PYNK: Young Women With Breast Cancer

A breast cancer diagnosis can affect every part of a young woman’s life: her body, her energy, her mental health, her emotions, her relationships, her fertility and more.

Although women aged 40 and younger make up less than 10 per cent of all breast cancer patients, they have unique needs.

Studies show younger women:

• May require different management due to differences in the tumour’s biology and the woman’s stage of life. A few examples are: the greater likelihood of a genetic cause of the breast cancer, treatment-related infertility, and early menopause.
• Are at greater risk of psychological distress due to: coping with fragile early relationships or fear of new relationships, struggling to care for young children and explain the diagnosis and treatment to them without scaring them, emerging careers, social isolation from healthy peers, fewer financial resources, and more body image issues.

The patients in PYNK and their families receive a continuum of care from the time of referral (which is often right after their diagnosis) through treatment and follow-up. The needs of each woman and her family are assessed by the PYNK Physician Assistant who helps navigate patients through the process of treatment and recovery. Working together with the rest of the oncology team, the PYNK Physician Assistant connects each patient with the appropriate specialists (eg. fertility expert, genetic counsellor, plastic surgeon) supports (individual and group) and resources (e.g. information about nutrition, exercise, and wigs, age-appropriate books for children, etc.).

• Ellen Warner, Director and Medical Oncologist
• Sandy Vuong, Physician Assistant and Navigator
• Brooke MacDonald, Social Worker
• Kasia Jerzak, Medical Oncologist
• Karen Fergus, Clinical Psychologist
• Yonina Juni, Coordinator and Research Assistant
• Alexandra Landsberg, Patient Partner
• Shelley McGirr, Patient Partner
• Rea Lawee, Patient Partner

Learn more about the team

• Sonia
• Claudia