The Quiet War - Expert Bios

Dr. Scot Sedlacek
Rocky Mountain Cancer Centers, Rose Center

For Dr. Scot Sedlacek, the fight against breast cancer is personal. His wife, a pediatrician, has breast cancer and his practice at Rocky Mountain Cancer Center in Denver is devoted to treating women with breast cancer. Because of that focus, Sedlacek is able to keep on the cutting edge of new strategies for women who have either been diagnosed with Stage IV cancer or who have experienced the shock of cancer returning.

Sedlacek, a 51-year-old lanky Coloradoan who favors cowboy boots and bolo ties, pulls no punches when he tells a woman she has metastasized disease. "I can't cure you," he says. His approach is upbeat, but serious. He's not a doctor to share tears with. He is a doctor who says straight up what's ahead, but encourages his patients to be optimistic that there is quality time left even though their disease will kill them. He does not believe in talking about how much time a woman has left. The answer is no one knows, but being symptom free for as long as possible is what he strives for.

A lot of women with metastasized disease that has spread to vital organs would immediately be placed on chemo. That's been the common practice since the 1960s and is still the practice in many small communities and rural areas, where oncologists are taxed with treating dozens of different kinds of cancers. But in the last decade, a number of oncologists, working exclusively in the area of breast cancer, are treating many women initially with hormonal drugs. Hormonal drugs - like Tamoxifin, Megace, and Femara - essentially scramble the message to the cancer cells. Eventually the metastasized disease mutates and comes back, and that is the time to switch to a new hormonal drug or chemo. Hormonal treatments are not new, Sedlacek explained. They were commonly used for women with metastasized disease until the use of chemos became prevalent. It's a way to treat the disease like a chronic illness for as long as possible, Sedlacek explained.

Sedlacek has been practicing medicine since 1979 after receiving his medical degree at the University of Iowa. He completed his residency in internal medicine at the University of California in San Francisco and a fellowship in hematology/oncology at the University of Colorado Health Science Center. He is a member of the American Society of Clinical Oncology, the American College of Physicians and the Rocky Mountain Oncology. Aside from seeing hundreds of patients at the Rocky Mountain Cancer Center, he continues to research aspects of the disease and his research has been published in a number of medical publications, including Oncology, Preventive Medicine, and The Breast Journal. He has won many awards for his breast cancer research, including recognition by the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation.

Susan Ash-Lee
Oncology Social Worker

Susan Ash-Lee spends her days helping women with breast cancer navigate the maze of breast cancer treatment, support and emotional stress. After patients have figured out their course of treatment with their doctor, her job is to help them find ways to make it work and make their lives better. She is an oncology social worker at Rocky Mountain Cancer Centers in Denver who started her education in the theatre arts and literature dept at Westmont College in Santa Barbara, CA. Through college she was exposed to a Justice Education Program in San Francisco and found her true passion: Social Work.

Susan graduated with her Masters in Social Work in 1997 from Jane Addams College of Social Work, Chicago, Illinois. Her emphasis, since 1997, has been in health care: primarily in oncology, cancer wellness program development and end-of-life care. At Rocky Mountain Cancer Centers she provides brief individual and family counseling, facilitates support and educational programs for patients, caregivers and health care providers.

Susan keeps track of all the nonprofits standing by with offers of a wig, a plane ticket or hot meals. She knows how to find out about how to work the system in places that health insurance doesn't cover. She is also familiar with programs that "help keep the roof overhead."

The other fifty- percent of Susan's job is helping cancer patients cope once they have been diagnosed. She helps patients find spiritual help and she runs support groups.

Musa Mayer. M.S.

There is perhaps no one in the country who knows more about what women with metastasized breast cancer are going through, what resources are available to them, what women with advanced breast cancer need or want, or what is the latest in treatments. Musa Mayer is considered one of the leading advance breast cancer advocates in the country.

She has written three books about breast cancer, including the definitive book on living with advanced breast cancer called "Advanced Breast Cancer: A Guide to Living with Metatastic Disease." She started the website Advancedbc.org, which provides daily information and online support for women with metastasized disease. The website has the largest Internet mailing list for this population. Women from around the country and even Canada and England gather, as if over a cup of coffee, to talk about the latest treatments and setbacks with their advanced cancer treatment. Musa jumps in frequently to ask questions and offer women help with what questions they need to ask their doctors or what else they might want to consider in their care.

In 1989, Musa was diagnosed with breast cancer just as she was finishing a writing program at Columbia University. Once she found herself in the breast cancer world, she quickly discovered the lack of resources for women with advanced disease. She turned her experience into a book, "Examining Myself: One Woman's Story of Breast Cancer Treatment and Recovery." Throughout the following years, Musa saw the need for women with metastasized disease and now devotes her time as an advanced breast cancer advocate.

Musa lives in New York City. Her articles on breast cancer have appeared in magazines, newsletters, websites and scientific journals. She frequently speaks and consults on advocacy and survivorship issues. She has worked with many national and local breast cancer organizations, and has served as a frequent keynote or plenary speaker at conferences. Musa is a contributing editor and feature writer for MAMM magazine and a contributor to SusanLoveMD.com and WebMD.com. She also serves as a Patient Consultant for the FDA's Cancer Drug Development Program, and a voting Patient Representative to the Oncologic Drugs Advisory.