PHILADELPHIA, PA, December 06, 2021  — Global clinical research services company IQVIA published results of a recent study indicating a growing need for integrative oncology care for breast cancer patients.

The study surveyed U.S. breast cancer patients and oncologists on the impact and accessibility of complementary therapies as a part of a holistic care approach, including exercise counseling, nutrition counseling, patient support groups, psycho-oncology support, spiritual services, and meditation and mindfulness.

In the study, the researchers found that two-thirds of oncologists (66%) and patients (65%) believe using complementary and lifestyle therapies, in addition to conventional medical treatments, improve patients’ quality of life. Many patients (60%) also believe these treatments lead to better health outcomes, but many (66%) are unsure if their treating institutions offer any financial support for these modalities.

“Cancer impacts the whole person,” said Terri Crudup, Senior Principal at IQVIA and lead study author. “While the oncology community relies on conventional medicine as the backbone of therapy, our data indicates that many patients want a holistic treatment approach, but barriers like cost and education prevent them from accessing integrative care.”

To view the newly published study, please download the white paper at www.uniteforher.org/iqvia

“As a two-time cancer survivor, I was fortunate to learn about Unite for HER,” says Crudup. “They both educated me and provided direct funding for my complementary therapies – and were a big part of my inspiration for this study.”

Unite for HER seeks to bridge the current gap in patient care, providing breast and ovarian cancer patients with education and access to complementary therapies at no personal cost. Unite for HER was awarded the “Catalyst for Care Award” in October 2021 by AstraZeneca and Scientific American for their work to improve the cancer patient experience at the national Cancer Community Awards.

“When I was diagnosed with breast cancer, I discovered a gap between the medical and wellness communities as I searched for therapies to help me through my medical treatments,” said Sue Weldon, Founder and CEO of Unite for HER nonprofit organization. “The Unite for HER Wellness Program was created so that anyone affected by breast or ovarian cancer could learn about integrative therapies and then incorporate them into their treatment immediately without personal cost.”

“So many patients tell us that the wellness program is the missing piece they have been seeking through their medical treatment,” said Weldon. “We know the power of integrative therapies and expanded our services nationwide through the pandemic. If you are affected by breast or ovarian cancer in the United States, we are here for you.”

About Unite for HER
Unite for HER provides integrative therapies and resources to breast and ovarian cancers through the Unite for HER Wellness Program. Since founding in 2009, the organization has supported more than 10,000 breast and ovarian cancer patients. To learn more, visit www.uniteforher.org.

About IQVIA
IQVIA (NYSE:IQV) is a leading global provider of advanced analytics, technology solutions, and clinical research services to the life sciences industry. IQVIA creates intelligent connections across all aspects of healthcare through its analytics, transformative technology, big data resources and extensive domain expertise. IQVIA Connected Intelligence™ delivers powerful insights with speed and agility — enabling customers to accelerate the clinical development and commercialization of innovative medical treatments that improve healthcare outcomes for patients. With approximately 72,000 employees, IQVIA conducts operations in more than 100 countries.

IQVIA is a global leader in protecting individual patient privacy. The company uses a wide variety of privacy-enhancing technologies and safeguards to protect individual privacy while generating and analyzing information on a scale that helps healthcare stakeholders identify disease patterns and correlate with the precise treatment path and therapy needed for better outcomes. IQVIA’s insights and execution capabilities help biotech, medical device and pharmaceutical companies, medical researchers, government agencies, payers and other healthcare stakeholders tap into a deeper understanding of diseases, human behaviors and scientific advances, in an effort to advance their path toward cures. To learn more, visit www.iqvia.com.

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We started with 24 women at Paoli hospital, where I was diagnosed and treated. I remember that day as if it was yesterday; there were no paid employees, but a great deal of passionate board members and volunteers supporting my vision of an outreach program.

Supported by a community of volunteers, donors, and partners, we grew steadily over the years and embarked on a three-year strategic plan in 2019 to grow in new markets.

As the world shut down in 2020, we worked hard to reinvent our delivery model to safely provide integrative therapies to patients at home. Cancer didn’t stop during the pandemic, and pausing our programming was not an option. The past 12 months have been filled with growth and change at Unite for HER, allowing us to impact new regions and underserved communities, including patients in 37 new states.

We leaned in, and YOU held us up high!

12 years later, despite changes, expansion, evolution, and a global pandemic, our mission to bring integrative care to those in need remains the same. We now support those with breast cancer and ovarian cancers, female or male, nationwide. Overall, we serve over 2,200 patients each year, and provide lifelong care for those living with metastatic breast cancer.

Our national expansion is now the sequel to our founding story, and I could not be more grateful for the loving community of volunteers, staff, and board that surrounds Unite for HER. I know that we hold the same guiding principles that founded Unite for HER–compassion, community, empowerment, inclusion, and trust–close to our hearts. Keeping our eyes fixed on the community we serve, there is nothing we cannot do together.

So, Happy Birthday, Unite for HER. She is 12 today and HER story keeps evolving.

We are grateful to have you with us by HER side,

Sue Weldon
Founder and CEO

Unite for HER’s Wellness Passport, valid for $2,000 of integrative therapies.

“Our focus with this expansion is to prioritize and provide critical access to integrative therapies to Black women,” said Susan Weldon, founder and CEO of Unite for HER. “We have seen how these therapies transform patients’ lives through our work in the Philadelphia region, and selected Weill Cornell Medicine as our new collaborator in this initiative. Knowing that the risk of developing metastatic breast cancer is higher for black women than white women, we hope to become a trusted resource to help resolve the health inequities in communities throughout the country.”

“We were inspired to give back upon learning about how this program supported our colleague, Stacie Crane,” said Blake Martini, director of sales operations at Volkswagen of America, Northeast Region.

Unite for HER provides breast and ovarian cancer patients with $2,000 of integrative therapies, resources, and education, for a full year at no personal cost. Metastatic patients receive $2,000 of services, renewed biannually, for life. All services are funded by UFH and delivered by the organization’s network of medical and wellness professionals.

Stacie and her daughter.

“I was diagnosed with breast cancer at the height of the pandemic and was introduced to Unite for HER through my hospital,” said Stacie Crane, sales operations manager at Volkswagen of America, Northeast Region. “They offered an amazing care box with all sorts of educational literature and resources and provided integrative therapies at no cost to me. Their wellness program has been lifesaving. I can think of many charities that fund research for breast and ovarian cancer, but only Unite for HER truly supports you during your journey.”

The Unite for HER Wellness Program at Weill Cornell Medicine launches with a virtual wellness conference on June 25, 2021.

Enrollment for the Unite for HER Wellness Program is now open. To learn more and apply for services, visit www.uniteforher.org/applyusa.

About Unite for HER

Founded in 2009 in the Philadelphia region, UFH provides integrative therapies and resources to breast and ovarian cancer patients at no personal cost. The UFH Wellness Program is funded by generous partnerships with hospitals, and corporate and private donors. To learn more, visit www.uniteforher.org.

“We are honored to be able to offer this impactful program to those with breast and ovarian cancers across the country,” said Susan Weldon, founder and CEO of Unite for HER. “We’ve seen how integrative therapies like professional counseling, meditation and yoga, supportive fitness programs, and nutrition can transform patients’ lives through our work in the Philadelphia region. The pandemic required us to adapt our operations, programming, and delivery model , which actually allowed us to grow. It is our goal to empower every person through their treatment and beyond, and this expansion is the first step.”

The Unite for HER (UFH) Wellness Program is available to those diagnosed with breast or ovarian cancer in the last 18 months, as well as for those living with metastatic breast cancer or recurrent ovarian cancer. All patients in the Wellness Program receive a HER care box containing educational resources, healthy products, and a passport valid for one year and $2,000 of integrative therapies, including professional counseling, nutritional counseling, meal delivery services, virtual fitness and yoga classes, sexual health counseling, and meditation. Patients living with metastatic breast cancer or recurrent ovarian cancer are eligible for $2,000 of services every six months. Upon receipt of their care box, patients are invited to attend a virtual wellness retreat to learn about integrative therapies, meet care providers, and craft a personal integrative care plan.

“Our focus with this launch is to prioritize and provide critical access to integrative therapies to women of color,” said ­­­­­­­­Weldon. “Knowing that the risk of developing metastases is higher for black women than white women, we hope to lean in and become a trusted resource to help resolve the health inequities in the Black and Hispanic communities.”

The national expansion launches in June with virtual events planned in partnership with Weill Cornell Medical Center in New York, Vermont Medical Center in Vermont, and West Cancer Center in Tennessee. UFH will also host the first National Metastatic Breast Cancer Conference, with presenting sponsor Daiichi Sankyo, virtually on June 13, 2021.

National enrollment is now open. To learn more about the Unite for HER Wellness Program and apply to receive services, visit www.uniteforher.org/applyusa.

About Unite for HER

Following her own breast cancer diagnosis and treatments, Susan Weldon founded Unite for HER in 2009 to support patients with integrative therapies after discovering a gap in the standard of care and available resources for breast cancer patients. The UFH Wellness Program expanded in 2019 to support ovarian cancer patients. The UFH Wellness Program is funded by generous partnerships with hospitals, community organizations and businesses, and private donors. To learn more or support the Wellness Program, visit www.uniteforher.org.

Click to Download Press Release as PDF

Thank you for your continued trust and support of Unite for HER. As we head into a new year, we are grateful for the strong foundation that you have built; your dedication has enabled us to rise up during the health crisis and support those newly diagnosed without hesitation. With you by our side, we remained steady and acted swiftly to innovate and serve, delivering the gift of joy, hope, resources, therapies, education, and much-needed human connection to more than 700 newly diagnosed during COVID at home.

The past seven months were filled with innovation and shifts as we reimagined our outreach programming and fundraising with one goal in mind: to ensure the needs of those affected with cancer would be met. This goal continues to guide us as we prepare for a new year of service, where we expect to support more than 1,600 women and men affected by breast and ovarian cancers. Opportunity presented itself in this new virtual model, where we can now deliver our program anywhere in the nation.

Our wellness outreach would not exist without your support of our Signature Fundraising Events. After hosting a very successful virtual Bloom Fashion Show in April (over 350 attended virtually and 30,000 viewers tuned in from 31 states), we are inspired to reinvent and innovate our Fall events as well. As all of our events shift to a virtual format, guests are invited to participate from across the nation! 

Get Involved this Year

Virtual 5K Run, Walk, and Half Marathon
September 21-26, 2020

Run or walk anywhere in the nation to raise funds to support our Wellness Program! Pick a race, day, and create your team to change HER life! Plus, join us for a live virtual Tailgate celebration on September 26, 2020. Learn More. 

Harvest Virtual Chef and Wine Event
October 29, 2020

Enjoy a unique and interactive culinary experience at home; including wine tours, a silent auction, and our favorite returning local chefs. Learn More

Connect Online

Create a Facebook fundraiser for your birthday, follow Unite for HER on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, or Twitter to share our mission, learn new healthy living practices, and stay connected with the community.  Or join us on Zoom each month for an interactive experience at our monthly hangouts. Register online.

Volunteer

Volunteer in special in-office hours or with designated projects for completion at home. Contact Carol Nowrey at volunteer@uniteforher.org if you would like to get involved

We experienced great change these past months. However, with great change came great opportunity, and we see this opportunity to serve even more across our nation with an exciting new model. We will be forever united in love and empathy for those we serve and are thankful to have you in our community of those who lift them up.

Always,

Sue Weldon
Unite for HER Founder and CEO

First, we would like to thank Karin Risi, Managing Director, Retail Group- Vanguard, for her seven years of exceptional service, leadership and commitment as a valued board member and Board Chair. We are pleased to announce that Karin will serve on our UFH Advisory Committee for years to come, continuing to provide her experience and expertise in Corporate Management, Strategy and Leadership to support those we serve.

We would also like to welcome our new Chair of the Board, Dr. Linna Li, System Chief of Radiation Oncology at Main Line Health, and Vice Chair, Amy Gallo, Director of Sales at Independence Blue Cross. We are honored to have such valued members of our community who bring such talent and experience to the future of Unite for HER.

Finally, we are honored to announce the creation of our new Advisory Committee for African American participants. We are committed to listening and finding new ways to work together to better serve our participants of color.

We look forward to another year of service and growth at UFH.

Together, we are by HER side.

I write this from a place of humility, empathy and love, for I, a white middle-aged woman, cannot pretend to understand the bias and prejudice that those of color live with each and every day. What I do recognize is that we cannot lift each other up unless we stand right in the middle of this movement and walk together as a catalyst for fairness and equality.

Sincerely with love,

Sue Weldon and the Board and Staff of Unite for HER

How lucky am I that I have two families, my immediate family, and my Unite for HER family. I am in awe of the family we have built.

For the last 16 years, cancer has been at the front of my mind. I am humbled and grateful for listening to the call that was put in front of me and for the many lessons it has taught me, for it has certainly been my best teacher
My diagnosis, treatment, and wellness plan exposed an opportunity to fill a critical gap in cancer care that was so much greater than myself. 

With the recent COVID-19 crisis, we have shifted to serve and are there when our community needs us the most. I thank God every day for bringing extraordinary people to Unite for HER, walking by my side as we work towards our ultimate goal, supporting all who are affected by breast and ovarian cancer.

Unity is strength, when there is teamwork and collaboration, extraordinary things can be achieved.”

Always,

Sue Weldon
Founder and CEO
Unite for HER

Help us to continue to support those with breast and ovarian cancers during the COVID-19 health crisis through our Unite for HER at Home Virtual Wellness Program.

Donate

Professional Background:

I graduated from St. John Fisher College in Rochester, New York with a BA in Communication/Journalism. After college I moved to Charlotte, North Carolina to work for a boutique public relations agency where I primarily worked to support our motorsports technology client in what is now the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series. From the world of NASCAR, I moved to New York where I spent some time providing PR support to a variety of consumer brands. After some time, I decided to transition into a field that I felt would be more fulfilling and where I could make a difference in the lives of others. So I went back to school and received my nutrition degree from LaSalle University and completed my dietetic internship with Sodexo. My clinical experience includes the Crozer-Keystone Health System, Lower Bucks Hospital and – most recently – Hahnemann University Hospital where I covered our inpatient oncology and radiation oncology units for 3.5 years.

How did you become involved with Unite for HER?

Shortly after completing my dietetic internship in 2013, I started working with our former Nutrition Advisor, Katie Cavuto. It was during that time that she introduced me to Unite for HER and offered me the opportunity to help her as she worked with our women. Slowly my work expanded to making nutrition phone calls, then assisting with the Resource Area at our in-person Wellness Days, and now leading out giving the lunchtime nutrition talk and participating in nutrition vouchers.

What is your role in a Wellness Day and the Wellness Day Program?

My job at each Wellness Day is to explain the facets of our nutrition program, as well as our overall nutrition philosophy. Perhaps the most important aspect of this conversation is sharing that ultimately, we want to help our women and men feel good about their food choices. There is so much fear and stress surrounding food that can accompany a diagnosis like cancer, particularly when a person starts analyzing their lifestyle and
asking themselves, “why did this happen?” Michele and I are here to educate, answer questions, offer guidance and resources to aid a person in meeting their goals, and most importantly help them feel confident and empowered throughout their nutrition and wellness journey. In terms of our Wellness Day Program, it has evolved quite a bit in the world of COVID
and quarantine. Our in-person shopping experience has turned into grocery dollars for healthy food. And since we’ve all become experts in Zoom, we’re now offering virtual cooking classes, as well as plenty of other special virtual culinary events to stay connected (like our monthly Virtual Hangouts!). So while our nutrition program looks quite different compared to a year ago – and we are patiently waiting for the return of some of our in-person offerings – we think it’s definitely changed for the better!

What inspires your work with Unite for HER?

Definitely our women. Each and every person I have been afforded the opportunity to meet and connect with have been nothing short of amazing. Their resilience and consistent positive energy combined with my love of nutrition drives me to do whatever I can to help others live their healthiest life possible. Plus, as Registered Dietitians, Michele and I are always learning. I love reading about new nutrition science and research findings, and we both get excited to share what we learn with our community. So we are constantly inspired to always be thinking and developing new and innovative ways for us to connect and educate others.

Words to Live By:

“Be the change you want to see in the world.”

Professional Background:

Production and Sales Manager; Nutrition Education Coordinator.

How did you become involved with Unite for HER?

Hired in May 2019.

What is your role in a Wellness Day and the Wellness Day Program?

I provide nutrition consultations and education to participants in the wellness program via grocery store tours and in-home cooking experiences.

What Inspires Your Work With Unite for HER?

The opportunity to work with amazing women who want to participate in the nutrition component of the UFH program. I love that they want to improve their health and well-being through food and good nutrition.

Words to Live By:

“Create healthy habits not restrictions.”

They feel…

Supported. Renewed. Heard. Encouraged. Empowered. Good Enough. Restored. Embraced. Alive. Stronger. Special. Blessed. Remembered. Honored. Joyful. Educated. Care for. Inspired. Enlightened. Purposeful. Loved.

When I thought of how one reflects on a year filled with so much service and love for more than 1,800 newly diagnosed women and men each year, I came up with this one word:

Feel.

For that is what Unite for HER is known for. For what our staff, board, and volunteers aspire to achieve.

It is our why each and every day:

to have those we serve remember how we made them feel.

Thank you for sharing your talent with all of us, leaving a significant impact on the work of Unite for HER. Thank you for being such committed ambassadors of love and service, helping us answer our WHY each and every day.

Today we welcome the new year full of opportunity in every new day… that the light has not even touched yet.

Here is to 2020, may we continue to serve in a way that has our women and men feeling “oh so good.”

With love and support always,

Sue Weldon and the Staff and Board of Unite for HER

If you pour enough love and support into something, it is bound to soar.

Oh, how I love this quote for it sums up so beautifully our Unite for HER! Over the years, all who have moved our mission forward have done so on pure, authentic love and support. Today, September 29, 2019, Unite for HER celebrates 10 years of service.

During the past 10 years we have supported over 5,000 women affected by breast cancer. If one were to tell me then the enormous reach our programming would one day deliver, I would never have believed them. What started with a single Wellness Day at Paoli Hospital where we supported 26 newly diagnosed women, has now grown to serve 1,800 women affected by breast and ovarian cancers, supporting each of them for a full year with our innovative and hands-on programming. We are so honored to be embraced by our community, sharing a common goal of serving more women each and every year, leaving no woman behind.

Pink, The Color Chose Me

I get asked often, how does a mother of three, gymnastics coach, and sales executive become the founder and CEO of a growing nonprofit?

In 2004, I was diagnosed with breast cancer. It was during that time that I navigated myself through multiple surgeries, difficult treatments, and then recovery. It was then that I noticed a gap in the medical community in order to fully restore one’s emotional and physical well-being.

Sue with her family in 2004.

I embarked on complementing my standard of care with integrative therapies to ward off unwanted side effects and symptoms, without more drugs or prescriptions. Treatments like medical acupuncture, restorative yoga, and whole food nutrition became vital to my daily routine, supporting my emotional and physical well-being. Little did I know I was forming the business plan and foundation of Unite for HER’s mission and programming. At that time I was just trying to survive, looking to subside bone pain, headaches, hot flashes, exhaustion, and depression. At 39 years old with three young children, I barely noticed the shell of myself. I remember praying often to please just let me see my children graduate from high school. As hard as this is to say, I am grateful to have had gone through a very arduous chemotherapy experience. For if I did not, I never would have created Unite for HER. It was these complementary therapies that gave me much-needed control back in my life and renewed my shaken confidence.

Finding Inspiration

About one year to the day that I was diagnosed, I remember attending an inspiring yoga event on the steps of the Philadelphia Art Museum. It was there that one young woman caught my eye. A woman I recognized my former self in⁠—hair gone, yellowish skin tone, and hollow eyes. With my hair growing back, body restored, and emotional state balanced, I had so much I wanted to share with her.

I approached her (for that is what we do in this new sisterhood), hoping to empower her with my newfound knowledge of integrative therapies. I shared all I had learned, explaining about medical acupuncture, oncology massage therapy, yoga, and whole food nutrition. However, my advice was met with tears, followed by this simple statement, “Good for you. I could never afford that.”

There was the gap. My heart ached for her. I could afford these treatments, take a year off of work, and had a community of support. It was then that I went home and shared with my husband that I wanted to start a nonprofit. A nonprofit that could bring this type of programming to ALL women regardless of their income. This needed to become a part of the standard of care, funding and educating newly diagnosed women about the positive effects of integrative therapies during a cancer diagnosis. I wish I knew the name of the young woman who inspired me that day. She will always be in my heart and I share this story at the beginning of each Wellness Day we host. That vulnerable moment and recognition of a major gap was truly the inspiration for the creation of Unite for HER.

Looking Forward

Just as the seasons signify change, rebirth and growth, so too will this September for Unite for HER. It will mark new growth and change for our mission and outreach, expanding to women affected by ovarian cancer. Thank you for being “by OUR side” during the past 10 years and supporting the beautiful community of women we serve.

Today I reflect with grace and honor, giving thanks to a truly remarkable staff and board and of all of those who contributed to the movement and impact of Unite for HER.

If you pour enough love and support into someone or something, it is bound to soar- and for that I am forever grateful.

With love,

Sue