Support Chiara in Her Advocacy Efforts

Last week (November 14-16) I was able to attend the Advanced Breast Cancer Fifth ESO-ESMO International Consensus Conference (Bridging the Gap), in Lisbon Portugal.  At this conference, I attended various sessions including Suicide and Assisted Suicide in ABC Patients, Fatigue and cachexia: from biology to solutions, and Optimizing clinical trial designs in ABC: reaching relevant clinical benefit.  I am able to learn so much at these conferences, constantly broadening my knowledge of this diseased how researchers are approaching mew treatments. 



Through my experience I was also able to make connections with other advocates and nonprofits that support breast cancer patients.  I look forward to becoming a member of Europa Donna  as discussed with the Gertrude Abela, President the Malta affiliate of The European Breast Cancer Coalition .  I also made lasting connections with involved and passionate advocates such as Tolu Falowo of CancerAware Nigeria and Ms. Mampak N. Nanre of National Hospital Abuja. Forming these relationships allow me to participate in the breast cancer community on a world-wide level.  I learn about the needs and gaps in care/treatment for other patients in different demographics and parts of the world. I truly get to help “bridge the gap” with people that are directly involved in those communities in a very grassroots way.  I get to share information about resources that I have used and found to be immensely helpful, i.e. SmartBridge Health and SHARE Cancer Support - to name a few - with others that could benefit from connecting with these potentially life-changing organizations. 



Below is a list of expenses that I accrued in order to attend this conference, receipts are available:

Airplane ticket- $1582
Lodging- $800
Transportation in Lisbon/airports- $300
Food - $150
Total of expenses- $2832
Grant/Award from Conference - $1000
Total out-of-pocket expenses- $1832 

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I am also looking forward to attending the San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium  (SABCS) in Texas December 10-14, 2019.  
Anticipated expenses, receipts are/will be available:

Plane ticket- $1141
Lodging- $1360
Transportation/Food in San Antonio- estimated $500
Total of expenses- estimated $3000
Grant/Award from Komen- $1500 
Total out-of-pocket expenses estimated- $1500


Last year when I attended SABCS via The Alamo Breast Cancer Foundation Scholarship, I was able to hear my oncologist Dr. Kevin Kalinsky  present a poster on Sacituzumab Govitecan (Immunomedics: Clinical Trial IMMU-132) , which will be the first drug available on the market to treat Triple Negative Metastatic Breast Cancer Disease, pending its approval. I took valuable information learned at this conference and turn-keyed it into a paper titled The Right Course of Treatment for Breast Cancer: A More Individualized Approach. 



At this year’s conference, I am really looking forward to hearing Dr. Kalinsky present  updates on treating metastatic Triple Negative Breast Cancer disease during his session GS3-04 Pathologic Complete Response (pCR) to neoadjuvant treatment with or without atezolizumab in triple negative, early high-risk and locally advanced breast cancer.  NeoTRIPaPDL1 Michelangelo Randomized Study.  Another session I am anticipating attending is Dr. Sylvia Adams’,  Immunotherapy for Triple-Negative Breast Cancer.  Since I have had active brain tumors in the recent past, I will also be at Dr. Nancy Lin’ s session, Systemic therapy for breast cancer brain metastases.  I value Dr. Lin’s contributions immensely as I have already travelled to Dana Farber Cancer Institute  for her consultation. Dr. Sylvia Adams , at NYU Langone Health in New York City, is also a respected physician in the triple negative disease space, whom I've consulted with and would again. These are just some of the trailblazers in the breast cancer field - I expect tolerant more as I attend and am present for the Symposium. 

Attending these conferences gives me hope.  I am humbled to be able to sit in the audience shoulder-to-shoulder with other researchers and practitioners that are choosing to invest innumerable hours in finding the cure for metastatic breast cancer.  It inspires me immensely to sit in a room with so many key figures in this community and meet and learn about new ones, giving me the opportunity to, for example, ask the Principal Investigator of a clinical trial a question, or to ask a pharmaceutical company rep how the drug actually works in the body on a cellular level. The presentations are captivatingly visually detailed which empowers me to be a fully-invested, educated participant in my own treatment.

I don't just take - I'm present and eager to answer questions for advocates and patients and to offer my voice for a seat at the Pharma tables. 

where else can I find this level of live and accessible resources and sincere support? It’s an accessible, real-life way for me to learn about and make connections within this community that I can share with my social media family and other patients. It’s natural for me as an educator.

I am extremely grateful for any support you can offer me so that I may continue to live out one of my current passions, advocating for metastatic breast cancer patients. It's humbling to ask for money and I do my best to pick up ways to make money through study groups and a little modeling but it isn't enough. This cancer certainly takes a massive village, and that's what I get to see when I go to conferences - that I'm not alone left to die - that there really are people working hard as ever to help us - to "save" us. And even though I don't understand a lot of the scientific words, the language becomes more familiar to me and I research what I don't know and I share what I learn. It’s natural for me as a caring educator - to want to share accurate information, help and guide.

Please help me to be able to continue to have a purpose and spread hope. 
Thank you very much.
I sincerely enjoy giving back, and I do even if it isn't directly to you. If there is something I can offer you back or your community, please share the idea with me. If it involves toddlers or babies then even better!

For medical updates and ways to volunteer, sign up for my Meal Train alerts - it includes a calendar of helpful activities to sign up for, or you can just keep abreast (haha!) of what's going on. 

For direct donations that bypass GoFundMe fees: 
Venmo: @Chiara -DAgostino
Paypal: [email redacted]




THANK YOU VERY MUCH