Dana-Farber Cancer Institute

07/22/2025

Auriole (Corel) Fassinou has long dreamed of being a doctor, but he never imagined that some of his keenest lessons in patient care would come from handing out art supplies.

Fassinou, who recently left his research job to start medical school, spent the past year in an additional role – volunteering as an ambassador. Each Tuesday, he pushed an art cart through infusion areas across the Longwood campus, offering patients and their loved ones a quiet moment of creativity.

Fassinou’s research role took place exclusively in a laboratory, so his weekly volunteer shifts offered a chance to interact with the people his research was impacting while gaining insights into what matters to patients beyond their lab results.

“When you’re in the lab, it’s easy to forget that there are stories behind those cells,” says Fassinou. “Being a volunteer bolstered my understanding that when a patient walks in, it’s important to not just ask about their symptoms, but to also ask how their day is going, how they got there, and what else is happening in their lives. It opened my eyes to the challenges that many may face in addition to cancer.”

About one-quarter of the roughly 100 individuals who volunteer at the Longwood campus are preparing to apply to medical school. They assist with directions, distribute snacks and meals from the lunch cart, or offer activities from the art cart, which is sponsored by the Leonard P. Zakim Center for Integrative Therapies and Healthy Living.

“When I first started here as a volunteer and patients would thank me for greeting them or walking them to their appointments, I realized that every interaction impacts a patient’s overall experience,” reflects Formato, who will start at UMass Chan Medical School in September. “One patient said they like to take something from the art cart for their child, so they have a positive memory of the time that their parent is in the clinic,” explains Fassinou. “It was amazing how such a gesture could really brighten someone’s day. That’s something I want to take with me as I progress in my career.”

07/20/2025

As a child, Barbara “Babz” Tobin, OTR/L, CLT-LANA, loved caring for others – mixing essential oils and home remedies to help family members' colds. “I always wanted to be the one who took care of everyone,” she says.

Her patients and students today might call her methods magical, but she has since turned to more evidence-based practices. A trained occupational therapist and yoga teacher, Tobin first encountered the effects of lymphedema a few years after her mother received treatment for breast cancer.

The condition is common after treatments that affect the body’s lymphatic system, like the surgical removal of lymph nodes. Tobin compares it to a system of rivers that transports vitamins, fats, water, and white blood cells around your body. Disruptions can lead to a buildup of fluid which then causes swelling, pain, and an increased risk of infection.

It was difficult for Tobin to see her mother suffer as she dealt with the effects, including infections and mental health setbacks. Every flare-up was a reminder of the cancer and treatment she once went through. Always the healer, Tobin was motivated to become a certified lymphedema therapist.

The methods she learned were helpful for her mother, and Tobin realized that they could be combined with her yoga practice, Balance With Babz Yoga. Thus, Lymph Flow Yoga was born, a series of yoga classes that incorporate lymphatic system work to help manage and reduce the risk of lymphedema.

Now offered twice a week through the Leonard P. Zakim Center for Integrative Therapies and Healthy Living, the course combines the mindfulness, flexibility, stress and pain management, breathwork, and strength training encouraged by yoga with lymphatic system management techniques like draining and poses that encourage lymphatic fluid movement.

“Cancer is a lot,” Tobin observes. “This is an opportunity to step away and just breathe.”

Taught virtually, it is available to all Dana-Farber patients and caregivers. A full schedule of the Zakim Center’s events, including Lymph Flow Yoga, can be found here: https://bit.ly/46F2Tzd

07/18/2025

A newly FDA-approved at-home Pap smear test is changing how some people screen for cervical cancer.

This test allows individuals at average risk to collect a sample at home and send it to a certified lab for HPV testing, the virus responsible for 95–99% of cervical cancers. Results are reported through an app, and a telehealth visit is provided to help guide patients who receive abnormal results.

While not a replacement for regular gynecologic care, this option could help improve access to screening. Talk to your care provider to see if this option is right for you.

Learn more: http://bit.ly/4nGohKB

07/18/2025

GI cancers are now the fastest-growing types of cancer diagnosed in adults younger than 50 in the U.S. Kimmie Ng, MD, MPH, co-authored the research review and spoke with NBC News about one of the most comprehensive looks at GI cancer trends.

07/17/2025

As powerful as modern cancer medicines are, they don’t work for everyone. What if doctors could quickly test a person’s individual cancer to see which approved treatment would work best?

That’s what researchers at Dana-Farber and Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) are working on. Early results are promising. Learn more:

Published: June 23, 2025Written by: Beth DoughertyAs powerful as modern cancer medicines are, they don’t work for everyone. What if there were a quick test doctors could perform on an individual person’s cancer to help determine which approved treatment would work best for them? This testing to...

07/16/2025

Regular exercise isn’t just great for fitness. It can also reduce cancer risk by managing weight, improving immunity, and lowering inflammation.

07/15/2025

We’re proud to be included in Newsweek’s America’s Greatest Workplaces by State 2025 list. This recognition reflects our ongoing commitment to fostering a supportive, inclusive, and mission-driven workplace – one where every team member has the opportunity to thrive and grow.

View the full list here:

Managing a career can be challenging, especially when workplace culture, benefits and opportunities vary widely across the country. To help job seekers find a great fit in their state, Newsweek and Plant-A Insights Group are proud to present America’s Greatest Workplaces by State 2025.

07/15/2025

Please join Paolo Tarantino, MD, to learn about updates on treatment and research for metastatic breast cancer from the 2025 American Society of Clinical Oncology Conference. This event is part of the EMBRACE Metastatic Breast Cancer Virtual Forum Series.

July 30, 2025 | 1 – 2 p.m. ET

The presentation will be followed by a Q&A moderated by Sarah Sammons, MD, associate director of the EMBRACE Metastatic Breast Cancer Program.

For more information and to register, please visit https://bit.ly/4lprw7N.

07/14/2025

For Kathleen McEvoy-Schufreider, living with metastatic breast cancer means finding hope in every step forward.

Every twelve weeks, she traveled to Boston for scans. In between appointments, it was hard to put the scans out of her mind. Hearing from long-term survivors helped shift her perspective.

"I started to see life in a new way," she says. "It wasn’t that I could forget about the cancer, but I could put it into perspective. There’s long range hope for me."

Through clinical trials, Kathleen gained access to promising new therapies, including CDK4/6 inhibitors, made possible in part by research our scientists helped advance.

"One of the most fascinating things to me was the pace of research," says Kathleen. "In those years since my first diagnosis, there was already a new drug available."

Learn more about her story: bit.ly/444538N

07/12/2025

New banners are hanging around our Longwood campus, and things just got a little brighter! 💙

07/10/2025

While on assignment in Kenya, photojournalist Mattie Simas felt a lump in her breast. Upon returning to the U.S., her fears of cancer were confirmed.

Simas began a treatment regimen that included surgery, radiation, and multiple rounds of chemotherapy at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute - Merrimack Valley in Methuen. Each time she started a new phase of treatment, struggled with side effects, or worried about the impact of the cancer on her husband, children, and career, Simas kept thinking about one of the most powerful women she'd ever photographed: Marilla, a young member of the Suri tribe in Ethiopia. Captured through Mattie’s lens just weeks earlier, Marilla stood tall with a rifle across her chest, guarding her community’s most important resource – a river flowing through the Omo Valle. Her quiet strength stayed with Simas.

"In her defiance, I saw my own," says Simas. "In her presence, I found a reminder that even in the hardest moments, strength is always there. It’s waiting, it’s watching, it’s enduring."

Rather than step away from her work during her treatment, she partnered with her care team to continue telling important stories around the world. Simas’ medical oncologist, Ankur Mehta, MD, worked closely with her to create a treatment plan that balanced her health needs with her professional schedule. "My chemo treatments were every three weeks, so I had a window of time to travel," she explains. "Dr. Mehta was very understanding, and the whole team was very caring and accommodating throughout my treatment."

Simas also appreciated the convenience of access to Dana-Farber care in Methuen near her North Andover home, as well as the compassion she received from nurses and other staff throughout her treatment. She enjoyed sharing stories of her latest adventures, and they, in turn, were glad to help Simas continue pursuing her passion.

Now cancer-free for nearly two years, Simas is still seeking new stories, with side trips to visit Mehta every three months for follow-up care. One project, however, remains foremost in her mind. "I’m always thinking back to the water guardian," says Simas. "Marilla will always be with me."

07/09/2025

A new approach called immunopeptidomics is providing researchers with a powerful approach to discovering new ways to train a person’s immune system to fight cancer.

Learn more: https://bit.ly/43HLNPr