Episode 51- Show Notes:

Host Gwen Kelly welcomes listeners to Combating Cancer, sharing that she was diagnosed with stage three astrocytoma at 19 and created the platform as a safe, honest space for anyone impacted by cancer. She recaps the Blooming Minds gala for brain cancer research at Brackett's Crossing Country Club, noting that nearly $300,000 was raised after expenses in partnership with the Brain Cancer Research Alliance, with funds going directly to research. Gwen reflects on the emotional weight of the event, including a slideshow of brain cancer statistics and photos that highlight grief, love, loss, and hope, and she honors families who showed up despite profound loss. She urges listeners to be present and intentional with loved ones, shares how cancer has deepened her faith, thanks guests and supporters for trusting her with their stories, and encourages grieving people to keep saying their loved one's name and sharing their story so no one fights alone.

Discussed in this episode:

• Welcome to Combating Cancer
• Blooming Minds Recap
• The Slideshow Moment
• Hold Your People Close
• Faith and Hard Questions
• Honoring Shared Stories
• Love Without Waiting
• Final Thanks and Goodbye

More from Gwen:

Get in touch with our team for sponsorship inquiries or guest host submissions: gkelly@assethr.com

Follow and join the community:

Website: https://www.combatingcancer.org

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@CombatingCancer

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/combating-cancer/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/share/1BwfwuJT81/?mibextid=wwXIfr

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/combatingcancer_?igsh=azNjM3RlcmJwcWxn

Episode 50- Show Notes:

Host Gwen Kelly, diagnosed with stage three astrocytoma at 19, welcomes her newly announced fiancé, Jake Cregan, to Combating Cancer to share their relationship story and how cancer shaped it. They recount meeting at a mutual friend's birthday party on March 8, when neither planned to attend, and how Gwen disclosed her cancer early and Jake responded by not treating her differently. Soon after, Jake faced his own health scare, and Gwen supported him through appointments, giving him insight into the waiting and uncertainty of scans. They discuss Gwen's later breast cancer scare, difficult brain scan results, feeling like a burden, and Jake's advice: show up, be honest, don't aim for perfect words, and stay. Jake describes proposing privately on Gwen's balcony, and they share plans to focus on the Blooming Minds brain cancer research gala before wedding planning, likely aiming for 2027, while emphasizing faith and support.

Discussed in this episode:

• Welcome to Combating Cancer
• How We Met
• Sharing the Diagnosis
• Jake's Health Scare
• Dating With Uncertainty
• Breast Cancer Scare
• Bad Brain Scan News
• Feeling Like a Burden
• Advice for Couples
• The Proposal Story
• Wedding Timeline Plans
• Support and Faith
• Closing and Contact Info

More from Gwen:

Get in touch with our team for sponsorship inquiries or guest host submissions: gkelly@assethr.com

Follow and join the community:

Website: https://www.combatingcancer.org

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@CombatingCancer

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/combating-cancer/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/share/1BwfwuJT81/?mibextid=wwXIfr

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/combatingcancer_?igsh=azNjM3RlcmJwcWxn

Episode 49- Show Notes:

Host Gwen Kelly welcomes listeners to Combating Cancer, shares her background of being diagnosed with astrocytoma brain cancer at 19, and reflects on how cancer reshaped her mind, relationships, identity, and outlook on the future. Now, over four years post-diagnosis and still living scan-to-scan every 90 days, she describes feeling grateful for God, loved ones, and the community, while also acknowledging ongoing fear and uncertainty. Gwen announces she is engaged to her boyfriend, Jake, explaining that the engagement represents hope, trust, and choosing joy over living by others' timelines, especially after facing mortality. She discusses the vulnerability of dating with a cancer history and credits Jake's steady support. She shares advice from Sue Dentinger—"make the plans…say yes to life"—and teases a future episode with Jake about dating with stage three through cancer and choosing love amid uncertainty.

Discussed in this episode:

• Welcome to Combating Cancer
• Four Years Since Diagnosis
• Living Scan to Scan
• Engagement Announcement
• Why Jake Means So Much
• Love on a Different Timeline
• Life Keeps Moving Forward
• Make the Plans
• Thank You and What's Next
• Closing and Contact Info

More from Gwen:

Get in touch with our team for sponsorship inquiries or guest host submissions: gkelly@assethr.com

Follow and join the community:

Website: https://www.combatingcancer.org

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@CombatingCancer

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/combating-cancer/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/share/1BwfwuJT81/?mibextid=wwXIfr

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/combatingcancer_?igsh=azNjM3RlcmJwcWxn

Episode 48- Show Notes:

Host Gwen Kelly, who was diagnosed with stage three astrocytoma at age 19, welcomes Glenn Sturm, who has undergone 18 years of chemotherapy (6,300 days oral, 610 days IV). Glenn explains his main purpose to "celebrate life" and aim to make someone smile every day, highlighting how humor helps him and others cope—sharing a surgery story and Gwen's joke with her surgeon after brain surgery. They explore how cancer impacts caregivers and emphasize listening and respect, illustrated by Glenn's story of giving a WWII history book to a nurse connected to her father. Glenn also previews his upcoming book on multidisciplinary cancer care, citing studies that link team coordination to lower mortality, and mentions key roles like navigators, psychiatrists, pharmacists, physical and music therapists. Additionally, he talks about his photography and donating all art proceeds to health causes for Gwen's April 18 gala and online auction.

Discussed in this episode:

• Welcome to Combating Cancer
• Meet Glenn Sturm
• Eighteen Years on Chemo
• Celebrate Life Daily
• Surgery Room Humor
• Laughing Through Recovery
• Caregivers Feel It Too
• The Awkward How Are You
• Listening as Medicine
• Photography and Giving Back
• Why Cancer Needs a Team
• Research That Changes Outcomes
• Advocacy and New Book
• Final Advice and Farewell

More from Glenn:

https://glennsturm.com

More from Gwen:

Get in touch with our team for sponsorship inquiries or guest host submissions: gkelly@assethr.com

Follow and join the community:

Website: https://www.combatingcancer.org

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@CombatingCancer

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/combating-cancer/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/share/1BwfwuJT81/?mibextid=wwXIfr

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/combatingcancer_?igsh=azNjM3RlcmJwcWxn

Episode 47- Show Notes:

Host Gwen Kelly welcomes listeners to Combating Cancer, shares that she was diagnosed with stage three astrocytoma brain cancer at 19, and explains the podcast's purpose: creating an honest space for anyone affected by cancer. She focuses on the often-unspoken loneliness many survivors feel after treatment ends, when the structured routine, frequent medical contact, and constant check-ins fade while anxiety about scans, bloodwork, and recurrence continues, and life must be rebuilt. Gwen recounts a survivor comparing this transition to being pushed out of the nest and shares how a message from family friend Pattie on her four-year tumor discovery anniversary deeply encouraged her. She offers practical ways to support survivors post-treatment: keep checking in, remember key dates, acknowledge emotions, and invite them back into normal life, emphasizing that support shouldn't stop when treatment does.

Discussed in this episode:

• Welcome to Combating Cancer
• Loneliness After Treatment
• When Support Fades
• Survivors Still Need You
• Simple Ways to Show Up
• Remembering the Hard Dates
• Inviting Life Back In
• You Are Not Behind
• Closing and Contact Info

More from Gwen:

Get in touch with our team for sponsorship inquiries or guest host submissions: gkelly@assethr.com

Follow and join the community:

Website: https://www.combatingcancer.org

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@CombatingCancer

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/combating-cancer/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/share/1BwfwuJT81/?mibextid=wwXIfr

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/combatingcancer_?igsh=azNjM3RlcmJwcWxn

Episode 46- Show Notes:

Host Gwen Kelly, a stage three astrocytoma brain cancer survivor, welcomes guest Britney Marr, diagnosed in October 2024 with stage two papillary thyroid carcinoma. Britney describes finding a baseball-sized neck mass, undergoing a complete thyroidectomy with lymph node removal in December, and receiving radioactive iodine treatment in January 2025 that required two weeks of strict isolation at home. Follow-up scans in August 2025 showed persistent disease, leading to a second surgery removing 17 more lymph nodes and learning her subtype does not respond to radioactive iodine, leaving her in ongoing surveillance. She shares the anxiety, uncertainty, and long-term effects of losing a thyroid, including hormone management and difficulty regulating body temperature, while emphasizing that there is no "easy" cancer. Her advice: build a trusted support network—including providers—and keep living and making plans when possible.

Discussed in this episode:

• Welcome to Combating Cancer
• Meet Britney Marr
• Thyroid Cancer Diagnosis
• No Such Thing as Easy
• Finding the Neck Lump
• Thyroidectomy and Anxiety
• Processing the News
• Radioactive Iodine Isolation
• Treatment Did Not Work
• Living Under Surveillance
• Monitoring and Next Steps
• Uncertainty and Planning Life
• Long-Term Complications
• Advice and Closing
• Final Wrap Up

More from Gwen:

Get in touch with our team for sponsorship inquiries or guest host submissions: gkelly@assethr.com

Follow and join the community:

Website: https://www.combatingcancer.org

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@CombatingCancer

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/combating-cancer/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/share/1BwfwuJT81/?mibextid=wwXIfr

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/combatingcancer_?igsh=azNjM3RlcmJwcWxn

Episode 45- Show Notes:

Host Gwen Kelly welcomes listeners to Combating Cancer, shares her stage three astrocytoma brain cancer diagnosis at 19, and explains the podcast's purpose as a safe, honest space for patients, survivors, caregivers, grievers, and supporters. She reflects on struggling with patience and the feeling of waiting for life to "begin again" after cancer, describing how diagnosis and treatment shift one's relationship with time to scan-to-scan uncertainty. Gwen explains why phrases like "just be patient" can feel different when the future once seemed uncertain, using a whiteout highway analogy for waiting on scan results. She emphasizes that confronting mortality changes priorities, reduces concern about others' timelines, and can make it okay to live with urgency and to chase what matters now, ending with an invitation to share stories and inquiries.

Discussed in this episode:

• Welcome to Combating Cancer
• Life Paused After Cancer
• What I Mean by Impatience
• When Patience Advice Hurts
• Scanxiety and Waiting
• Time Is Not Guaranteed
• Living on Your Timeline
• Choosing Urgency and Joy
• Closing and Contact Info

More from Gwen:

Get in touch with our team for sponsorship inquiries or guest host submissions: gkelly@assethr.com

Follow and join the community:

Website: https://www.combatingcancer.org

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@CombatingCancer

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/combating-cancer/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/share/1BwfwuJT81/?mibextid=wwXIfr

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/combatingcancer_?igsh=azNjM3RlcmJwcWxn

Episode 44- Show Notes:

Host Gwen Kelly, diagnosed with stage three astrocytoma at 19, welcomes cancer survivor Jack Forrey to discuss Camp Enchantment and cancer camps. Jack explains how post-treatment life can feel isolating after losing the constant support of a care team, and how camps such as Camp Courage, Camp Make a Dream, and Camp Enchantment help survivors rebuild community. He shares how he found Camp Enchantment in New Mexico, joined as staff on short notice, returned for five years, and was promoted to program coordinator. The camp serves children ages 7–17 affected by cancer, including survivors, some patients in treatment, first-year campers who can bring a buddy, and siblings (including 30 this year). Activities include arts and crafts, Legos, sports, a pool, bonfires, and campfire songs, with archery in progress. Both emphasize that no one has to face cancer alone, and staff applications are open.

Discussed in this episode:

• Welcome to Combating Cancer
• Meet Jack Forrey
• Why Cancer Camps Matter
• Discovering Camp Enchantment
• Who Camp Serves
• Activities and Cabin Life
• Why You Should Go
• Encouragement and Wrap Up

More from Jack:

Camp Enchantment Information: https://www.campenchantment.org

More from Gwen:

Get in touch with our team for sponsorship inquiries or guest host submissions: gkelly@assethr.com

Follow and join the community:

Website: https://www.combatingcancer.org

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@CombatingCancer

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/combating-cancer/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/share/1BwfwuJT81/?mibextid=wwXIfr

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/combatingcancer_?igsh=azNjM3RlcmJwcWxn