03
  Speaker 3: We operate from a.
• 13:06
  Speaker 5: We operate direct services for patients and a breast care helpline,
• 13:11
  Speaker 5: which is available by phone.
• 13:13
  Speaker 3: Or email if you don't want to make the phone call.
• 13:16
  Speaker 3: And the people on the other end of that.
• 13:19
  Speaker 5: Line, they're real people who help with everything from answering
• 13:23
  Speaker 5: those basic questions to... helping people connect with clinical trials
• 13:29
  Speaker 5: or with financial assistance.
• 13:30
  Speaker 3: So we have a really fantastic.
• 13:32
  Speaker 5: Team of patient navigators here at Komen.
• 13:36
  Speaker 7: Yeah.
• 13:36
  Speaker 3: Ready to help with whatever someone might need.
• 13:39
  Speaker 1: Can you give out the phone number for that and
• 13:42
  Speaker 1: your website while we're at it?
• 13:44
  Speaker 5: Everyone can reach those resources online at Komen.org.
• 13:49
  Speaker 6: Okay.
• 13:49
  Speaker 3: And they can reach the.
• 13:50
  Speaker 5: Helpline at helpline at Komen.org by email, or they can
• 13:55
  Speaker 5: give us a call at 1-877-465-6636.
• 13:57
  Speaker 1: All right.
• 13:57
  Speaker 3: You know, as we've talked about one in eight people.
• 14:05
  Speaker 1: We'll get diagnosed. Can we talk about some of the
• 14:07
  Speaker 1: biggest challenges you guys are facing right now in the
• 14:11
  Speaker 1: ongoing fight against breast cancer? Like, I guess, what are
• 14:14
  Speaker 1: your biggest topics of concern these days?
• 14:16
  Speaker 3: I think everyone's experiencing some tough times right now.
• 14:20
  Speaker 7: Yes, ma'am.
• 14:20
  Speaker 3: A lot of families are struggling and especially pregnant.
• 14:24
  Speaker 5: In the wake of the pandemic and with cost of
• 14:27
  Speaker 5: living on the rise, the last thing anyone needs ever.
• 14:31
  Speaker 3: Is a breast cancer diagnosis, but especially now.
• 14:34
  Speaker 5: And we really do see patients struggle with that financial
• 14:38
  Speaker 5: and emotional toll that this disease can have every.
• 14:42
  Speaker 3: Single day in someone's life.
• 14:44
  Speaker 5: I think a lot of people who don't have that
• 14:46
  Speaker 5: personal experience, who don't really realize how much that financial
• 14:51
  Speaker 5: toxicity or the costs associated with treatment can go beyond
• 14:55
  Speaker 5: the medical care itself.
• 14:57
  Speaker 3: So, of course, the costs of diagnosis and treatment, they.
• 15:01
  Speaker 5: Can be astronomical and frankly, out of reach for a
• 15:04
  Speaker 5: lot of people. But there's a lot of costs involved.
• 15:07
  Speaker 1: I'm sorry, you said hidden costs. Yes, absolutely.
• 15:11
  Speaker 5: Our patient care center, as I mentioned, and our navigators
• 15:14
  Speaker 5: hear from folks every day that beyond the cost of
• 15:17
  Speaker 5: their care, there are costs associated with travel to appointments
• 15:22
  Speaker 5: or gas money, metro fare. You know, there's child care costs,
• 15:26
  Speaker 5: costs for healthy food to keep you fueled and going
• 15:30
  Speaker 5: through treatment. And, you know, even just to keep the
• 15:34
  Speaker 5: electricity on. And for a lot of folks going through treatment,
• 15:38
  Speaker 5: they may not be able to work the regular hours
• 15:40
  Speaker 5: they do. And so all of these can really compound.
• 15:44
  Speaker 5: And we see that kind of in our community every day.
• 15:46
  Speaker 5: And while Coleman has a financial assistance program as part
• 15:51
  Speaker 5: of that patient care center, we work to help with
• 15:55
  Speaker 5: all of that. But it can really only reach so far,
• 15:58
  Speaker 5: which is one of the reasons I am... very proud
• 16:02
  Speaker 5: of the work that I have the privilege of doing
• 16:04
  Speaker 5: in the policy space here in Washington, D.C. with Komen
• 16:08
  Speaker 5: to try and address that financial toxicity through a systems
• 16:12
  Speaker 5: lens here. So we've, over the past year or two
• 16:17
  Speaker 5: in the news, you've probably seen that healthcare costs in
• 16:19
  Speaker 5: general are on the rise and Komen works a lot,
• 16:23
  Speaker 5: especially alongside other patient communities to push for more consumer
• 16:27
  Speaker 5: and patient-friendly policies that allow people to get into the
• 16:31
  Speaker 5: health insurance they need. And I think that might be
• 16:34
  Speaker 5: something of interest to folks in the D.C.
• 16:36
  Speaker 3: Area.
• 16:37
  Speaker 5: We really work comprehensively on that policy and advocacy to
• 16:41
  Speaker 5: see if we can magnify the work that Komen does
• 16:44
  Speaker 5: within communities to... accelerate breast cancer research, we work to
• 16:50
  Speaker 5: get people access to high quality, affordable health insurance, and
• 16:55
  Speaker 5: even just more broadly trying to alleviate the burden patients
• 16:58
  Speaker 5: experience every day and navigating our healthcare system. But I
• 17:02
  Speaker 5: that's something that I interact with every day in our
• 17:05
  Speaker 5: Center for Public Policy.
• 17:07
  Speaker 3: And especially as we kind of head into this fall.
• 17:11
  Speaker 5: And see people starting to kind of pick through their
• 17:15
  Speaker 5: options for their health insurance. It's something that we continue
• 17:19
  Speaker 5: to advocate on, but we also try to do a
• 17:21
  Speaker 5: lot of education on what changes might be happening and
• 17:25
  Speaker 5: how people can best position themselves for their health in
• 17:28
  Speaker 5: the year to come.
• 17:29
  Speaker 3: So that is something they definitely... want.
• 17:32
  Speaker 5: People to check out on Komen.org is that information because
• 17:35
  Speaker 5: it can help you prepare for those decisions.
• 17:38
  Speaker 1: And just so folks know, that's Komen with a K
• 17:41
  Speaker 1: spelled K-O-M-E-N. Didn't want there to be any confusion. Are
• 17:46
  Speaker 1: there any like recent ongoing initiatives or programs that you
• 17:52
  Speaker 1: think are making a big impact here in our area?
• 17:55
  Speaker 3: Yeah, yeah. I think one thing we've.
• 17:59
  Speaker 5: Really tried to pave the way on to address, especially
• 18:03
  Speaker 5: those financial barriers to early detection of breast cancer and
• 18:07
  Speaker 5: screening is.
• 18:09
  Speaker 3: Access to those services.
• 18:12
  Speaker 5: So there's still a great many people who cannot access
• 18:15
  Speaker 5: or afford the screening and diagnostic tests needed to even
• 18:19
  Speaker 5: catch their cancer. And in cancer, we always want to
• 18:23
  Speaker 5: catch it earlier when it's easier to treat and the
• 18:25
  Speaker 5: outcomes are better for the patient. So we really try
• 18:29
  Speaker 5: to advocate for systems that allow that to happen. So
• 18:34
  Speaker 5: we advocate for safety net programs like the Breast and
• 18:38
  Speaker 5: Cervical Cancer Early Detection Program that operates across the country
• 18:43
  Speaker 5: and including here in D.C., Maryland, and Virginia. And that
• 18:47
  Speaker 5: provides screening and diagnosis to women with low incomes who
• 18:52
  Speaker 5: may not have access to that screening otherwise and can
• 18:55
  Speaker 5: be really.
• 18:55
  Speaker 3: Important for those folks.
• 18:57
  Speaker 5: And we've also worked very hard over the past decade
• 19:01
  Speaker 5: to pass laws in just about 33 states, including Maryland
• 19:06
  Speaker 5: and Virginia, to enact laws that protect people from those
• 19:10
  Speaker 5: high costs associated with diagnostic.
• 19:12
  Speaker 3: And supplemental breast imaging.
• 19:14
  Speaker 5: Those can often really pose a barrier to diagnosis for
• 19:17
  Speaker 5: people who just may not be able to afford the
• 19:19
  Speaker 5: imaging they need when they need it at that really,
• 19:23
  Speaker 5: really crucial time before diagnosis.
• 19:25
  Speaker 3: So yes, absolutely.
• 19:27
  Speaker 5: So unfortunately those laws, you know, they don't cover everyone
• 19:30
  Speaker 5: across the country or even everyone here in the DMV.
• 19:34
  Speaker 5: So we, we also work on federal legislation to do
• 19:37
  Speaker 5: that and extend those protections federally, but yeah, Beyond that
• 19:42
  Speaker 5: policy work that we've done in the DMV, Komen also,
• 19:45
  Speaker 5: of course, has resources available to folks across the area.
• 19:48
  Speaker 5: That helpline that I mentioned. earlier, it's a phenomenal resource
• 19:51
  Speaker 5: that is available. You don't have to be currently undergoing
• 19:55
  Speaker 5: treatment to give us a ring. We are here to
• 19:58
  Speaker 5: help with just general breast health questions if needed. We
• 20:03
  Speaker 5: also have more hands-on help to guide people through their diagnosis,
• 20:07
  Speaker 5: help them with insurance barriers, and even provide or lend
• 20:12
  Speaker 5: an ear, right? Because that breast cancer journey can be
• 20:16
  Speaker 5: really taxing emotionally. And so we have folks, like I said,
• 20:20
  Speaker 5: real people on the other line available in English and
• 20:24
  Speaker 5: Spanish who are there to help and hopefully make that
• 20:30
  Speaker 5: impact here locally.
• 20:31
  Speaker 3: In the DMV.
• 20:32
  Speaker 1: Valerie, like with any illness, I would imagine support groups
• 20:36
  Speaker 1: play a big part in this process. Is there anything
• 20:39
  Speaker 1: you'd like to speak to on the Komen support groups?
• 20:43
  Speaker 3: Yeah.
• 20:43
  Speaker 5: The, um, the helpline can absolutely help people get connected
• 20:47
  Speaker 5: with others in their area and with support groups and,
• 20:50
  Speaker 5: and even help people find what might work for them
• 20:56
  Speaker 5: and their situation, whether that's online or in person, you
• 21:00
  Speaker 5: name it. Um, so I think when you are, or
• 21:05
  Speaker 5: your family is experiencing, uh, something as impactful as a
• 21:09
  Speaker 5: breast cancer journey, um, oftentimes it's very helpful to make
• 21:14
  Speaker 5: that community, make those connections, and Komen is here to.
• 21:17
  Speaker 3: Help that happen.
• 21:19
  Speaker 1: With any support group, your experience is your own, but
• 21:23
  Speaker 1: you're not going through this by yourself. I mean, when
• 21:27
  Speaker 1: you can talk to people who understand what is happening
• 21:30
  Speaker 1: with your body, your mind, I think that is just
• 21:34
  Speaker 1: such a valuable tool, and I'm really glad that folks
• 21:37
  Speaker 1: have that, thanks to you all at Komen. And Valerie,
• 21:41
  Speaker 1: of course, one of the reasons we have you here
• 21:42
  Speaker 1: this morning is to talk about the upcoming More Than
• 21:45
  Speaker 1: Pink Walk. Let's get into it.
• 21:47
  Speaker 5: Yeah.
• 21:47
  Speaker 1: What does this annual event mean to previvors and survivors
• 21:53
  Speaker 1: and families of those we lost, as well as the
• 21:56
  Speaker 1: community overall?
• 21:57
  Speaker 5: Yeah, I think for many people, it is a place
• 22:02
  Speaker 5: to find that community. that you mentioned earlier with support groups,
• 22:06
  Speaker 5: it is an unfortunate club to be in, to be.
• 22:10
  Speaker 3: Impacted by breast cancer.
• 22:11
  Speaker 5: But with that, it is also a very large club.
• 22:16
  Speaker 5: And I think it really helps people connect with others
• 22:18
  Speaker 5: who might have similar experiences that, like you said, your
• 22:23
  Speaker 5: journey is always unique, but that doesn't mean that you
• 22:27
  Speaker 5: are alone. And events like the More Than Pink Walk
• 22:31
  Speaker 5: allow people to connect with others who might have shared
• 22:36
  Speaker 5: experiences who might be able to relate in a way
• 22:40
  Speaker 5: that others in their life might not be able to
• 22:43
  Speaker 5: and so it's gathering for survivors for people living with
• 22:48
  Speaker 5: metastatic breast cancer for their families for people who are
• 22:51
  Speaker 5: maybe mourning the loss of.
• 22:53
  Speaker 3: A loved one these events.
• 22:55
  Speaker 5: Really offer an opportunity for our community to come together
• 22:58
  Speaker 5: and And I think they also offer an opportunity for
• 23:01
  Speaker 5: people to do something about it. I know a lot
• 23:05
  Speaker 5: of people feel powerless in these situations when facing a
• 23:12
  Speaker 5: very difficult medical journey. But these events allow people the
• 23:18
  Speaker 5: opportunity to feel like they are part of something and
• 23:21
  Speaker 5: that they can collectively move the needle.
• 23:25
  Speaker 3: I think.
• 23:25
  Speaker 1: There's one word that emerges after the end of a
• 23:28
  Speaker 1: more than pink walk, and that is hope. You know,
• 23:31
  Speaker 1: we get to talk a lot about the research, the
• 23:33
  Speaker 1: progress being made. And folks leave the walk feeling hopeful
• 23:38
  Speaker 1: and optimistic for their future. The walks give them that
• 23:42
  Speaker 1: sense of, OK, we're going to we can conquer this
• 23:44
  Speaker 1: if we stick together. So I just I love I
• 23:47
  Speaker 1: love that aspect of it. Tell us about walk day.
• 23:51
  Speaker 1: What can folks expect?
• 23:52
  Speaker 3: All right. Well, you can expect a lot of pink.
• 23:55
  Speaker 3: I can tell you that. Sure. So the More Than.
• 23:58
  Speaker 5: Pink Walk for the DMV this year, it is Saturday,
• 24:02
  Speaker 5: October 10th at National Harbor at South Point. Our event
• 24:06
  Speaker 5: site opens at 8 a.m., On-site registration also begins at
• 24:11
  Speaker 5: 8 a.m. At 9.45, we'll have an opening ceremony that begins.
• 24:16
  Speaker 5: And at 10 a.m., that walk begins. And I know
• 24:19
  Speaker 5: a lot of people think that they may need to
• 24:23
  Speaker 5: race or win this.
• 24:24
  Speaker 3: You do not.
• 24:25
  Speaker 5: This is for all abilities. And the best thing you
• 24:30
  Speaker 5: can do this October to help with Breast Cancer Awareness
• 24:35
  Speaker 5: Month is to go sign up for the More Than
• 24:37
  Speaker 5: Pink Walk.
• 24:38
  Speaker 3: Join us here in the DMV.
• 24:41
  Speaker 5: It is a party and Wash FM always helps make
• 24:45
  Speaker 5: sure that happens. So you don't need to have a
• 24:48
  Speaker 5: crowd of people to sign up. You can be a
• 24:50
  Speaker 5: team of one if you want and you will make
• 24:52
  Speaker 5: new friends along the way. It is a really great
• 24:56
  Speaker 5: time to be together in community. And since October is
• 25:00
  Speaker 5: National Breast Cancer Awareness Month, I know that a lot
• 25:03
  Speaker 5: of people are looking for ways to chip in to
• 25:07
  Speaker 5: raise awareness. And you can do that in a host
• 25:10
  Speaker 5: of ways. But I think the More Than Pink Walk
• 25:13
  Speaker 5: really presents itself as a very fun opportunity to do so.
• 25:18
  Speaker 5: We'll have activities, we'll have information on breast cancer and
• 25:23
  Speaker 5: the breast cancer journey, how people can get involved. There
• 25:27
  Speaker 5: is specifically a place for survivors and those living with
• 25:32
  Speaker 5: metastatic breast cancer to be there in community. We also
• 25:37
  Speaker 5: have an opportunity to honor loved ones who may have
• 25:40
  Speaker 5: passed from breast cancer. And it's a very cool place
• 25:45
  Speaker 5: to be for us chilly October Saturday morning. But it
• 25:50
  Speaker 5: will be a lot of fun and hopefully everyone can
• 25:53
  Speaker 5: join us.
• 25:54
  Speaker 1: All right, we're in. How do we sign up?
• 25:56
  Speaker 3: Yes, absolutely.
• 25:57
  Speaker 5: Like I said, you can be a team of one
• 25:59
  Speaker 5: or a team of 100. Just go to Komen, K-O-M-E-N.org
• 26:04
  Speaker 5: slash DCWalk. where you can sign up and start making
• 26:10
  Speaker 5: your way to the More Than Pink Walk right away.
• 26:12
  Speaker 1: Well, Valerie Nelson, Senior Director for Federal Policy and Advocacy
• 26:16
  Speaker 1: with Susan G. Komen, thank you for your time. We
• 26:19
  Speaker 1: cannot wait for the walk. iHeart is very honored to
• 26:22
  Speaker 1: be your radio partner again this year, and we're just
• 26:25
  Speaker 1: so looking forward to all the festivities, the More Than
• 26:28
  Speaker 1: Pink Walk at National Harbor on Saturday, October 10th.
• 26:32
  Speaker 3: Thank you, Jenny.
• 26:33
  Speaker 5: We really appreciate the partnership, and I think we're... We're
• 26:36
  Speaker 5: excited for an even better More Than Pink Walk than
• 26:39
  Speaker 5: last year.
• 26:39
  Speaker 1: Yes, each year we strive to make it bigger and better. Hey,
• 26:43
  Speaker 1: we'd love for you to join the Wash.fm More Than
• 26:45
  Speaker 1: Pink Walk team. If you would like to hang out
• 26:48
  Speaker 1: with us for the day, you can go to washfm.com
• 26:51
  Speaker 1: on the events page and get yourself all registered. Thank
• 26:54
  Speaker 1: you for listening to this iHeart Radio station and Community DC.
• 26:58
  Speaker 1: Have a great day.
• 27:00
  Speaker 6: Don't let biased algorithms or degree screens or exclusive professional networks,
• 27:07
  Speaker 6: or stereotypes. Don't let anything keep you from discovering the
• 27:12
  Speaker 6: half of the workforce who are stars. Workers skill through
• 27:15
  Speaker 6: alternative routes rather than a bachelor's degree. It's time to
• 27:19
  Speaker 6: tear the paper ceiling and see the stars beyond it.
• 27:22
  Speaker 6: Find out how you can make stars part of your
• 27:24
  Speaker 6: talent strategy at tearthepaperceiling.org. Brought to you by Opportunity at
• 27:28
  Speaker 6: Work and the Ad Council.
• 27:29
  Speaker 3: No conduzca distraído. Un mensaje presentado por la Administración.
• 27:33
  Speaker 4: Nacional de Seguridad del Tráfico en Carreteras, el Proyecto Luz
• 27:37
  Speaker 4: Amarilla y el Ad Council. For some children, a single
• 28:03
  Speaker 4: surgery can turn an untreated cleft into a smile for life.
• 28:09
  Speaker 4: But at Smile Train, we understand that most children need
• 28:13
  Speaker 4: a little extra care. They need nourishment to ensure they
• 28:19
  Speaker 4: grow healthy and strong. They need a confident voice so
• 28:24
  Speaker 4: they can express themselves clearly. They need emotional support and
• 28:29
  Speaker 4: counseling to help them navigate the challenges of school and
• 28:34
  Speaker 4: home life. And they need orthodontic and dental care to
• 28:39
  Speaker 4: make sure their smiles light up the room as brightly
• 28:42
  Speaker 4: as possible. Visit SmileTrain.org to learn how Smile Train is
• 28:48
  Speaker 4: supporting the cleft community with lifelong smiles.
• 28:53
  Speaker 7: Smile Train.
• 28:54
  Speaker 4: Changing the world one smile at a time.
• 29:00
  Speaker 7: This is the chef of love, Chef Jannard, TV host
• 29:03
  Speaker 7: and restaurateur. My grandparents harvested their land to sell food
• 29:08
  Speaker 7: and share this overflowing bounty with our community. Grandma said,
• 29:12
  Speaker 7: for every yam we pick, we give one away. In
• 29:15
  Speaker 7: the world they cultivated, I loved preparing and eating dinner
• 29:18
  Speaker 7: with my family on Sundays. When our resources changed, food
• 29:23
  Speaker 7: assistance programs sustained us. They gave me fuel to start
• 29:27
  Speaker 7: my first culinary business at 16 years old. An inspiration
• 29:32
  Speaker 7: to donate the extra food in my community. Through my life,
• 29:36
  Speaker 7: I've developed an appetite to work with others to ensure
• 29:39
  Speaker 7: everyone has access. access to the nutritious food we need
• 29:42
  Speaker 7: to thrive. Together we can help end hunger. Come on.
• 29:47
  Speaker 7: Join the movement with Feeding America by volunteering, donating, and advocating.
• 29:52
  Speaker 7: Learn more at feedingamerica.org slash act now. Brought to you
• 29:56
  Speaker 7: by Feeding America and the Ag Council.