The Hirshberg Foundation is happy to announce Eden Brauer, PhD, RN will be joining us at the 18th Annual Symposium on Pancreatic Cancer to discuss Survivorship in Pancreatic Cancer.

This presentation will provide an overview of cancer survivorship and new trends and directions in cancer survivorship care. We will also discuss the unique physical, psychosocial, and spiritual aspects of survivorship experiences of patients and families in the context of pancreatic cancer, and how this can inform comprehensive supportive care.

Eden Brauer is an Assistant Professor at the UCLA School of Nursing and a member of the Cancer Control and Survivorship Program of the UCLA Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center (JCCC). As a nurse-scientist, Dr. Brauer’s research focuses on cancer care delivery, with specific emphasis on integrating patient-reported outcomes, supportive/ palliative care, and long-term survivorship care in various clinical models and contexts. Dr. Brauer has an active program of research and serves as PI on multiple projects focused on the symptom and functional experiences of cancer survivors and system-level approaches to implementing survivorship care in routine clinical settings. Prior to joining the faculty, Dr. Brauer trained as a Postdoctoral Fellow at the UCLA Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center and as a Predoctoral Fellow at City of Hope. She received her baccalaureate degree from Columbia University and earned both her Master of Science in Nursing (MSN) and Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) from UCLA.

We are thrilled to have Eden Brauer, PhD, RN present Survivorship in Pancreatic Cancer at the 18th Annual Symposium.

Held in collaboration with the UCLA Agi Hirshberg Center for Pancreatic Diseases at the Luskin Conference Center
April 13, 2024
8:30 am – 3:00 pm

Schedule

The Hirshberg Foundation is happy to announce Jenny Tran, PhD will be joining us at the 18th Annual Symposium on Pancreatic Cancer to moderate the uplifting and informative panel discussion portion of our event.

We are honored, each year, to share the stories of pancreatic cancer patients and caregivers. These honest and personal discussions give us all perspective, insight, and sensitivity to the journey of both patients and loved ones once someone in the family is diagnosed with pancreatic cancer.

Dr. Jenny Tran will join us for another consecutive year as our panel moderator to facilitate a meaningful discussion featuring two patients and two caregivers impacted by pancreatic cancer. Attendees will have the honor of hearing personal stories, perspectives, and insights from survivors. They will answer questions about how they navigated their diagnosis, what they wished they knew then, and what they want you to know now.

Dr. Jenny Tran is currently a Licensed Psychologist at Simms Mann UCLA Center for Integrative Oncology. She provides clinical care for patients and family members touched by cancer, centered around the emotional, psychological, social, and spiritual impacts of cancer.

Dr. Tran balances an integration of evidence-based interventions to strengthen coping skills and improve management of cancer-related distress, with a culturally informed, human-centered approach to support processing of themes that come up in one’s unique illness experience. She offers cancer-focused individual counseling, caregiver support, family consultation, and assessment, in addition to interdisciplinary collaboration with medical providers. Additionally, Dr. Tran is involved in program development of services at the Simms Mann Center, including a monthly online orientation for patients coping with an Advanced GI Cancer to learn about Supportive Care Services recommended throughout their cancer care. She recently created an integrative health workshop sponsored by Roots and Wings for the Chinese community of patients in the San Gabriel Valley coping with metastatic breast cancer, which included topics presented by a multidisciplinary speaker panel on symptom management, survivorship nutrition, and cancer-related anxiety.

Dr. Tran earned both her master’s degree and PhD in Clinical Psychology with an emphasis in Health Psychology at California School of Professional Psychology with Alliant International University in Los Angeles. Her personal experience as a caregiver for her late father influenced the pursuit of her doctoral dissertation which explored how cultural values and coping styles impact the quality of life in family caregivers of older adults living with a chronic illness. She completed her full-time APA-accredited internship at VA St. Louis Health Care System and returned to the Simms Mann UCLA Center for Integrative Oncology to complete a two-year postdoctoral fellowship in Psycho-Oncology.

Her clinical experience includes treatment of OCD and anxiety-related disorders; administration of cognitive assessments for older adults; provision of individual and group support for veterans around adjustment to chronic illness, injury, and disability, health promotion and disease prevention; and counseling for patients and loved ones touched by cancer through the trajectory of care.

We are eager to have Jenny Tran, PhD joining us to moderate the Panel Discussion: Perspectives from Survivors and Caregivers at the 18th Annual Symposium.

The Hirshberg Foundation is happy to announce Shelby Yaceczko, MS, RDN-AP, CNSC, CSSD will be joining us at the 18th Annual Symposium on Pancreatic Cancer to discuss pancreatic enzyme education.

This presentation will review what pancreatic enzyme replacement therapy (PERT) is, when it’s needed, how to take the medication, and common misconceptions around PERT. We will additionally review diet patterns for pancreatic cancer and how they may impact your pancreatic enzyme dosing regimen.

Shelby Yaceczko is an advanced practice registered dietitian who specializes in complex gastrointestinal conditions. She leads the Nutrition for Safer Surgeries program and supports the Division of Digestive Diseases and Surgical Oncology patient population at UCLA Health. She is a valued team member of the UCLA Agi Hirshberg Center for Pancreatic Diseases where she spends most of her time helping patients with pancreatic cancer improve their nutritional status and overall wellbeing during their cancer journey.

We are excited to welcome back Shelby Yaceczko, MS, RDN-AP, CNSC, CSSD to our Symposium to present Pancreatic Enzyme Education at the 18th Annual Symposium.

The Hirshberg Foundation is pleased to announce Mariana S. Niell-Swiller, MS will be joining us at the 18th Annual Symposium on Pancreatic Cancer to discuss Genetic Testing for Pancreatic Cancer.

Mariana will answer the question that many individuals impacted by pancreatic cancer ask: ‘Genetic counseling and testing; what is it and why does it matter’? She’ll also address the importance of knowing your hereditary cancer risk assessment in the setting of a personal or family history of pancreatic cancer. Having this crucial information may inform treatment decisions in addition to helping family members understand their potential risk and screening options.

Mariana Niell-Swiller, MS, CGC, is a board-certified genetic counselor who has been specializing in cancer genetics and hereditary cancer risk assessment for the majority of her career. Mariana earned a Master of Science in Genetic Counseling from Brandeis University and received her bachelor’s degree in biology from Cornell University. After honing her molecular genetics skills as a genetics laboratory technician working on neurogenetics disorders, Mariana began her clinical career on the East Coast as a genetic counselor in Springfield, MA. She has since held several clinical and leadership positions from small community hospital settings to larger, specialized centers such as City of Hope Medical Center in Duarte, CA. She now has the honor of providing hereditary cancer risk assessment to UCLA Health patients as well as continuing to build the cancer genetics program in her leadership role as Director, Cancer Genetic Counseling.

When she is not in the office, Mariana spends time kayaking, dancing, and hiking. She shares a love of nature with her husband, young son, and old dog.

We are privileged to have Mariana S. Niell-Swiller, MS present on Genetic Testing for Pancreatic Cancer at the 18th Annual Symposium.

The Hirshberg Foundation is happy to announce Joseph Herman, MD, will be joining us at the 18th Annual Symposium on Pancreatic Cancer to discuss Improving Pancreatic Cancer Patient Care: Canopy Cancer Collective.

Dr. Herman will share information about the Canopy Cancer Collective (CCC), founded in 2019. CCC addresses the urgent need for improved survival and patient experience in pancreatic cancer. Collaborating with 14 care centers through a Learning Health Network (LHN), CCC accelerates advancements in care delivery and outcomes by sharing data and best practices. The CCC focuses on enhancing access to nutrition, clinical trials, and palliative care services for pancreatic cancer patients across their care journey.

Joseph Herman, MD, MSc, MHCM, is currently the Medical Director for HistoSonics and Adjunct professor in the Institute of Cancer Research at the Feinstein Institutes. He previously served as a director of clinical research for the Northwell Health Cancer Institute as well as professor and ad interim division head in radiation oncology at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center. As an associate professor at Johns Hopkins University in the department of radiation oncology he initiated and co-directed the pancreatic multidisciplinary clinic.

Dr. Herman has served as a writing member of the American College of Radiology (ACR) guideline committee and National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN). He was a member the National Cancer Institute (NCI) Pancreas Task Force and initiated and led the pancreas cancer radiation oncology working group. He also previously served as chief medical officer and is currently on the Scientific and Medical Advisory Board for the Pancreatic Cancer Action Network.

Dr. Herman’s research focuses on identification of novel biomarkers and integration of focused stereotactic body radiation therapy (SBRT) with immunotherapy and targeted therapies. He currently leads (CMO) a five-year funded project to create a pancreas Canopy Cancer Collective learning health network across 14 high-volume pancreas cancer centers.

We are honored to have Dr. Herman present on Improving Pancreatic Cancer Patient Care: Canopy Cancer Collective at the 18th Annual Symposium.