There’s an important meeting happening this November called IBC Connect, hosted by the Morgan Welch Inflammatory Breast Cancer Clinic at MD Anderson.
As someone who regularly attends medical conferences—especially those focused on inflammatory breast cancer (IBC)—I can tell you this: conferences like this are rare. IBC occupies a very unique niche in the breast cancer landscape. It has historically struggled to gain visibility in diagnosis, treatment, research, and advocacy. This is a disease that has been written about since the 1800s, yet it only just received its own medical coding in October of this year. Think about that—after more than a century, the formal recognition of this disease is finally taking place.
Progress has been slow. In many ways, IBC has been like a small dog scratching at a very large door—hoping to be seen. Now, that door is starting to open.
What makes IBC Connect different is that it’s not just researchers presenting their work. While those presentations are critical, this meeting is designed as a brainstorming session, with a strong role for advocates at the table. We’ll be asking big questions:
- How can we improve diagnosis when misdiagnosis is still common?
- How can we standardize care across the nation when there is no national standard—only suggested protocols from MD Anderson?
- How can we advance the science to ensure women with this rare and complex form of breast cancer receive the treatment they uniquely need?
This meeting is about moving the needle forward. It’s about bringing together researchers, clinicians, and advocates to develop actionable strategies that will make a real difference.
I am honored to be on a panel discussing advocacy and I am literally on pins and needles to hear the presentations. If you care about breast cancer—or breast cancer research—don’t let the fact that this conference focuses on inflammatory breast cancer stop you from attending. This is a unique opportunity to be part of a session that could influence broader applications for other diseases.
This is the moment for something big to happen—and we are the people to make it happen. Please join us.
IBC Connect Community: A Coalition to Advance and Optimize Guideline-Concordant Care and Research – MDA – Continuing Education (CE) – IBC Connect Community: A Coalition to Advance and Optimize Guideline-Concordant Care and Research