MOLLY MACDONALD, CEO, THE PINK FUND: Breast Cancer, Divorce & Starting Over

Welcome to MENO™ with Jacqueline Buckingham, the definitive destination for perimenopause, menopause, and everything on The Pause Spectrum™. It's Breast Cancer Awareness Month, and my guest is the Co-Founder and CEO of The Pink Fund! Molly MacDonald is heroic. She was diagnosed with breast cancer on the brink of a divorce with 5 kids under the age of 13. She experienced the financial hardship that can often come hand-in-hand with the disease and found herself in line at the food bank and about to lose her home. She didn't crumble, and she didn't even ask herself "Why Me?" She saw a serious problem and asked herself "What can I do?" A year later, The Pink Fund was born. 1 out of every 8 women will be diagnosed with breast cancer and most will face the financial hardship that cancer causes which is how to pay for your home, car, insurance, food, and electricity while undergoing treatment which often has women forced to lose their jobs and income. Molly learned that many of these women were opting to keep their jobs so they could keep the lights on and the kids fed instead of getting treatment. Now The Pink Fund helps women who qualify pay their essential bills for 90 to 180 days. She started The Pink Fund with her husband whom she calls Tom Terrific! He saw her vision and now The Pink Fund has paid 7.4 million dollars to women in need. Molly's personal stories are not just heroic and harrowing though, she is also hilarious and tells us about forgetting her prosthetic breast on a business trip taking advice from a stranger on a plane and how she and her friends made a cast of her bust out of dental stone that she cured on a home foot spa. She named it my "My Winged Victory" and I have encouraged her to put it on permanent display! She also tells us how we can help women with breast cancer and how you can help yourself if you are facing breast cancer right now. In the episode we talk about financial toxicity, what it is, and how to avoid it. We discuss breast reconstruction, Molly's article DIEPly Distrubred about the DIEP flap reconstruction procedure not being covered by insurance, and how most women don't know that they have options when it comes to reconstruction. She gives us practical advice on how to advocate for yourself if you have breast cancer and how you can help those you love by advocating for them. She shares actionable wisdom that you don't want to miss. RESOURCES: For more information on The Pink Fund, go to www.thepinkfund.org Get early access to MENO™ Verified Providers, Products, and Procedures, and start Pause Planning™at ⁠joinmeno.com⁠  Pausing or not. Start here.  IG ⁠@join.meno⁠ TT ⁠@join.meno ⁠ YT ⁠@join.meno⁠ For Status Updates, MENO™ Motivation, and Provider exclusives: IG ⁠@jacquelinebuckingham⁠ LI ⁠@jacquelinebuckingham⁠ Welcome to MENO. You have arrived. ----- Jacqueline  Disclaimer:  MENO™ with Jacqueline Buckingham is for general and entertainment purposes only and does not constitute the practice of medicine in any way.  The show does not constitute professional health care services or medical advice. No doctor/patient relationship is formed as a result of this podcast. The use of information on this podcast or materials from this podcast is at the user's own risk. The content of MENO™ is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Users should not disregard getting medical advice for any such medical condition they may have and should seek the assistance of their healthcare professionals for any conditions. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices