Help Lynn raise money

"You gain strength, courage, and confidence by every experience in which you really stop to look fear in the face" - Eleanor Roosevelt. As a physical therapist with an oncology/lymphedema specialty, I regularly work with patients who make me realize that it takes strength and courage not just to face the diagnosis and treatment phase of breast cancer, but everything that comes after for the rest of their lives. We often talk about how there is a fine line between prudence and paranoia - they try to report any new or persistent symptoms as needed to their medical team, but also try to find a way to enjoy life and sometimes block out the nagging worry that the cancer will come back, or if it already has, that it could spread further. I help treat lymphedema, a swelling condition that patients can develop in a limb or chest/breast after surgery and radiation. It is one of the consequences of treatment that takes a lot of strength and persistence to manage forever, because it cannot be cured. Patients tell me that seeing and feeling their lymphedema is a constant reminder that the effects of cancer will always be in their lives, and this can be emotionally challenging to endure. I was lucky this past year to pilot a Strength After Breast Cancer program at MGH - a program designed to teach small groups of patients how to become stronger and more flexible to manage lymphedema, reduce injury risk and have better quality of life. My mom is also a two-time breast cancer survivor and I feel lucky that she was able to be expertly and compassionately treated at MGH this past year. I hope you will join me in supporting the research of the MGH Breast Cancer Center as I run the Falmouth Road Race on 8/18/24 for this important cause.