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Breast Cancer forum set for JFK Library on Dec. 5
November 25, 2009 | The Reporter
With the number of breast cancer survivors on the rise, medical professionals, patients, and caregivers are gathering at a first-time forum in Dorchester on Dec. 5 to focus on the status of breast cancer care and research and the needs of survivors.
The Many Faces of Breast Cancer is a national program educating people about breast cancer and has been held in various cities across the country. This is the first time it will be held in Boston.
The event is free and open to the public and will be held at the John F. Kennedy Library from 10 a.m. to noon. The program will be hosted by Commonwealth Hematology-Oncology and AstraZeneca, in partnership with the Massachusetts affiliate of Susan G. Komen for the Cure, the Wellness Community, and the American Cancer Society.
“Cancer survivorship is becoming a big topic,” said Dr. Darren Evanchuk, member of the oncology team at the Quincy-based Commonwealth Hematology- Oncology, which provides services at Carney Hospital and Milton Hospital and serves dozens of hospitals throughout the state from 11 offices. “Survivors have physical needs, emotional and psychological needs. The goal of the forum is to raise awareness about breast cancer and survivorship. And for patients and survivors to learn about these issues and resources.”
The American Cancer Society estimates that 192,370 new cases of invasive breast cancer will be diagnosed in 2009 and the disease will result in about 40,170 deaths.
The rate of breast cancer deaths, however, has been on the decline in recent years, probably due to finding cancer earlier and improved treatment, the American Cancer Society reports on its website.
Today, there are 2.5 million breast cancer survivors in the U.S.
The forum will feature a panel of speakers including Dr. Susan Sajer, breast cancer chair at Commonwealth Hematology-Oncology who will discuss chemotherapy, medical oncology, and mammography. Dr. Claire Fung is vice president of radiation therapy at Commonwealth and she will discuss radiotherapy. Panelist Dr. Susan Troyan, a breast surgeon at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, will focus on surgery. And Tim Cummings, program director of the Wellness Community in Hanover, will talk about the impact of the disease on patients and their families.
Breast cancer survivor Geralyn Lucas, author of “Why I Wore Lipstick to My Mastectomy,” will speak as well as moderate the panel.
The forum will address the status of breast cancer treatment as well as the issues faced by survivors.
“Many patients get focused on diagnosis and their treatment and they may not realize there are other things they need when they are done with their treatment,” Dr. Evanchuk said. “There is a lot of awareness about screening and a fair amount of awareness about the treatments for breast cancer. But there may not be a lot of awareness about survivor’s issues.”
There can be lingering side effects from chemotherapy and trouble with edema in extremities as a result of surgery, he said. “There can also be psychological effects of undergoing a mastectomy. Some patients have guilt that they survived and someone they knew did not,” he said.
Breast cancer survivors are also living longer. “There have been improvements in diagnosis and improvements in surgery,” he said “There have also been mprovements in hormonal and other chemotherapies. We are working to find the best combinations for patients.”
Still, challenges remain, and funding for research is one of them.
“Breast cancer research is not alone; all cancer research can use more funding on a national level,” Dr. Evanchuk said. “While awareness of screening continues to improve, there can still be obstacles for some women, because of the expense of getting a mammogram or understanding why it’s important to get screening. And, although not specific to breast cancer, access to health care in general on a national level is a challenge and we are certainly talking about that.”
The usefulness of mammography screening will likely be a topic of discussion at the forum after the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force just last week recommended new guidelines that would significantly limit the use of mammography as a screening tool for breast cancer.
“Speaking for myself, my practice will not be changing dramatically what I recommend to patients,” Dr. Evanchuk said. “They are only one group that offers guidelines. They are not the only group. It might not be the best thing to be scaling back [screening services] without looking at more data. There is a lot of other data that suggests the current strategies are still quite good.”
And other groups, such as the American College of Radiology and the American Cancer Society, are recommending that providers maintain current screening guidelines, he noted.
Admission, refreshments and parking for the program are free. Registration begins at 9:30 a.m.