FOR SUPPORT,
D’AGOSTINO
RECOMMENDS
THESE GROUPS
Share Cancer Support
For women with breast or ovarian
cancer • sharecancersupport.org
Living Beyond Breast Cancer
Programs and services to help people
whose lives have been impacted by
breast cancer • lbbc.org
Cancer Care
Free professional support services
• cancercare.org
Breast Cancer Research Foundation
Promoting research to prevent and
cure breast cancer • bcrf.org
Metastatic Breast Cancer Alliance
Help in finding the right resources
and treatments • mbcalliance.org
The National Cancer Institute
The nation’s leader in cancer
research • cancer.gov
Metastatic Breast Cancer Awareness,
Research and Support
metavivor.org
A SENATOR’S SUPPORT Sen. Cory Booker meets with D’Agostino to hear her story of how
the Affordable Care Act helped her receive medical care.
her brain, and enlarged lymph nodes
in her abdomen. “It’s like a game of
whack-a-mole,” she says. “But that’s
metastatic breast cancer, and there’s
no cure for it.”
FACING SURGERY
With her new focus on the can-
cer in her brain, D’Agostino started
looking for a neuro-oncologist.
On July 31, she had gamma knife
surgery, during which precision
radiation was directed at her brain
tumors, at CINJ. Her treatment
options expanded when, after
two and a half years of living on
Medicaid with a disability, she was
allowed to switch to Medicare,
and could see doctors outside of
New Jersey.
Today, she sees Dr. Kevin
Kalinsky, a breast oncologist at
NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital/
Columbia University Medical
Center who uses tumor genomics to
research new breast cancer therapies
for the National Cancer Institute. He
is looking for a drug trial that treats
one of her breast cancer mutations,
and has put her on a drug called
Xeloda, which she takes one week
on, one week off. In mid-September,
her tumor markers were going down.
“I’ll stay on it indefinitely, until
I can’t stand it anymore, or tumors
start growing,” she says. “Or there’s
another trial I want to get on.”
Reflecting on how she manages to
keep going, she credits the example
of her resilient parents and the expe-
riences of others she’s met in sup-
port groups. “And,” she adds, “I’m a
Scorpio, southern Italian and a Jersey
girl — maybe that has something to
do with it?” ■
Are You Dense?
A resource for women with dense
breast tissue • areyoudense.org
Cancer Support Community
Central New Jersey
Providing psychosocial support services
to address the emotional and social
effects of cancer • cancersupportcnj.org
Meal Train
Helps friends and family organize
meals • mealtrain.com
HELP FINDING
CLINICAL TRIALS
Clinicaltrials.gov
A database of privately and publicly-
funded clinical studies around the world
Driver.xyz
A platform that connects cancer
patients to treatments and research
worldwide
SmartBridge Health ($399)
A highly-qualified cancer doctor will
research clinical trials best suited to you
and provide a summary of treatment
options
MONTCLAIR MAGAZINE FALL 2018
43