GPAC Video Series with Robyn & Terri

GPAC interviews Leslie Ferris Yerger and Siobhán Freeney about the importance of knowing about your breast density. Proper knowledge and screening can help with early detection. Breast density is a key factor in screening for breast cancers. If a patient has dense breasts, there is a four to six times higher chance of being diagnosed with breast cancer and a possibility that a routine mammogram can miss up to 50% of breast cancers. Having dense breasts could also delay a timely diagnosis, and many patients are diagnosed with late-stage cancer. GPAC had the good fortune to interview two amazing advocates who are raising awareness about breast density and lobbying for the medical community and insurance providers to change criteria and standards to improve breast screening in patients with dense breasts. #bii #breastcancer #breastdensity #breastimplantillness #plasticsurgery #breastreconstruction #breastreductionsurgery #gpac #advocacy Leslie Ferris Yerger is the founder and CEO of My Density Matters, a nonprofit organization that she created to empower women to find out their breast density, learn their screening options, and insist on essential additional screening. Leslie also started the Check Your Chart Campaign, an education to ACTION initiative inspiring women to obtain their mammogram report from their online patient portal, learn their breast density, and communicate with their doctor(s) to collaborate on additional breast cancer screening. Siobhan Freeney is also a breast density advocate in Europe. She lives in Ireland, and she started www.beingdense.com in 2016 after being diagnosed with Stage 3 lobular breast cancer just 5 months after a clear mammogram. She is working within the medical community, attending breast cancer symposiums, and striving to improve guidelines in Europe for early detection. Currently, Europe does not have a Standardised Breast Density Notification Protocol. The European Society of Breast Imaging (EUSOBI) has recommended that ALL Women should be appropriately notified about their individual Category of Breast Density but this is not yet routinely happening. The Dense Trial DOI: 10.1056/NEJMoa1903986 has resulted in the following recommendations EUSOBI Recommendations (March 2022) European Guidelines are under review, and a conclusion is expected by end 2023. Leslie and Siobhan had similar experiences in having a late-stage breast cancer diagnosis very shortly after having a clear routine mammogram. Both women were surprised to learn that they had dense breast tissue that may have prevented an earlier diagnosis. These amazing patient advocates have made it their mission to raise awareness about breast density and provide information to patients and medical providers that will help with early detection

New York Fashion model Christine Handy shares the news of her partnership with Victoria's Secret as a breast cancer survivor. Christine is making enormous progress in raising awareness for patients who choose to stay flat after having mastectomy surgery. It was an honor to speak with her and learn about her breast cancer journey. #newyorkfashionweek #victoriasecret #flat #breastcancersurvivor

Robyn Towt from GPAC sits down to talk about breast implant illness and medical community awareness with Sindi Lash, RN. #bii #informedconsent #healthcareproviderletter #awareness #breastimplantillness #advocacy

Robyn Towt and Terri Diaz from GPAC sit down and talk with Dr. Shyamala Peesapati about patient advocacy in her country of India and how she became involved. #informedconsent #rarediseases #patientadvocacy #bii #advocacy #GPAC #sonoonefeelsalone

This is an introduction to GPAC United, Terri Diaz, Robyn Towt, why started this organization, and why we advocate. GPAC- Global Patient Advocacy Coalition is committed to working collaboratively to support our global breast implant illness advocates, and implement positive changes in each country by empowering our amazing colleagues. #advocates #bii #breastimplantillness #GPAC #GPACUnited #workingtogether #worldwideadvocacy

Dr. Remus Repta talks about the complications of mesh and the process of removal with Robyn Towt and Terri Diaz. Dr. Repta is a board-certified plastic surgeon that practices in Scottsdale, Arizona. Dr. Repta is well known for removing mesh for patients suffering with complications and anecdotal symptoms. We talk about the increasing use of mesh off-labeled in breast implant surgeries, as well as solutions on how to get more awareness to the medical community. #gpacunited #breastimplantillness #bii #meshmess #meshproblems

In GPAC United's 2nd Episode, Terri Diaz and Robyn Towt sit down with Washington state senator Lisa Wellman and her daughter Samantha Wellman to discuss the Breast Implant Informed Consent Bill that was unanimously voted in the senate in Washington state recently. We also discuss women's health issues, educating the whole health care team, and much more. Any questions, please ask away. We are happy to help. #gpacunited #breastimplantillness #informedconsent #biieducation #bii #breastimplantcancer #breastaugmentation #plasticsurgery

In GPAC United's first episode, Robyn Towt and Terri Diaz talk to Dr. Eduardo Fleury on his latest hypothesis, The breast tumor microenvironment: Could silicone breast implant elicit breast carcinoma? Dr. Fleury is a board-certified radiologist, researcher, and professor of Medicine, with a Ph.D. in Gynecology and a Post-Doctorate in Health sciences. He holds the title of EDBI, European Diploma in Breast Imaging, and is also a Medical Doctor in Portugal. For 4 years, he has studied the complications of breast implants. He described imaging findings that allow the diagnosis of gel bleeding by Magnetic Resonance, calling it SIGBIC (Silicone Induced Granuloma of Breast Implant Capsule). His group evaluated more than 2,000 patients with breast implants, where they correlated their findings with BII (Breast Implant Illness) and BIA-ALCL (Breast Implant-Associated Anaplastic Large Cell Lymphoma). We hope you enjoy it. #gpacunited #bii #breastimplantillness #breastimplantcancer #breastaugmentation #plasticsurgery #biieducation