The Edith Morley Lecture 2023 delivered by Professor Nazanin Derakhshan provided a powerful message regarding the problems and struggles faced by those diagnosed with breast cancer, whilst highlighting the important work led by Naz and others at the Building Resilence in Breast Cancer (BRiC) Centre.
In the initial part of the lecture, titled 'Coping with Cancer: Support, Research, Empowerment.', Professor Derakhshan highlighted the significant physical and social costs of a breast cancer diagnosis, relating changes in behaviour such as mood and fatigue, to changes in the ability to work and to provide support for a family. She then discussed the biological basis for these changes, explaining how her research using EEG and other imaging methods has led to the identification and successful treatment of symptoms such as rumination and anxiety. Also present throughout the lecture were personal anecdotes from members of the BRiC community, including those from staff present at the lecture, demonstrating the strong support provided by the BRiC.
The lecture itself was followed by an interactive Q&A session, where Professor Derakhshan responded to queries from the audience, discussing limitations of the current cancer diagnosis and support systems.
The Edith Morley Lecture 2023 was a resounding success, and our thanks go out to the University, the BRiC centre and to Professor Derakhshan for organising and delivering the event.
(Image used with permission from Darius Widera)