Death With Dignity Podcast

Send us a Text - Leave an email in your message if you want to hear back from us!Dr. Chandana Banerjee is a medical doctor who works at City of Hope, located in Los Angeles, California.  She has expertise in pediatrics, palliative care, end of life care, and hospice care.  Describing End of Life care as an “Art”, Dr. Banerjee also developed the End of Life Symposium in 2019, an annual event focusing on end of life care and education involving physicians, nurses, advanced care practitioners, hospice clinicians, and others who are interested in the subject matter.  In this episode, Dr. Banerjee shares her life experiences with us, including her love for poetry, and weighs in on the Medical Aid in Dying debate. Learn more about the podcast & follow our story - deathwithdignitypodcast.com // @DWDPodcast2021 (Twitter).

Send us a Text - Leave an email in your message if you want to hear back from us!We were excited to sit down and interview Danna Nelson, a young woman living in Minnesota with a rare cancer called rhabdomyosarcoma; an aggressive cancer which forms in the soft tissues.  Danna was diagnosed while living in Finland at the age of 22.  It was a pleasure listening and conversing with Danna, as she is the first individual we’ve interviewed for the DwD Podcast who is in a similar position as Andrew; a young adult living with a terminal disease, simply looking to have a choice during their end of life experience.  Danna takes the time to share her interests, what motivates her, and how cancer has both positively and negatively impacted her life.  We thank Danna for displaying tremendous compassion and courage while taking the necessary risks to empower those individuals fighting for a choice.  Enjoy the episode.Learn more about the podcast & follow our story - deathwithdignitypodcast.com // @DWDPodcast2021 (Twitter).

Send us a Text - Leave an email in your message if you want to hear back from us!Friends, in today’s episode, Erika Gergerich joins us from Arkansas to share her stories as a stage IV breast cancer patient,  a professor at the University level, and a single mother!  She has a teenage daughter and a 4 year old son; Erika provides powerful insight to our listeners, sharing the difficulties and successes of balancing her life as a mom with a terminal disease, along with the other major responsibilities that comes with being a cancer patient.  We appreciate that despite such a heavy topic, Erika leads the discussion with grace, positivity, love, and honesty.  Thank you for listening, and enjoy the episode.Learn more about the podcast & follow our story - deathwithdignitypodcast.com // @DWDPodcast2021 (Twitter).

Send us a Text - Leave an email in your message if you want to hear back from us!We are joined by Allyne Hammer, a resident of California who was diagnosed with lymphoma, and a brain tumor, over 12 years ago!  Since the diagnosis, she had tried the standard treatment of care, only to experience the rarest and most harrowing of side effects.  Recognizing that traditional medicine wasn’t helpful in her case, Alina has been experimenting with various homeopathic remedies for over a decade and continues to live in conjunction with her cancer.  Thank you Alina, for sharing your unique story with us while advocating for quality end of life care.  We hope you enjoy the episode.Learn more about the podcast & follow our story - deathwithdignitypodcast.com // @DWDPodcast2021 (Twitter).

Send us a Text - Leave an email in your message if you want to hear back from us!A long-time advocate for medical aid in dying, Roger Kligler is a retired physician in Falmouth, MA, living with prostate cancer. In this episode, Roger shares his journey with cancer and advocacy experiences,  and gives us a glimpse into his life as he prepares for a lawsuit against the state of MA, which would declare that Medical Aid in Dying is not criminal under Massachusetts law, meaning prosecution of any physician providing medication to a qualified patient would be unconstitutional. Learn more about the podcast & follow our story - deathwithdignitypodcast.com // @DWDPodcast2021 (Twitter).

Send us a Text - Leave an email in your message if you want to hear back from us!Kim Callinan is the CEO of Compassion & Choices. With an annual budget of approximately $20 million dollars, she leads the largest national consumer advocacy organization dedicated exclusively to improving care and expanding options at life's end. Learn more about the podcast & follow our story - deathwithdignitypodcast.com // @DWDPodcast2021 (Twitter).

Send us a Text - Leave an email in your message if you want to hear back from us!Brittany Maynard was perhaps the greatest advocate for Medical Aid in Dying in the state of California.  Diagnosed with a brain tumor in 2013, Brittany was forced to leave her home state of California in a move to Oregon so she could take advantage of their Medical Aid in Dying law.  Her husband, Dan Diaz, was with her throughout this experience, supporting and loving her throughout her bout with cancer.  In this episode, Dan Diaz joins us to share Brittany’s story, why Medical Aid in Dying was so important to her, and why he continues to be an advocate for the movement today.  Learn more about the podcast & follow our story - deathwithdignitypodcast.com // @DWDPodcast2021 (Twitter)

Send us a Text - Leave an email in your message if you want to hear back from us!The team traveled to Moore's Cancer Center at UCSD to record this special episode.  Dr. Millard was a great source of information for all things cancer and you can learn more about him below.Learn more about the podcast & follow our story - deathwithdignitypodcast.com // @DWDPodcast2021 (Twitter) About Frederick Millard, MDFrederick Millard, MD, is a board-certified medical oncologist who specializes in treating people with genitourinary (urologic) cancers, including bladder cancer, kidney cancer, prostate cancer, testicular cancer and other germ cell tumors, as well as other rarer cancer types.He is a founder and former co-director of the genitourinary oncology team at UC San Diego Health's Moores Cancer Center. His particular interest is in treatment of patients with germ cell tumors (testicular cancer) and improving the care of these patients in the San Diego community.Dr. Millard also participates in the clinical research effort for patients with these illnesses, conducting clinical trials to help find new ways to improve treatments and the quality of life for people with urologic cancer. He is part of the only oncology clinical research program dedicated solely to urological cancers in the San Diego area.As a professor in the Department of Medicine, Dr. Millard instructs medical students, residents, and fellows at UC San Diego School of Medicine. His work has appeared in many peer-reviewed publications, including Urologic Oncology, Clinical Cancer Research and the Clinical Genitourinary Cancer.Dr. Millard completed a fellowship in hematology/oncology, and a residency in internal medicine at the Naval Medical Center in San Diego. He earned his medical degree from Sidney Kimmel Medical College in Philadelphia.He is board certified in medical oncology, hematology and internal medicine, and is a member of the American Society of Clinical Oncology.

Send us a Text - Leave an email in your message if you want to hear back from us!Lynette Cederquist, MD, is a hospice and palliative medicine specialist who helps relieve suffering in people with life-limiting and advanced illnesses. Dr. Cederquist is also the head of the Aid in Dying program at the University of California San Diego (UCSD). She explains why she chose to be involved with the Death with Dignity process and her experience as a professional.  She also discusses body autonomy and movement from the lens of a pain management specialist. Dr. Cederquist also shared her thought about the changes to the California End of Options act (we recorded the same day as the amendment passed).Learn more about the podcast & follow our story - deathwithdignitypodcast.com // @DWDPodcast2021 (Twitter)

Send us a Text - Leave an email in your message if you want to hear back from us!Dr. Tom Cummings is the medical director of Interim Hospice of San Diego.  A graduate of Stanford followed by University of California, San Diego, Medical School, Dr. Cummings has been an advocate for providing quality care for patients grappling with a terminal disease in the Hospice setting.  Being involved with over 200 patients and friends concerning the End of Life Option Act, he joins the Death with Dignity Podcast to help define Hospice care and share his experiences related to the topicLearn more about the podcast & follow our story - deathwithdignitypodcast.com // @DWDPodcast2021 (Twitter)