Podcasts for Your Patients with Breast Cancer

A patient who is well informed is one step ahead regarding their cancer diagnosis and prognosis. As an oncology nurse, I see many patients with breast cancer who want to know how they can learn more about their disease. One way to educate patients could be to recommend podcasts about breast cancer.

Most patients have cell phones and would be using them anyway during long hours in recovery, or during treatments. Why not supply them with a list of podcasts? Below are a few that can give them information from one end of the spectrum to the other, from breast cancer basics to survivor stories to cutting edge research.

BreastCancer.org

Podcasts from BreastCancer.org offer a diverse mix of topics. For example, one podcast covers post-mastectomy pain syndrome and how it is treated. Another one is about The Serenity Project, a metastatic breast cancer support campaign that gives patients an opportunity to share their stories through a series of photos and videos. Another explains neuropathy and how it is treated.

Breast Cancer Research Foundation

In the official podcast of the Breast Cancer Research Foundation, experts are interviewed about the latest news in breast cancer research. For example, in one podcast, Larry Norton, MD, FASCO, scientific director of the Breast Cancer Research Foundation, and medical director of the Evelyn H. Lauder Breast Center at the Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, discusses his research and work, while also sharing how Evelyn Lauder and her husband Leonard decided to fund breast cancer research.

More than Pink

The Susan G. Komen More than Pink Podcast takes the listener through the nuts and bolts of breast cancer basics, from screening and treatment to survivorship and research news. The first series of podcasts is called “Breast Cancer Basics” and discusses the Susan G. Komen organization as well as the disease. The second series is “Research and the Cutting Edge” and the third series is called “Survivorship.”

CURE^® Talks Cancer

Though not strictly about breast cancer, the CURE® Talks Cancer podcasts provide a wealth of cancer research and education. Breast cancer-related podcasts include “Pregnant With Cancer: How One Woman’s Life Changed in Just Three Days,” “Knowing Your Hereditary Risk,” and “Barbells for Boobs,” about a nonprofit launched by CrossFit fanatics to raise money and spread awareness about breast cancer.

There is much information about breast cancer available in podcast form. Let your patients know where to find them. Oncology nurses might learn something new from listening, too.