BRCA & Beyond

In this episode of BRCA & Beyond, Marisa sits down with Founder & CEO Troy Sutton and his mom and co-founder, Debbie Sutton, to talk about The Healing Pads...reusable hot and cold therapy pads designed for breast pain relief during menopause, mammograms, breast surgery recovery, postpartum, and breastfeeding.Debbie and Troy share the personal, unexpected story behind how a frustrating mammogram turned into a mission: creating a product that offers real comfort for women navigating breast tenderness, hormonal changes, hot flashes, mastectomy and reconstruction recovery, biopsies, and everything in between. From the mother-son dynamic behind the brand to the women whose lives have been changed by finding a product that finally understands what they're going through, this conversation is about more than a product. It's about being seen, supported, and cared for in the moments that matter most.About The Healing Pads:We are so grateful to have the opportunity to share the story behind The Healing Pads with Marisa and the BRCA & Beyond community. What started as a personal experience in our own family has grown into a mission to help women feel more comfortable, supported, and confident through some of life's most challenging moments. The Healing Pads are reusable therapeutic breast pads that can be heated for soothing warmth or cooled for refreshing cold therapy, offering simple, versatile comfort for women navigating everything from breast tenderness and menopause to recovery, breastfeeding, and breast cancer-related procedures. For us, this isn't just about a product: it's about listening to women, sharing our stories, and creating something that reminds every woman that she deserves comfort and care along her journey. We are honored to be part of a platform like BRCA & Beyond and hope to Empower Women with Comfort & Confidence!Get 10% off: Use code BRCA10 at thehealingbras.com/discount/BRCA10Connect with The Healing Pads:Website: https://www.thehealingbras.com/Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thehealingpadsFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/people/The-Healing-Bra/100095072517617/TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@the.healing.braYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TheHealingBras

Why do people feel the need to explain why someone got cancer?From diet and stress to vaccines, chemicals, genetics, and lifestyle choices, a cancer diagnosis can quickly become an invitation for other people to offer theories about what “caused” it. And for those living with a hereditary cancer mutation like BRCA1, BRCA2, Lynch syndrome, PALB2, CHEK2, ATM, or other genetic cancer risks, the judgment can take a different form: questioning preventive surgeries, increased surveillance, genetic testing, or decisions made to reduce future cancer risk.In this episode of BRCA & Beyond, Marisa talks about the blame that can follow both a cancer diagnosis and a hereditary cancer diagnosis and why our need to find a reason often says more about our fear of cancer than it does about the person living through it. Drawing from her own experience as a young colon cancer survivor and BRCA2 previvor, Marisa shares some of the assumptions people have made about her diagnosis, health, diet, and medical decisions. She also explores the pressure survivors and previvors can feel to defend themselves, explain their choices, or prove they somehow didn’t cause what happened to them.Because while lifestyle and environmental factors can play a role in cancer risk, cancer is complicated. Genetics matter. Biology matters. And sometimes there simply isn’t one clean explanation for why cancer develops in one person and not another.This conversation is for cancer survivors, previvors, hereditary cancer mutation carriers, caregivers, family members, and anyone who has ever been on the receiving end of an unsolicited theory about their own body.BRCA & Beyond is written, recorded, and run independently by Marisa, a colon cancer survivor and BRCA2 previvor. Your support helps this podcast reach more survivors and previvors who need this space. 💖 If this episode helped you, you can support the mission here: www.ko-fi.com/brcabeyond

There's no one right way to move through a breast cancer diagnosis. Alexa Meyer's way involved asking every question, trusting her body, and building a community from her chemo chair.In this episode, I sit down with Alexa Meyer, breast cancer survivor, CHEK2 gene carrier, toddler mom, and founder of Killer Tits Club. Diagnosed with triple-positive breast cancer at 33, Alexa shares how she trusted her body, pushed for answers, and made empowered decisions every step of the way... from choosing a nipple-sparing double mastectomy and skipping the port during chemo, to cold capping and keeping her hair, to walking into Sacramento to testify for scalp-cooling insurance legislation just months after finishing chemotherapy and just 1 week after an immunotherapy session.We talk about what it's like to receive a DCIS diagnosis that kept evolving and eventually diagnosed with IDC (invasive ductal carcinoma), why second opinions matter (Alexa got four), how genetic testing brought her unexpected peace, navigating an egg retrieval over the holidays before starting treatment, and the moment a joke with her husband turned into a brand name she couldn't let go of.Whether you're newly diagnosed, in treatment, years into survivorship, or navigating hereditary cancer risk, this conversation is a reminder that there's no one right way to go through this... and that you get to create the meaning on the other side.About Alexa:Alexa Meyer is the founder of Killer Tits Club, a breast cancer apparel brand and community founded during chemotherapy. Diagnosed with triple-positive breast cancer at 33, just one year postpartum, she began building Killer Tits Club from her chemotherapy chair as a way to find her way back to herself. What began as one logo has grown into a community of women who believe survivorship can be irreverent, feminine, and empowering all at once. Before cancer, Alexa spent over a decade in marketing and brand strategy, experience she now uses to build a brand that's changing the conversation around life after breast cancer. She lives in Northern California with her husband and daughter.In this episode:Breast cancer at 33 • CHEK2 mutation • DCIS and triple-positive breast cancer • Second opinions and self-advocacy • Nipple-sparing double mastectomy • Chemo without a port • Cold capping and scalp cooling advocacy • Fertility preservation before chemo • Motherhood during cancer treatment • Building community through survivorshipConnect with Alexa & Killer Tits Club: Website: https://killertitsclub.com/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/killer.tits.club/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61588506503432 TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@killer.tits.clubJoin the National Scalp Cooling Advocacy Group to support legislation in your state: https://www.facebook.com/share/g/17y7aB6iKF/🎁 Listeners get 15% off at killertitsclub.com with code BEYOND15

If you've been diagnosed with an ATM gene mutation, have a family history of breast cancer, or are wondering whether genetic testing could change your future, this conversation is for you.In this episode of BRCA & Beyond, I sit down with Krista Brown, MS, RN, CFNC, an oncology nurse navigator, breast cancer survivor, and hereditary cancer advocate. Krista shares her powerful journey after learning she carries an ATM gene mutation, how enhanced screening detected her Stage 1A breast cancer just weeks before her planned preventive mastectomy, and why she believes earlier access to genetic testing could have prevented her diagnosis.Krista is an Oncology Nurse Navigator in Phoenix, Arizona, with more than 14 years of nursing experience. As a breast cancer survivor and carrier of an ATM gene mutation, she's passionate about hereditary cancer education, genetic testing awareness, evidence-based prevention, and helping individuals and families make informed healthcare decisions.Together, we discuss hereditary cancer, inherited cancer risk, genetic counseling, breast cancer screening, prevention, advocacy, survivorship, and the emotional realities of living with a hereditary cancer gene mutation. We also talk about the gaps that still exist in patient education, why genetic testing matters, and how sharing our stories can create meaningful change for future families.Whether you're living with an ATM, BRCA1, BRCA2, PALB2, CHEK2, TP53, PTEN, CDH1, STK11, Lynch syndrome (MLH1, MSH2, MSH6, PMS2, EPCAM), RAD51C, RAD51D, BARD1, NBN, BRIP1, or another hereditary cancer gene mutation, or you're supporting someone who is, this episode offers education, hope, and honest conversation.Follow Krista on Instagram:📲 @cancer.prevention.rn

Career, job, and money struggles as a previvor or cancer survivor. A cancer diagnosis or genetic mutation finding, like BRCA or Lynch syndrome, changes more than your health; it changes your career, your job, and your income. This episode covers the real financial and professional cost of previvorship and survivorship that nobody prepares you for.Topics covered: building a career while managing surgeries, cancer treatment, surveillance, and genetic testing appointments. Explaining FMLA and medical leave to an employer who has never dealt with prophylactic surgery or a genetic mutation diagnosis. Missing promotions and job opportunities because of surgery or treatment timelines. Workplace discrimination fears for previvors and cancer survivors. Grieving the career you thought you would have.If you are a previvor, cancer survivor, or genetic mutation carrier trying to balance your health with your job and your career, this episode is for you.

What does it really mean to live with a BRCA1 gene mutation? How do you make life-changing decisions when hereditary cancer runs through your family?In this episode of BRCA & Beyond, I sit down with Kristen Jordan (@sheinheritsstrength), a wife, mother, nurse practitioner, and BRCA1 previvor, who shares her deeply personal journey through genetic testing, hereditary cancer risk, and preventative surgery.After experiencing devastating loss within her family, Kristen learned she carries the BRCA1 genetic mutation, significantly increasing her lifetime risk for breast cancer and ovarian cancer. She opens up about the emotional impact of discovering she was BRCA positive, navigating survivor's guilt, making difficult decisions about preventive surgery, and finding purpose through advocacy.Together, we discuss:• Living with a BRCA1 mutation• The importance of genetic testing and knowing your family history• Hereditary breast and ovarian cancer risk• Preventive mastectomy and hysterectomy decisions• Family history, grief, and survivor's guilt• Finding hope, resilience, and community after a hereditary cancer diagnosisWhether you've recently tested positive for BRCA1 or BRCA2, Lynch Syndrome, PALB2, Chek, ATM, or other genetic mutations; have a strong family history of cancer; are considering preventive surgery; or simply want to better understand hereditary cancer, Kristen's story is an honest reminder that knowledge is power—and that you don't have to walk this journey alone.Connect with Kristen:Instagram: @sheinheritsstrengthIf this episode resonates with you, please subscribe, leave a review, and share it with someone navigating a hereditary cancer journey. Together, we can raise awareness, encourage early detection, and help others feel seen, informed, and supported.

In this solo episode of BRCA & Beyond, Marisa talks about a message she received from someone in her past suggesting that because she is healthy now, she should move on from talking about cancer, genetic mutations, BRCA, surgeries, and the emotional weight of it all.That message opened up a much bigger conversation about what it really feels like to live with a genetic mutation, hereditary cancer risk, and cancer survivorship. For previvors, survivors, and genetic mutation carriers, there often is no clean finish line. The cancer may be gone. The surgery may be over. The scans may be clear. But the impact on your body, mind, family, children, relationships, and future does not simply disappear.Marisa shares why “healthy now” does not mean “done,” why being a cancer survivor continues to shape your life, and why choosing risk-reducing surgery can be one of the deepest ways someone chooses to live fully. She also talks about the pressure to stay positive, the hurt that comes from uninformed opinions, and how to protect your peace when people misunderstand what you are still carrying.This episode is for anyone who has ever been told to move on, stop talking about it, focus on the positive, or make “non-cancer related” memories. It is a reminder that moving forward does not have to mean staying silent.Topics discussed: genetic mutation, BRCA, hereditary cancer risk, cancer survivorship, previvor life, risk-reducing surgery, double mastectomy, salpingectomy, scan anxiety, family risk, motherhood, mental health, body image, boundaries, and life after cancer.

In this deeply personal episode of BRCA & Beyond, Marisa Stachelski takes listeners behind the scenes of her experience participating in the Dear Body Project through BRCAStrong, a powerful initiative that brings together twelve women impacted by hereditary cancer, BRCA mutations, breast cancer, and life-changing surgeries to celebrate their strength, resilience, and stories.What began as a boudoir photoshoot became so much more. Through shared conversations, tears, laughter, vulnerability, and connection, twelve women who entered the room as strangers found a community built on understanding, courage, and healing.Marisa opens up about her lifelong struggle with body image, being teased as a child, years of dieting and trying to make herself smaller, and how those invisible wounds followed her through her colon cancer diagnosis, BRCA2 mutation, preventive surgeries, double mastectomy, reconstruction, and recovery.She shares the powerful moment of watching each woman walk out of her private photography session transformed—not because anything about her body had changed, but because she had rediscovered confidence, pride, and a connection to herself that may have been buried beneath years of fear, medical appointments, scars, and survival.Marisa also reads her emotional “Dear Body” letter and reflects on what it means to finally move from criticism to gratitude, recognizing the very body she spent years trying to change was the same body that carried her through motherhood, cancer, surgeries, and healing.This episode is for every survivor, previvor, and woman who has ever struggled to see herself with kindness.Topics discussed:• BRCA & hereditary cancer awareness• Breast cancer and cancer survivorship• Colon cancer survivorship• Preventive mastectomy and breast reconstruction• Body image after cancer and surgery• Self-love, confidence, and emotional healing• The power of community and shared storiesFollow BRCAStrong on Instagram: @BRCAStrongLearn more about the Dear Body Project and BRCAStrong at BRCAStrong.org.