Martha lives in Illinois and was diagnosed with metastatic breast cancer in January 2015. She has a husband and three children, ranging in age from 12 to 18, a dog and a lizard.
Can Science Improve My Cancer Care Right Now?
Scientists in the lab and in the clinic can help patients with metastatic breast cancer make informed choices.
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Pink Money and the Cure for Metastatic Cancer
Research into metastasis is changing the future for all stages of breast cancer.
Improve Communication With Your Oncologist
9 tips for better communication, taken from guidelines devised for oncologists.
Is the Number of Breast Cancer Deaths Really Dropping?
A recent study touts a huge drop in breast cancer mortality, but annual deaths are holding steady at 40,000 American every single year.
Hear My Voice: Advocating For Cancer Care and Research
Martha Carlson talks about what it's like to join a group of active advocates for stage 4 breast cancer
Accepting Others’ Decisions to Continue or End Cancer Treatments
It's hard to watch someone choose to end or forgo conventional treatment without succumbing to the urge to educate. But education isn't always what patients need.
Reach Out to Friends With Cancer
Reach out now to your friend with cancer.
Finding Gratitude With Cancer
Life with cancer, like life in general, gives us plenty of chances to practice being grateful.
Surrendering to Peace With Metastatic Cancer
When everyone around you expects an endless fight against cancer, hope and love and acceptance are powerful forces.
The Good Patient and Me
I don't mean to keep secrets from my doctors but it's so easy.
Simple Tips For Starting Cancer Treatment
It's natural to feel overwhelmed with a cancer diagnosis. Grab back a little security by knowing what to expect
Not Another Feel-Good Story About Metastatic Breast Cancer
There's lots of great new research to be excited about but there's still no cure.
Sex And Death And Asking the Tough Questions
The importance of rearranging the list of what you really want to talk about with the doctor
Olivia Newton-John and Metastatic Breast Cancer
The star heads into the world of ongoing breast cancer treatment just as a major new study of metastatic breast cancer in the United States gives a little more hope to those with the disease
Living With Chemobrain
Chemobrain is more than being lazy or forgetful sometimes.
Plan A: Enjoy Life
In the midst of the uncertainties of metastatic cancer, plans for treatment are the easy part. How to plan for life? That's more difficult.
Could Integrative Oncology Make Your Life Better?
Just published, easy-to-understand clinical guidelines can help you figure out new ways to overcome fatigue, anxiety, nausea.
Finding Emotional Honesty in the Complicated Extremes of Cancer
I'm hopeful and scared. Why it's OK to feel both at once when you're living with cancer.
Finding The Right Words For A Friend With Cancer
Just when there's so much to say, you can find yourself walking a verbal tightrope. Let love lead the way.
How To Get More Time With Your Oncologist
Appointment time, arriving early, and six other easy things you can do to optimize your time with the oncologist
Change, Fear and Acceptance in A Cancer Diagnosis
With cancer, every visit to the hospital is an exercise in accepting change.
Cancer Misclassified? Mistreated Would Be More Accurate
When breast cancer patients are misclassified by subtype, it can mean the best treatment options are delayed.
Alone and Isolated: That's No Way to Face Cancer
There are times when talking to another cancer patient, someone just like you, could be the key to better coping and a better life with this disease. Join a conversation, make a call, go online to make a positive change.
Another Strange Thing About Metastatic Breast Cancer
My hair tells the world that treatment is over and I am a survivor. If only it were that simple.
Saying the "C Word"
We whisper it. We avoid it. But as scary as open communication is, we must utter that word.
Blindsided by Cancer Fear
I know what scares me about metastatic cancer. Except when I don't...
No Insurance. No Cancer Treatment.
20 days without treatment of metastatic cancer is no way to run a nation's health care.
Living Big With Cancer
When I heard the expression "Leave it all on the floor," I decided to put those words to use.
Diagnosis: Metastatic
A patient with metastatic breast cancer offers nine steps to getting away from fear.
Finding Focus In the New Year With Cancer
Living resolution-free has given me a chance to really think about what matters now and how I want to live.