In this deeply personal episode of BRCA & Beyond, Marisa Stachelski takes listeners behind the scenes of her experience participating in the Dear Body Project through BRCAStrong, a powerful initiative that brings together twelve women impacted by hereditary cancer, BRCA mutations, breast cancer, and life-changing surgeries to celebrate their strength, resilience, and stories.

What began as a boudoir photoshoot became so much more. Through shared conversations, tears, laughter, vulnerability, and connection, twelve women who entered the room as strangers found a community built on understanding, courage, and healing.

Marisa opens up about her lifelong struggle with body image, being teased as a child, years of dieting and trying to make herself smaller, and how those invisible wounds followed her through her colon cancer diagnosis, BRCA2 mutation, preventive surgeries, double mastectomy, reconstruction, and recovery.

She shares the powerful moment of watching each woman walk out of her private photography session transformed—not because anything about her body had changed, but because she had rediscovered confidence, pride, and a connection to herself that may have been buried beneath years of fear, medical appointments, scars, and survival.

Marisa also reads her emotional “Dear Body” letter and reflects on what it means to finally move from criticism to gratitude, recognizing the very body she spent years trying to change was the same body that carried her through motherhood, cancer, surgeries, and healing.

This episode is for every survivor, previvor, and woman who has ever struggled to see herself with kindness.

Topics discussed:

• BRCA & hereditary cancer awareness

• Breast cancer and cancer survivorship

• Colon cancer survivorship

• Preventive mastectomy and breast reconstruction

• Body image after cancer and surgery

• Self-love, confidence, and emotional healing

• The power of community and shared stories

Follow BRCAStrong on Instagram: @BRCAStrong

Learn more about the Dear Body Project and BRCAStrong at BRCAStrong.org.

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What happens after you learn you have a hereditary cancer risk?

For many people, the answer is uncertainty. Genetic testing can provide important information, but it often leaves individuals wondering what to do next, which specialists to see, and how to navigate the emotional weight of the decisions ahead.

In this episode, I sit down with Randi Eichenbaum, founder of MOTA, to talk about her personal journey, the gaps she saw in hereditary cancer support, and how those experiences led her to create a platform designed to help people navigate complex medical decisions with greater clarity and confidence.

We discuss the unique challenges facing BRCA carriers and previvors, where traditional healthcare systems often fall short, and why having a personalized roadmap can make all the difference. Randi also shares how MOTA helps individuals understand their options, connect with trusted specialists, and feel supported throughout every stage of their journey.

Whether you're navigating genetic testing, living with a BRCA mutation, supporting a loved one, or simply interested in improving patient advocacy and healthcare navigation, this conversation offers valuable insight and hope.

MOTA is a navigation and community platform for people with increased hereditary cancer risk, starting with women who carry a BRCA mutation. MOTA offers a personalized, guideline-based roadmap, vetted specialists, and a community that gets it. Built by a BRCA2+ survivor who created what she wished she'd had. Free at MOTA.care.

Learn more: MOTA.care

Follow MOTA on Instagram: @mota.care

• Randi's personal journey and what led her to create MOTA
• The challenges facing individuals with hereditary cancer risk
• The often-overlooked needs of previvors
• What happens after genetic testing
• Navigating BRCA-related decisions with confidence
• Building a personalized healthcare roadmap
• Finding support, resources, and trusted specialists
• Why no one should have to navigate hereditary cancer risk alone
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If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, leave a review, and share it with someone who may benefit from this conversation.

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What happens after genetic testing?

For many people, receiving a positive genetic test result is just the beginning. The real challenge often comes next: navigating uncertainty, making medical decisions, and having difficult conversations with the people you love.

In this episode of BRCA & Beyond, I sit down with Dr. Marleah Dean Kruzel, a BRCA2 previvor, researcher, speaker, and Associate Professor whose work focuses on hereditary cancer, genetic risk communication, patient empowerment, and family communication. As the daughter of a breast cancer survivor and a BRCA2 carrier herself, Dr. Dean Kruzel has dedicated her career to helping patients, families, and healthcare providers navigate the complex realities of hereditary cancer risk.

Together, we discuss:

✨ The emotional side of genetic testing

✨ Why many people delay testing—even when they know they're at risk

✨ How hereditary cancer affects entire families, not just the person who tests positive

✨ Family communication and difficult conversations about inherited cancer risk

✨ What cascade testing is and why it can save lives

✨ How to approach relatives who may be hesitant to test

✨ Managing uncertainty as a BRCA previvor

✨ Practical strategies for talking with children and family members about genetic risk

✨ Why these conversations are not "one and done"

Whether you carry a BRCA mutation, Lynch syndrome, CHEK2, PALB2, ATM, TP53, PTEN, or another hereditary cancer mutation, this episode offers practical guidance, validation, and hope for navigating genetic risk as a family.

Dr. Marleah Dean Kruzel is a health communication researcher, speaker, and BRCA2 previvor whose mission is to empower patients to better engage with clinicians, help clinicians communicate more effectively with patients, and translate research into meaningful tools that improve health outcomes. Her work focuses on hereditary cancer, patient engagement, managing uncertainty, health decision-making, and communication among patients, families, and healthcare providers. She has collaborated with organizations including FORCE and has received funding from the National Cancer Institute, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and the American Cancer Society.

📍 LinkedIn:

Marleah Dean Kruzel on LinkedIn

📍 Website:

marleahdeankruzel.com

📍 YouTube:

Watch Dr. Dean Kruzel's TEDx Talk, How to Make Decisions in the Wake of Uncertainty, and explore Previvor Perspectives, a series she co-hosts with Sara Kavanaugh of The Positive Gene Podcast.

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