Dr. Nasser Hanna - A Life in Medicine, Mentorship, and Advocacy

What does it take to turn personal hardship into lifelong advocacy? In this conversation, Dr. Nasser Hanna—thoracic oncologist, researcher, teacher, and founder of End Lung Cancer Now—shares the remarkable journey behind his new memoir My Patch. From his family’s immigrant roots in Egypt and Sudan, to formative mentors who pushed him to think bigger, to the failures that taught him resilience, Dr. Hanna reflects on the values that shaped his career and the cause that defines it today: ending the stigma and suffering of lung cancer. We explore his philosophy on education, failure, advocacy, and why no patient deserves blame for their disease. A candid, deeply human look at the intersections of medicine, compassion, and public health.