4/18/2009 through 4/19/2009

3rd Annual Conference for Women Living with Advanced Breast Cancer: Enhancing Your Health and Quality of Life

Join us for our April 18-19, 2009, conference focusing exclusively on the medical, emotional and practical needs of women living with advanced breast cancer

Plenary Speakers: Hope S. Rugo, MD; Elizabeth Edwards

Click here to register for the 3rd Annual Conference for Women Living with Advanced Breast Cancer.

Join Living Beyond Breast Cancer for our 3rd Annual Conference for Women Living with Advanced Breast Cancer: Enhancing Your Health and Quality of Life, from Saturday, April 18, through Sunday, April 19, 2009, at the Philadelphia Marriott West in West Conshohocken, Pa. The two-day program will feature the information, support and practical resources you need to make informed decisions for your physical and emotional health.

You won’t want to miss the special talk by Elizabeth Edwards. Mrs. Edwards has raised awareness of metastatic breast cancer around the world, and we are honored that she will share her experiences and insights with us.

On Saturday morning, plenary speaker Hope S. Rugo, MD, will discuss medical and research news on breast cancer treatments. On Sunday, join us for an ask-the-expert panel featuring a variety of healthcare professionals who will answer your questions.

Saturday Conference and Workshop Agenda

After you enjoy a continental breakfast and welcome, Dr. Rugo will provide the latest medical and research news on treating advanced breast cancer. Following a question-and-answer session and plated lunch, you will then have the opportunity to choose from five workshops:

A. Brain Mets: Standard and Novel Treatments

Speaker TBA

Learn about the latest treatments available for brain metastases and what’s in the pipeline for treatment and progressive research. Gain insight on how to manage symptoms and side effects, and understand the tests that help your doctor measure treatment goals.

B. Managing Symptoms and Side Effects: Living Well Every Day

Carrie Tompkins Stricker, PhD, RN, Oncology Nurse Practitioner and Assistant Professor of Nursing, Abramson Cancer Center, University of Pennsylvania

Dr. Tompkins will talk about how ongoing treatment and symptoms can cause side effects that may affect your quality of life. Learn strategies to manage fatigue, pain, nausea, insomnia, skin changes, neuropathy and more. Share your tips with others, and learn new interventions to enhance your quality of life.

C. Sexuality and Intimacy

Michael L. Krychman, MDCM, Medical Director, Sexual Medicine, Hoag Hospital;

Executive Director, Southern California Center for Sexual Health and Survivorship Medicine

Mr. Krychman will help you learn how to get your physical and emotional needs met while managing advanced breast cancer. You will also get practical strategies to connect with your intimate self for greater fulfillment and quality of life with or without a partner.

D. Creative Coping: Healing with Words

Alysa Cummings

Ms. Cummings will help you explore writing as a healing outlet for your thoughts and feelings. Learn how telling your story through journaling, poetry and memoir can help you cope with your experience, and get techniques to jumpstart your writing process.

E. Planning Ahead: Living Wills, Wills and Powers of Attorney

Rodney N. Warner, Esq, The Legal Clinic for the Disabled, Inc.

Paul L. Feldman, Feldman & Feldman, LLP

Learn how powers of attorney, healthcare proxies, living wills and wills can empower you when cancer can make you feel powerless. Avoid healthcare and financial problems before they occur, learn a practical approach to taking care of your business and where to find more information in order to plan ahead.

Saturday Afternoon Events

Ms. Edwards will draw on her strength of purpose, perseverance, warmth and wit to talk openly about overcoming significant life obstacles during her presentation, An Inspiring Life. The country got to know Elizabeth as she has campaigned extensively across the country during the 2004 and 2008 presidential elections. The day after the general election in 2004, she was diagnosed with breast cancer. Elizabeth was in remission until March 2007 when she discovered her cancer had returned. Her courageous battle with breast cancer has served as an inspiration to women across the country. Afterward, enjoy a book signing with Ms. Edwards and network with other attendees.

Sunday Conference and Workshop Sessions

After you enjoy a continental breakfast and welcome, join us for an ask-the-expert panel featuring a variety of healthcare professionals who will answer your questions. Panelists include: Edith P. Mitchell, MD, FACP, Kimmel Cancer Center at Jefferson; Bunny Guerreri, RN, oncology nurse and woman living with advanced breast cancer; Helen L. Coons, PhD, ABPP, Women’s Mental Health Associates; and Michael L. Krychman, MDCM, Hoag Hospital, Southern California Center for Sexual Health and Survivorship Medicine.

Following the panel session, choose from five workshop sessions:

F. Bone Mets: Standard and Novel Treatments

Edith P. Mitchell, MD, FACP, Clinical Professor of Medicine and Medical Oncology, Program Leader, Gastrointestinal Oncology, Department of Medical Oncology, Associate Director of Diversity Programs, Kimmel Cancer Center at Jefferson

Explore treatment options for bone metastasis including surgery, radiation, hormonal and targeted treatments and chemotherapy. Gain insight on how to manage symptoms and side effects, including bone pain, and understand the tests that help your doctor measure your treatment’s goals.

G. Maintaining Nutrition for Optimal Well-Being

Debra DeMille, MS, RD, CSO, Nutrition Counselor, Joan Karnell Cancer Center at Pennsylvania Hospital

Ms. DeMille will discuss how proper nutrition and a healthy lifestyle can help keep your body, mind and spirits strong. She will help you understand how nutrition can support your treatment and manage side effects while providing healthy strategies for maintaining optimal quality of life and well-being.

H. Living with Uncertainty

Helen L. Coons, PhD, ABPP, President and Clinical Director, Women’s Mental Health Associates

Dr. Coons will provide information on how to manage your emotions when living with a diagnosis of advanced breast cancer, methods to cope, strategies to accommodate changes in treatment or diagnosis, ways to communicate with family and friends and tips on where and how to find support.

I. Getting Relief: Pain Management Strategies

Pam Kedziera RN, MSN, AOCN, Clinical Director, Pain and Palliative Care Program, Fox Chase Cancer Center

Ms. Kedziera will discuss how to effectively communicate your concerns to your doctor in order to develop a pain management plan, types of pain and treatments, how to take pain medications and new methods to manage pain and side effects. Learn how to include pain management in your overall treatment plan and get resources for finding specialists.

J. Care for the Caregiver: Support Just for You

Ashley Varner, MSW, MBA, LCSW-C, Senior Director, Caregiving Programs, The Wellness Community

Discuss your concerns and needs as a caregiver for a woman with advanced breast cancer, and learn strategies to manage your expectations of yourself so you can better care for your loved one. Meet other caregivers and exchange tips for coping.

About Our Plenary Speakers

Elizabeth Edwards has inspired countless women through her book, Saving Graces: Finding Solace and Strength from Friends and Strangers, a memoir of her trials, tragedies and public battle with breast cancer. She is a senior fellow working on healthcare issues at the Center for American Progress and an accomplished attorney. Mrs. Edwards is also committed to serving the community and expanding educational opportunities for children. She is involved in a variety of charitable efforts, including fundraising for the March of Dimes benefit. She also serves on several boards, including the UNC Board of Visitors and Books for Kids.

Dr. Hope S. Rugo is a clinical professor of medicine and director of the Breast Medical Oncology Clinical Trials Program in the division of hematology and oncology at the University of California, San Francisco, Helen Diller Family Comprehensive Cancer Center. Working in the UCSF Breast Cancer Center, Dr. Rugo’s research interests include new therapies for advanced breast cancer and supportive care. She is on the Medical Advisory Board of Living Beyond Breast Cancer. Dr. Rugo has published many peer-reviewed papers and lectures locally, nationally and internationally on cancer-related topics.

General Information

The conference will be held at the Philadelphia Marriott West at 111 Crawford Avenue in West Conshohocken, Pennsylvania 19428. You may contact the hotel at (610) 941-5600 or (800) 228-9290. A small room block with a reduced room rate has been reserved for conference participants. Please mention the Living Beyond Breast Cancer conference when making your reservations.

Conshohocken is centrally located off I-476 near both I-95 and I-76. Paid parking is available if room is a consideration. SEPTA regional rail train R6 drops passengers off one-half mile from the hotel. For directions from area locations and airports, call the hotel or use the mapping tool..

Registration and Travel Grants

Registration is $65 per person and includes continental breakfast, lunch and reception on Saturday and continental breakfast and reception on Sunday. Travel grant applications will not be accepted after April 10, 2009; applications for fee waivers will be accepted through April 16, 2009.

Sponsors

This conference is supported by lead sponsors Avon Foundation and National Philanthropic Trust, presenting sponsor Bristol-Myers Squibb and benefactors Abraxis Bioscience, Genentech, GlaxoSmithKline, Novartis and Veridex.

Get Involved

If you want to get involved with the conference and volunteer, please contact Lisa at or call her at our office at 610-645-4567.