As we embrace the colder weather (depending on where you live!), shorter days and more time indoors, a good book or a podcast can provide some comfort and inspiration. This month’s book and podcast recommendations offer a mix of everything from personal stories to practical advice. Check out the titles at your local library, or bookstore, or on the Libby app for a chance to read them for free. If you prefer listening to podcasts, we’ve linked them directly below.
Books
Sexuality clinician and cancer survivor Tess Devèze addresses the often-overlooked challenges cancer patients face with intimacy. This guide covers common treatment side effects including low libido, body image changes, and discomfort. Tess offers practical, easy-to-follow strategies for rebuilding sexual connection and confidence. She shares tools to navigate side effects like dryness, pain, and fatigue, providing support for both individuals and couples.
- Little Earthquakes by Sarah Mandel
In this vulnerable memoir, trauma psychologist Sarah Mandel narrates how her life was thrown into chaos when she was diagnosed with Stage IV breast cancer while being pregnant. When Sarah’s PET scan showed no evidence of disease three months into treatment, she is left frozen with the emotional turmoil of going from cancer patient to new mother. Using her clinical expertise, Sarah shares how she navigated through her trauma, providing readers with tools and insights they can use.
Sarah’s cancer unfortunately returned and spread to her brain and she passed away in July 2024.
- I Don’t Wanna Be Pink by Dena Taylor
Independent and enthusiastic traveler Dena Taylor was diagnosed with breast cancer one month before she was to celebrate her fortieth birthday in Italy. She shares some of her biggest fears and insecurities as a single woman, offering an honest, witty, and candid story of her experience with breast cancer. One reader says “This helped me feel not so alone! I felt everything she said.”
Podcasts
- Breastcancer.org | What You Need to Know About Inflammatory Breast Cancer
In this episode, Dr. Filipa Lynce, director of the Inflammatory Breast Cancer Center at Dana-Farber, provides an overview of inflammatory breast cancer. Learn more about the symptoms you should look out for, how it’s diagnosed, and treatment therapies for this type of breast cancer.
Listen to the podcast here.
- Real Pink | From Actress to Advocate: Olivia Munn’s Breast Cancer Story
Actress Olivia Munn openly shares her diagnosis story and how a breast MRI led to the detection of her breast cancer. Olivia discusses topics including early screening, fertility, treatment options, and her recent Breast Cancer Awareness Month campaign with SKIMS.
Listen to the podcast here.
- Chemo Coffee Talk | Helping to Heal from Within: The Vital Role of Lifestyle Medicine in Cancer Treatment
Breast cancer survivor Carly Fauth is joined by Massachusetts General Hospital Cancer Center’s Dr. Amy Comander to explore the role lifestyle plays in cancer treatment. In their discussion, Dr. Comander provides insights on how diet, exercise, mind/body interventions, and more can improve the quality of life for cancer patients and survivors.
Listen to the podcast here.
Have you found the words of a particular author or storyteller helpful? Let us know if there’s a book you’d like to see highlighted during the upcoming months of our Book Club.
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