
Susan Love
mother of breast cancer research
When Dr. Susan Love started practicing surgery in 1980, she didn't want to specialize in women's health just because she was female. But then she saw how women were being treated ~ from overuse of mastectomies to not always being told they had cancer. "A career," she says, "became a mission."
For 30 years Dr. Love has transformed our understanding of breast cancer and its treatment as a surgeon, author, lecturer, activist, patient advocate + cancer survivor. She currently is a clinical professor of surgery at The David Geffen School of Medicine. She also runs the Dr. Susan Love Research Foundation, a $4 million research program devoted to beating breast cancer ~ a disease she is determined to see disappear in her lifetime.
the breast cancer "bible" | The Susan Love Breast Book
criticizing mastectomies | conservative lumpectomies often more appropriate
working on new technologies | hopes to develop a way to detect cancer in ducts before tumors form
single-minded dedication | recruiting an army of women for research | "I work to eradicate breast cancer"
three big moments (+ one)
1980 | became first women surgeon at Beth Israel Hospital in Boston
1988 | founded a breast cancer center ~ all female staff + cutting-edge treatment
1990 | published her "breast" book + helped form the National Breast Cancer Coalition, which worked to increase government spending on research
2008 | formed the army of women ~ a partnership between the Dr. Susan Love Research Foundation and the Avon Foundation for Women ~ with a goal to get one million women signed up to be involved in breast cancer research
from | to
private practioner | noted surgeon, author ~ mother of breast cancer research + advocacy
born on
February 9, 1948
born in
New Jersey
birth name
Susan Margaret Love
also known as
one of the founding mothers of the breast cancer advocacy movement
citizen of
The United States of America
daughter of
James + Margaret Love
sister of
oldest of five siblings
grew up in
Puerto Rico + Mexico
lives in
Pacific Palisades, California
educated at
Fordham University
~ New York | BS 1970 ~
State University of New York's Downstate Medical School
~ Brooklyn, NY | MD 1974 ~
University of California Los Angeles
~ Los Angeles, CA | MBA ~
loved studying
science
married to
Helen Cooksey, MD
mother of
a daughter ~ Katie Love-Cooksey
early vocation
entered the convent for 6 months thinking she wanted to become a nun
advocate for
same sex parenting ~ with partner got Massachusetts court to put both names on daughter's birth certificate in landmark case
women having a say in breast cancer treatment
influenced by
Dr. William Silen
~ chief of surgery at Beth Israel Hospital where she trained ~
Dr. Laura Schrock
~ 1st women breast surgeon she met who "showed her it was possible"
in her spare time
wrote book on menopause | Dr. Susan Love's Menopause and Hormone Book: Making Informed Choices
is a senior partner in LLuminari | a multimedia women's health company
served on the National Cancer Advisory Board {1998 - 2004} | appointed by President Bill Clinton
tweets
@drsusanlove
image credit
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A day with: Dr. Susan Love | june 1994
"Only 10 percent of breast cancer is hereditary."
Dr. Susan Love Breast Cancer Myths Revealed | march 2011
"The only difference between a researcher and a patient is a diagnosis. We’re all patients."
Susan Love’s Illness Gives New Focus to Her Cause: The Well Column | february 2013
"Whether it’s changing the world or having a good time, we should do what we want to do. I drink the expensive wine now."
The Well Column: Susan Love’s Illness Gives New Focus to Her Cause | february 2013
"It soon became apparent to me that what started as career really was gonna be a mission."
MAKERS Profile | february 2013
"I'm too old to fight with people. We just want to bring everybody to the table who can help us find the cause and end this disease so that our kids don't have to have breast cancer in their lives."
Breast Cancer Expert Dr. Susan Love | may 2013
"What you learn with any disease is, even if 99% of people die, if you live, you’re alive."
Breast Cancer Expert Dr. Susan Love | may 2013
curated with care by Kathleen Murray {september 2014}
army of women
a partnership between the Dr. Susan Love Research Foundation and the Avon Foundation for Women, the army of women was founded in 2008, and has a goal to get one million women signed up to be involved in breast cancer research.
army of women
img_0299
Dr. Susan Love and her partner, Dr. Helen Cooksey, with their wedding license
Bilerico Project | (CC BY-NC-ND 2.0)
speech | So What's New with Breast Cancer | may 22, 2010
Dr. Susan Love presents "So What's New with Breast Cancer" at the National Breast Cancer Coalition's 2010 Annual Advocacy Training Conference, Washington, DC, May 22
National Breast Cancer Coalition
video | "One Million Strong"
Love/Avon "One Million Strong" {featuring Susan Sarandon}