We Remember

Each October, Our MBC Life marks Breast Cancer Awareness month with a special episode dedicated to all those who died from metastatic breast cancer over the past year. 

But one podcast can’t begin to encompass and reflect the true toll of all of the lives cut short by this ruthless and terminal disease. Here’s the hard truth about MBC, according to advocacy and research organization Metavivor: In the US alone, an estimated 42,360 women and 530 men will die from the disease in 2023—117 per day. And despite the optimism around early detection and prevention that infuses “Pinktober” and its focus on survivorship, one in three diagnosed with early-stage breast cancer will eventually progress to become metastatic. Only 10% are metastatic at their first breast MBC diagnosis. 

This painful and sobering reality—that so many of us ultimately develop the kind of breast cancer that kills—needs to be part of the annual month-long conversation about breast cancer. Most importantly, it should help to guide decisions about how breast cancer research funds are invested. Shockingly, the estimated share of breast cancer research dollars that go to MBC is 5%. And while new treatments are extending survival for many with MBC, the disease is still terminal. 

To live with your own diagnosis or to be a loved one, caregiver, or friend of someone with MBC is to inhabit a community of loss. Every day, we confront the reality of mortality and struggle to balance fear with hope, and sorrow with joy. “We Remember” is OMBCL’s opportunity to give voice to the profound grief we share and to honor and celebrate each person we’ve lost. It’s a chance to express our gratitude for the extraordinary and unique ways they made our lives richer. And it is also an opportunity to channel some of our grief, fear, and anger into advocacy for the attention, support, and research needed to truly put us on the Road to a Cure.