Knownst to Matthew Zachary, but unknownst to others, long before the Award-Winning documentary "The Cancer Mavericks: A History of Survivorship" hit podcast feeds, a pilot episode was storyboarded and produced to test the waters with our newly minted production team, helmed by acclaimed executive producer, Steve Lickteig. If all went to plan, we would proceed with the heavy lifting needed to bring this 320-hour, 8-episode history series to life. Suffice it to say, it indeed went to plan. For this pilot episode, the chosen topic would center around a history of cancer throughout the last centu ..read more

Welcome to the series finale of The Cancer Mavericks. In this final episode, we reflect on the first seven episodes through the lens of history and progress with a series of insightful conversations featuring some of healthcare's most influential and visionary voices across the past four decades. If history is a teacher, we have learned that change can happen, albeit slowly. But it is only when the people stand up, organize and activate their voices demanding change, that the culture will shift, the institutions will pivot, and the very system itself will be forced by the will of the citizens ..read more

For decades, the portrayal of cancer in movies and television was grim. If a character was diagnosed with cancer, it was a near certainty they'd be dead by the credits. But, like cancer treatment itself, Hollywood evolved, and many storylines about cancer became stories of survival. In this episode, we ask the question, "Who influences us and why?" From musicians to television stars, film producers to televised cancer screenings, when celebrities lend their voices to raising awareness and fundraising, that kind of star power can move mountains. Join us as we hear from voices such as actor Patr ..read more

Facing a diagnosis of cancer at any age is horrible. But for young adults, it’s just plain different. Not better. Not worse. Different. Those diagnosed between the ages of 15 and 39 are on a planet all their own, often left to fend for themselves as lost voices sandwiched between pediatrics and adult cancer. The consequences of living with, through, and, ideally, beyond cancer carries with it a whole host of unique long-term issues, issues that had fallen under the radar and gone ignored by the system for far too long. In this episode, we talk to a new generation of cancer mavericks like Tamik ..read more

In just over 20 years, the number of cancer survivors in the United States has doubled to 17 million survivors, each confronting their new (ab)normal lives. From chemo brain to PTSD, medical debt to workplace discrimination, this episode follows survivors along with their unique—and often difficult—paths post-treatment. In this episode, we hear from some of the godmothers of the cancer survivorship movement like Dr. Patricia Ganz and Barbara Hoffman and “everyday mavericks” who are forging ahead into life after cancer. For more information about this series, visit https://CancerMavericks ..read more

Advocacy can take many forms in the cancer community — from advocating for yourself or a loved one to receive the best possible treatment to calling your Congressperson or testifying on Capitol Hill to demand increased access to care. This episode explores different ways cancer mavericks have elevated survivors’ needs and improved their lives, including the pioneering patient navigation model created by Dr. Harold Freeman at Harlem Hospital, the story of Ellen Stovall’s fearless and collaborative approach to policy, shaped around a shared agenda to represent the needs of all cancer survivors ..read more

By the 1980s, cancer was no longer a death sentence. But the question of what surviving actually meant was unanswered. Cancer survivors had to navigate issues around employment, relationships, and the emotional and physical side effects of treatment in a world that largely didn’t know what to do with them. (and they were still called “victims.”) In 1985, a young doctor named Fitzhugh Mullan wrote an essay called “Seasons of Survival” about his own experience with cancer. His piece helped popularize the term “cancer survivor” and resonated with a growing number of survivors, who were start ..read more

Mary Lasker used to say that more money was spent on advertising campaigns for gum than was spent on cancer research. She’d seen the effects of that almost non-existent budget first hand: she watched people close to her die from cancer, including her advertising exec husband. She was outraged by the lack of money and research devoted to ending the disease. But with her own funds and influence, Mary Lasker rallied the public and lawmakers to take notice, ultimately leading to The National Cancer Act of 1971. This "War on Cancer" brought millions of dollars, but also harsh truths: there was no s ..read more

Most people don’t know that you’re considered a cancer survivor at the moment of diagnosis. It wasn’t always this way. Sixty years ago, a cancer diagnosis was a death sentence. And if you did survive, you were left to figure out the rest of your life on your own. But some survivors demanded something different, something better. From OffScrip Media, this is The Cancer Mavericks, a deep-dive narrative into the people who fought for better treatment, forced doctors to listen, and pushed America to see the human side of the disease. Episodes of this series will publish monthly through the end of ..read more