Researchers Uncover Key Actor in Spread of Breast Cancer to the Brain 

When breast cancer metastasizes, it often heads for the brain, where it can be exceptionally difficult to root out. The key to preventing the spread of the cancer, or thwarting it if it does reach the brain, is to understand the mechanism that turns stationary tumor cells into nomadic intruders.  In a recent study, a … Read more

Metastatic Breast Cancer Survivor Proves Her Endurance at NYC Marathon 

When Meghan MacDonald visited her primary care provider in the fall of 2022 to get a lump in her breast examined, they confirmed her suspicion that it was just an inflamed cyst. Relieved, MacDonald began a course of antibiotics, but when the lump didn’t go away, her doctor ordered a mammogram, and when the results … Read more

Finding Reason to Laugh with Metastatic Breast Cancer 

By Valerie Frank Ever since I can remember, I’ve made people laugh. ​​I was always the funny friend, and when I was in my mid-20s I made it official by becoming a Main Stage cast member of ImprovBoston — an improvisational comedy theater in Cambridge, MA. Once I retired from improv to become a suburban … Read more

Living with Metastatic Breast Cancer, Mother is Given a Chance to Raise Her Son 

Just over a year after giving birth to her son, Emmett, Abigail Myers faced a devastating diagnosis of breast cancer in March 2014.   It started when Myers woke up one morning feeling sore. When she found a lump, she rushed to her doctor, all the while in disbelief that she might have cancer.  A resident … Read more

Living with Metastatic Breast Cancer, Valentines Ferry On

At first, Joy Mills and Arthur “Buck” Benedict look like any other happy, older couple traveling by ferry from their home on Peaks Island, Maine, to Portland. Admiring the beautiful views, they sit outside when weather permits. They laugh, chat with friends, and occasionally needle each other during the 18-minute trip.  Once a month, the … Read more

Metastatic Breast Cancer Patient Finds Hope — And Passes It On

Lianne Kraemer describes two breast cancer diagnoses before age 40 — including metastatic breast cancer (MBC) that had spread to her brain — as “slamming into one brick wall, getting back on life’s highway, and then slamming into another.” Now, as she continues navigating her way with the disease, Kraemer is helping those traveling a … Read more

Young Mother Embraces Life with Metastatic Breast Cancer

Anne Keane is a big fan of counting, from laps swam to miles ran to birthdays celebrated by her daughter Ruby. The most recent was Ruby’s seventh, and Keane plans on marking many more as she continues enjoying an active lifestyle with metastatic breast cancer (MBC). “We’re just so lucky to get to wake up … Read more

Care Team and Teammates Help Metastatic Breast Cancer Patient Stay Strong

As a multi-sport athlete growing up, Allison Rebello loved being part of a team. Today, living with metastatic breast cancer (MBC), she credits three teams for helping her stay active and optimistic in the face of an incurable but treatable disease. Rebello’s care team at Susan F. Smith Center for Women’s Cancers at Dana-Farber/Brigham and … Read more

Breast Cancer Treatment: What’s the Latest?

Not only are more effective drugs for breast cancer coming to the clinic, but oncologists are making important progress in matching breast cancer treatment to specific patients and the molecular characteristics of their tumors. It’s also becoming more feasible to rachet the intensity of treatment up or down depending on the patient’s risk status, and … Read more

For Metastatic Breast Cancer Patient, DF/BWCC Milford ‘Feels Like Family’

As a breast cancer survivor living an hour away from Boston, Deb Ragosta was thrilled when Milford Regional Medical Center – located just a few minutes from her Hopedale, Mass., home – became affiliated with Dana-Farber/Brigham and Women’s Cancer Center (DF/BWCC) in 2008. While she had completed active treatment in 1995, she knew the partnership … Read more

A New Approach to Understanding Breast Cancer Treatment Resistance

By Srivani Ravoori, PhD, American Association for Cancer Research This post first appeared on the Cancer Today website. In a study presented Dec. 7 at the San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium, researchers conducted genomic analysis of estrogen receptor (ER)-positive metastatic breast cancer samples that had become resistant to therapies. They found multiple alterations that were not … Read more