The Empowered Patient Project

This week we chatted to Kathryn Elliott about lifestyle factors and how changing them can positively impact a breast cancer experience.Specifically, Kath’s personal story and how changing her relationship with alcohol had a positive impact on her experience with breast cancer and living well after cancer.On an ordinary morning in August 2019, at age 46, Kath’s life was suddenly stripped bare of the superfluous when she discovered a large lump in her breast while getting dressed to race out the door to work. She instinctually knew something wasn’t right and two days later was diagnosed with locally advanced breast cancer. Within a week, she’d been through 15 medical appointments, numerous scans, a small operation and started an intense 6-month program of chemotherapy.Kath is passionate about building awareness about the deeper human connection you can achieve through sharing your experience of illness and trauma and how choosing to remain alcohol-free during this period was a catalyst to further healing and growth.In this podcast, we will be diving into Kath's personal story and how changing her relationship with alcohol positively impacted her experience with breast cancer and living well after cancer.You can find Kath on Instagram at @thealcoholmindsetcoach @mybreastfriendaus @healingbreastcancer Learn more: https://www.inheritedcancers.org.au/

On this episode we chatted to Nicole Cooper about her journey with being a patient advocate.Nicole Cooper was expert patient advocate, speaker and management consultant who lived her experience of the health system as a stage four cancer patient publicly, and with purpose. Nicole was also a full time bowel cancer patient for over five years, facing 11 surgeries, multiple lines of chemotherapy and immunotherapy, and a recent program of radiotherapy.She passionately and energetically lobbied for patient access and health system improvement at the national, state and community level, always with an emphasis on tracking and delivering better patient outcomes.Three words we would use to describe Nicole: Passionate. Generous. Courageous.Learn more: https://www.inheritedcancers.org.au/

Today we have Georgina Farrell, Psychologist on the podcast to chat about self-care and looking after mental health. Tune in to hear some simple and useful tricks to support good mental health.Learn more: https://www.inheritedcancers.org.au/

On this episode, we are joined by Dr Lironne Wein, a Medical Oncologist and menopause-after-cancer specialist to talk all things surgical menopause. Learn more: https://www.inheritedcancers.org.au/

Let's talk about options for managing your risk of breast cancer. 👩‍⚕️ We were joined by Dr Chantel Thornton, a specialist breast cancer surgeon, on the latest episode of the podcast. You can find more about Chantel below:https://www.breastcancerspecialist.com.au/https://www.instagram.com/drchantelthornton/?hl=enLearn more: https://www.inheritedcancers.org.au/

Ever wondered what a genetic counsellor actually does? 🤔We were joined by Camron Ebzery, a Senior Genetic Counsellor, to discuss their importance and key role in any high risk journey.Learn more: https://www.inheritedcancers.org.au/

We are delighted to announce that today's podcast guest is Liz Villalta , a Senior Musculoskeletal physio.Liz breaks down the importance of having a strong body both before and after any sort of risk reducing surgeries.Learn more: https://www.inheritedcancers.org.au/

On today's episode we welcome Martina Clark, the founder of Carers Couch."Cancer runs in my family but it was only when I became a carer for my best friend Anoula, who died from cancer in 2015, that I discovered how hard it was to find resources and services to make her time more comfortable and manageable, while looking after my own health in the process.I realised there was a significant need to improve support systems for individuals and families when it comes to cancer and to provide holistic support for them during every moment they look after a person during and beyond a cancer diagnosis. I have built the Carers Couch team with passionate and dedicated people who understand the importance of human connections and ongoing support. Every day, we strive to provide innovative, relevant support to those who need it most."You can find Carers Couch here:Website: https://carerscouch.com/Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/carerscouch/Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/CarersCouch/Learn more: https://www.inheritedcancers.org.au/