Alique Topalian, Research Scientist- Survivorship and Supportive Services at the University of Cincinnati Cancer Center, shared a post on LinkedIn by Stupid Cancer, adding:
“Such a special panel I was honored to moderate. Thankful to share Natasha’s beautiful words with so many survivors! These truly are the highs and lows of AYA friendship. Grateful to share this conversation with such powerful humans. Such a powerful conversation!”
Quoting Stupid Cancer’s post below:
“At CancerCon 2025 we hosted a panel on the highs & lows of AYA friendships. Tackling the tough topics of navigating loss, ghosting, and embracing a new community.
This panel was inspired by a conversation our team had with Natasha Allen, an outspoken advocate for AYA cancer and Synovial Sarcoma awareness. Earlier this year our team chatted with her about losing old friends and gaining new friends after her diagnosis. She spoke so powerfully about this complicated experience that resonates heavily with the AYA cancer community, and we invited her to be a featured panelist speaker for this keynote session.
Natasha wasn’t able to attend CancerCon due to progression of her illness, and she passed away on August 22. We’re so grateful that we were able to share her story through recorded video interviews with Drea Cornejo for The Washington Post.
We are honored to be able to share her words with you now. We know that her advocacy will inspire countless others to speak up and use their voice in the AYA cancer community.
Thank you so much to our board member Alique Topalian, PhD, MPH for leading this conversation and our other panelists David Llano and Drea for sharing your experiences with us.
You can watch the entire panel conversation here.”
More posts featuring Alique Topalian.