Survivor’s guilt is a common and not often talked about emotional experience after cancer. Dr. Leah Sherman sits down with returning guest Natasha Ewa, licensed clinical social worker and founder of I Thrive Therapy and Wellness, for an honest conversation about what survivor’s guilt actually looks like, why body image after cancer is so personal, and what healing can feel like on the other side.

The conversation widens to cover grief over pre-cancer identity, hypervigilance, reconstruction decisions, and Natasha’s documentation of her own DIEP flap experience and complications.

Whether you’re navigating survivorship yourself or supporting someone who is, this one meets you where you are.

Visit the I Thrive Therapy and Wellness website

Follow Natasha on Instagram

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Cancer Hope Network CEO Beth Blakey on Peer Mentorship, Caregiver Support, and Connection in Cancer Care

Beth Blakey, CEO of Cancer Hope Network, discusses the organization’s 46-year mission to ensure no one faces cancer alone. The unique model of free, confidential, one-on-one peer mentorship connecting patients and caregivers with trained cancer survivors or caregivers continues to touch lives. Blakey shares her personal story that led her to join the organization in 2019, and how she rose to become the CEO. She explains how, even in the midst of rapid technological advances, one thing has not changed: the need for personal connections. Cancer Hope Network facilitates these connections the old-fashioned way, through helping patients and their caregivers one on one. Blakey also outlines key initiatives: Cancer Hope Network en Español, the TACT (Talking About Clinical Trials) program, and Hopeful Hearts for parents of children and adolescents with cancer.

Learn more about the expert cancer care and support of Cancer Hope Network on their website.

Follow Cancer Hope Network:
Instagram
Facebook
TikTok

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What happens to desire after a cancer diagnosis? In this episode, Dr. Leah Sherman speaks with intimacy coach and cancer survivor Claire Rumore about the often-overlooked intimacy challenges that come with cancer diagnosis and treatment. Claire shares how cancer may reshape desire, body image, and relationship dynamics—and why clinical care frequently misses these impacts. They explore practical approaches like redefining intimacy beyond intercourse, using nervous system regulation and consent-based touch to rebuild safety, and the Erotic Blueprints framework for understanding desire. Claire also introduces resources from her site cancerandintimacy.com designed to support patients, survivors, and their partners through this deeply personal aspect of cancer care.

Cancer and Intimacy website

Coupon Code: CAI20

Free resource kit: Reclaiming Intimacy During and After Cancer, The Sensual Wardrobe Reset

Claire's Bio and social media links

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Dr. Kaczor speaks with Dr. Chad Levitt, a board-certified radiation oncologist with over 25 years of experience and founder of ONCARE MD. Levitt discusses how patients are, in effect, consumers of a product called "medical care." As consumers, they are in charge and must navigate the often fragmented healthcare landscape. He talks about the need to have your questions answered fully, to seek second opinions, and to ensure that your care team communicates clearly. The discussion covers what fully informed consent looks like, the limits of the NCCN guidelines, and the need for integrative oncology (including nutrition, stress, and supportive care). His company, OncCareMD, provides unbiased, membership-based advice for optimal treatments with frequent touch points to ensure treatment goes smoothly.

Dr. Chad Levitt's bio and links

OnCareMD website

NCCN Guidelines for Patients

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In this episode, we dive deep into surgical support for cancer patients and share all the insider intel you might be missing out on. From what not to take before surgery (blood clotting is essential!) to the importance of inflammation in the healing process (yes, inflammation is actually your friend after surgery!), we cover it all.

Discover key nutrients, physical and occupational therapy recommendations, and even some mind-body strategies to boost your recovery. We’re talking macronutrients, micronutrients, supplements, and the best foods to eat before and after surgery. Also, we reveal a common supplement that we’re told to skip that might actually help with healing! This episode is packed with practical, easy-to-implement advice that you won't want to miss.

Past episodes we mentioned:

• Omega-3 Fatty Acids: Supplements 101
• Vitamin D: Supplements 101
• Calcium: The Low Down and the High Points
• Vitamin C: Supplements 101
• Magnesium: the Goldilocks Nutrient?
• Flax and Chia Seeds: Foods First
• Link to nutrient absorption chart of gut
• Find clinical trials on exercise as cancer supportive therapy

Products we mentioned (we may earn a small commission at no cost to you):
Juven
Ginger People
Tummy Drops

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Become a member of The Cancer Pod Community! Gain access to live Q&As, exclusive content, and so much more! Join us today on Buy Me a Coffee or on Patreon!

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Writer, humorist, previvor, survivor, and breast cancer prevention advocate Gila Pfeffer joins Leah for a thoughtful, funny, and deeply honest conversation about loss, resilience, and finding humor in the most unlikely situations.

Gila talks about her memoir, Nearly Departed: Adventures in Loss, Cancer, and Other Inconveniences, how humor can be a survival tool during cancer treatment, and her cheeky Feel It on the First campaign that raises awareness of breast cancer screenings and risk reduction. Gila shares her experiences from undergoing a risk-reducing double mastectomy as a BRCA+ previvor to becoming a cancer survivor who is a powerful voice in breast cancer awareness.

This wide-ranging interview moves between generations—Gila’s experience as a daughter watching her mother go through cancer, and later as a mother facing her own diagnosis—highlighting the power of storytelling to help us make sense of what feels impossible. Honest, insightful, and refreshingly human, this episode is for anyone navigating cancer.

Follow Gila on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/gilapfeffer/

Subscribe to her Substack

Send your Feel It On the First pictures to Gila! gilawrites@gmail.com

Things mentioned in this episode:

Read Gila’s first publication in McSweeney’s An Open Letter to Tiffany & Co. About Their Advertising Campaign for the Ring That Helps Women Remember They Survived Cancer

The Tyrer-Cuzick Risk Calculator

Koning-Vera, compression-free mammography

Eleonora Deplinsky, MD Gynecologic medical oncologist https://www.instagram.com/drteplinsky

Robyn Roth, MD breast radiologist https://www.instagram.com/theboobiedocs

Sharsheret, a nonprofit dedicated to providing personalized support, education, and community for Jewish women facing breast and/or ovarian cancer.

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Become a member of The Cancer Pod Community! Gain access to live Q&As, exclusive content, and so much more! Join us today on Buy Me a Coffee or on Patreon!

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Dr. Tina Kaczor and Dr. Leah Sherman discuss new diagnostic tools that can tell benign tumors from cancer in the pancreas, highlight the growing concerns over microplastics, and explore the link between ultra-processed foods and early colorectal cancer. They also highlight some amazing inventions by teenagers, like a melanoma-detection app and a skin-cancer-reducing soap. Last, they cover the benefits of hypnosis before breast cancer surgery and the health impact of commonly used chemicals in dry cleaning. This episode provides valuable insights for anyone interested in cancer prevention, early diagnosis, and overall wellness.

Soap for skin cancers invented by TIME's Kid of the Year, Hemen Bekele

A skin cancer detecting app invented by Richmond, VA high-schoolers

The dramatic increase in glyphosate use across the Midwest in the USA

The rising rates of cancer in young people around the world

Exposure of rat fetuses to glyphosate levels led to early cancer development

The rising rate of glyphosate exposure over time

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In this special November episode, we are swapping podcasts with Charlotte Bayala of the Cancer Caregiver Podcast. Charlotte explores the complexities of meeting expectations of gratitude during the holidays when you or your loved one is dealing with cancer. Listeners will hear an honest, grounded discussion of the mixed emotions that arise, and a breathing tool to help you deal with them in real time. By the end, listeners will have strategies for expressing gratitude authentically in difficult times.

Links to Charlotte's bio and social media

https://www.cancercaregiverpodcast.com/

Leave a message and let us know what you liked about the episode!

Support the show

Become a member of The Cancer Pod Community! Gain access to live Q&As, exclusive content, and so much more! Join us today on Buy Me a Coffee or on Patreon!

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