Cancer treatment often focuses on surgeries, chemotherapy, radiation, and medications—but what about the emotional side of healing?

This week, Melissa sits down with cancer thriver, speaker, coach, and bestselling author Edna Castillo to explore how calming the nervous system, listening to your intuition, and processing emotions can profoundly change the cancer experience.

After being diagnosed with an aggressive breast cancer during the height of COVID, Edna underwent sixteen rounds of chemotherapy, surgery, and radiation while intentionally practicing techniques that helped her move from fear toward peace. Today she teaches those same tools through her Calm the Chaos of Cancer method.

Together, Melissa and Edna discuss:

• Why healing is different from curing
• The impact of living in "fight mode" during treatment
• Trusting your intuition when making medical decisions
• Learning to advocate for yourself with your healthcare team
• How breathing can calm the nervous system in moments of fear
• Finding gratitude without pretending everything is okay
• Why community is one of the most powerful forms of healing
• Seeing cancer as one chapter of your life—not your entire story

Whether you're newly diagnosed, years beyond treatment, or supporting someone you love, this conversation offers practical tools and gentle encouragement for navigating cancer with greater peace and resilience.

Resources:

Free Monthly Workshop: CALM The Chaos of Cancer™
https://livingrealitydreams.com/calm-the-chaos-of-cancer
Edna's Website: https://livingrealitydreams.com/cancer-thriver/
Edna's Book on Amazon: Living Your Intuitive Genius
Edna's Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/edna.arevalo.castillo925
Edna's Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/livingrealitydreams/
Edna's LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ednacastillo/

Follow:

Follow me: https://www.instagram.com/melissagrosboll/

My website: https://melissagrosboll.com

Email me: drmelissagrosboll@gmail.com

AI is everywhere right now—but could it actually help people living with cancer?

In this fascinating conversation, Melissa sits down with stage IV colorectal cancer survivor Russ Read Barrow, who decided not to wait for technology to change healthcare. Instead, he began building AI tools to help manage his own cancer journey.

After multiple surgeries, chemotherapy treatments, and metastatic disease spreading to his liver and lungs, Russ realized he possessed something incredibly valuable: his own medical data. Using AI, he created tools to organize his records, track symptoms, manage medications, summarize his health history, and even make his medical information searchable.

His project, F*ck Cancer with AI, has grown into a resource that encourages patients to take ownership of their health data and discover how artificial intelligence can reduce the overwhelming administrative burden of living with cancer.

Melissa and Russ discuss:

• Russ's unexpected colorectal cancer diagnosis at age 39
• Living with stage IV cancer while maintaining hope
• Why optimism isn't the same as toxic positivity
• How AI can help patients organize complex medical information
• The importance of owning and understanding your health data
• The future of personalized cancer treatments and AI-driven medicine
• Why staying alive today may open doors to tomorrow's breakthroughs

This conversation isn't about replacing doctors with AI—it's about empowering patients with better information, greater organization, and renewed hope.

Whether you're living with cancer, caring for someone who is, or simply curious about how AI may transform medicine, this episode offers a fascinating glimpse into what the future may hold.

Resources:

Russ' Websites: http://knownandcited.com/ and http://fcancerwith.ai/

Russ' LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/russellrb/

Follow:

Follow me: https://www.instagram.com/melissagrosboll/

My website: https://melissagrosboll.com

Email me: drmelissagrosboll@gmail.com

Before this episode was released, our guest, Pam Erwin, passed away after living with advanced melanoma. We are honored to share this conversation as part of her legacy.

Pam spent her life saying "yes" to wherever God called her. From serving as a Disaster Relief chaplain alongside her husband, Dave, to helping build churches, schools, and vocational programs in Benin, West Africa, her faith wasn't something she simply believed—it was something she lived every day.

Then came cancer.

Diagnosed with a rare form of mucosal melanoma, Pam faced a terminal illness with the same quiet confidence that had guided her throughout her ministry. Even while receiving hospice care, she continued encouraging others, serving her community, and made one final mission trip to Benin—a place and people she dearly loved.

In this deeply moving conversation, Pam shares why she isn't afraid of hospice, how faith transformed the way she approached cancer, and why she believes every day is another opportunity to love, serve, and point others toward hope.

Whether or not you share Pam's faith, her perspective on purpose, legacy, and living fully in the face of uncertainty is both inspiring and unforgettable.

In This Episode

• How one prayer led to a life-changing ministry in Benin
• Building churches, schools, and hope in West Africa
• Living with a rare form of terminal melanoma
• Why Pam chose hospice earlier than most people expect
• Making one final mission trip despite advanced cancer
• Finding peace in the face of death
• What it means to live with purpose until the very end
• Why "Heaven is the top of my bucket list"

Pam's life reminds us that while we can't choose every circumstance, we can choose how we respond. Her unwavering faith, compassionate heart, and servant's spirit continue to inspire all who had the privilege of knowing her.

We dedicate this episode to Pam's memory and hope her words encourage you to live each day with purpose, hope, and love.

Resources:

Pam's Ministry Website: https://truthunleashedministries.org/

Pam's Ministry Facebook Page: Truth Unleashed Benin

Follow:

Follow me: https://www.instagram.com/melissagrosboll/

My website: https://melissagrosboll.com

Email me: drmelissagrosboll@gmail.com