Living with Cancer

In this episode, Dr Belinda Wagner sits down with Moira Keymer, whose cancer journey began 23 years ago with a breast cancer diagnosis that would not only challenge her physically, but reshape her understanding of health, faith and personal responsibility. Moira speaks about her experience through a deeply personal lens, describing her diagnosis as a calling from God, a test of faith that required her to confront fear, uncertainty and the unknown. Rather than allowing the experience to define her negatively, she chose to engage with it with intention and belief.What makes her story particularly powerful is what unfolded alongside her cancer diagnosis. Through the process, she uncovered an underlying autoimmune condition, something that may have remained undetected without that moment of intervention. For Moira, this became part of a broader realisation that sometimes the most difficult experiences can reveal what needs attention in our lives.A central theme in this conversation is the importance of early detection and timely diagnosis. Moira speaks candidly about how critical it is to act early, to pay attention to your body, and not to delay seeking medical advice. Her message is clear, awareness is not optional, it is essential.She also highlights the importance of trusting healthcare providers while remaining actively engaged in your own care. This is not about passive acceptance, but about informed partnership. Moira encourages patients and families to ask questions, seek clarity, and take the time to understand their condition.Research and communication are recurring threads throughout the discussion. She emphasises that no one should feel intimidated to speak up, whether it is asking for a second opinion, discussing treatment options, or simply reaching out for support. Silence, she suggests, can often be more harmful than the diagnosis itself.This episode is not only about surviving cancer. It is about perspective, faith, and the responsibility we carry in our own health journeys. Moira’s story is a reminder that knowledge, communication and early action can fundamentally change outcomes, and that even in life’s most difficult moments, there is an opportunity for deeper understanding and growth.

In this episode of What Cancer Reveals, the focus shifts to the decisions cancer forces people to make, long after treatment ends.Jason, a busy executive known for his discipline, privacy and active lifestyle, steps into a space of vulnerability rarely seen inleadership contexts. In this conversation, he shares his experience of navigating prostate cancer and the complex, often unspoken decisions that followed.While treatment is often positioned as the defining moment in a cancer journey, Jason reveals that some of the hardest decisions come afterwards. Decisions that carry weight, permanence and uncertainty. Decisions about work, identity, relationships and what life looks like moving forward.He reflects on how much of this process had to be figured out alone, with limited guidance and no clear roadmap. The choices he faced were not always clinical, but deeply personal, shaped by fear, fatigue and the pressure to return to normal.Through his story, this episode explores the reality that survivorship is not a clean endpoint. It is a space filled with ongoing decisions, many of which feel irreversible at the time they are made. Jason also challenges a common misconception. That once treatment is complete, the journey is over. Instead, he highlights the quiet complexity of what comes next and the support that is often missing when patients need it most.This episode reveals that cancer is not only about survival. It is about the choices that define how life continues afterwards.

Friendships and family relationships are often deeply affected by a cancer diagnosis. In this episode, Tamlyn Wessels shares her personal journey from discovering a lump to facing aggressive triple negative breast cancer while simultaneously preparing to say goodbye to her terminally ill father. Through chemotherapy, major surgery, radiation, and profound grief, she reflects on the friendships that faded, the bonds that strengthened, and the boundaries she had to learn to protect her healing. This honest conversation explores abandonment, resilience, meaningful support, and what survivors truly need from those around them. It is a powerful reminder that cancer does not only test the body, it reveals the true depth of human connection.

This is not a story about diagnosis.It is about what it takes to keep living while cancer becomes part of your everyday life.In his second conversation on Beyond the Diagnosis, Oscar Chalupsky speaks candidly about treatment, identity, leadership and the cost and power of staying visible.This is a conversation for anyone asking what now after the shock has passed.Watch the full episode and be reminded that living with cancer does not mean disappearing.

In this episode of Beyond the Diagnosis, we sit down with Julianne Yates, a psychologist dedicated to supporting cancer patients, their families, and friends throughout their journey. Julianne provides both home visits and virtual sessions, ensuring that patients have access to the emotional and psychological support they need, no matter where they are.Our conversation explores the importance of open communication and honesty when facing a cancer diagnosis, as well as how therapy can be a powerful tool for healing both during and after treatment. Julianne shares insights into the unique emotional challenges cancer patients face, the cycle of grief, and how therapy can help navigate the complex emotions of fear, uncertainty, and hope.Every cancer journey is different, and there is no one-size-fits-all approach to healing. Whether it’s processing trauma, managing anxiety around scans, or supporting families through difficult moments, Julianne highlights the value of tailored psychological support.Tune in for a compassionate and insightful conversation on the role of therapy in the cancer journey and why emotional well-being is just as important as physical recovery.

In this episode of the Beyond Diagnosis podcast, Dr Belinda Wagner speaks with Lisha Nunan, a papillary carcinoma survivor whose story offers a meaningful look at how cancer reshapes the way we see, feel and inhabit our own bodies. Diagnosed at the age of twenty-five while living abroad, Lisha returned to South Africa for a thyroidectomy and radioactive therapy before heading back to London to rebuild her life. What followed was far more complex than she expected. Healing was slow, her body felt unfamiliar, and an injury ultimately led her back home to start again with a completely different lens.Today, fifteen years later, Lisha is the founder of Shira Wellness and a certified Sri Sri Yoga Teacher and Art of Living Trainer. She brings together her background in corporate finance and FMCG operations with a deeply grounded approach to holistic wellbeing, transformation coaching and breathwork. Her story is layered, honest and anchored in the emotional and physical realities many survivors face long after treatment ends.In our conversation, Lisha speaks openly about body betrayal, long-term fatigue, chronic discomfort and the quiet emotional toll survivors often carry. She shares practical ways to reconnect with the body through breathing, meditation, movement and mental discipline. She also highlights why healing is not only about nutrition, routine or fitness, but about strengthening the mind and using breath to release emotional toxins and rebuild trust in the body.This episode explores self-image, societal expectations, recovery, resilience and what it truly takes to live fully in a body forever changed by cancer

In this deeply personal episode of Beyond the Diagnosis, Dr Belinda Wagner speaks with Machuene Sejeng, a cancer warrior diagnosed in 2023 with invasive ductal carcinoma stage 3 breast cancer, both oestrogen and progesterone receptor positive.Machuene opens up about the often unspoken physical and emotional challenges that come with a cancer diagnosis particularly how the disease and its treatment impact body image, identity, fatigue, and chronic pain. She shares her experience of navigating drastic changes to her body and how these shifts affected her sense of self, strength, and femininity.Together, Dr Wagner and Machuene explore the emotional weight of feeling betrayed by your own body, and the mental resilience it takes to continue showing up in a body that feels unfamiliar. This conversation is a powerful reminder that healing is not just physical—it is emotional, psychological, and deeply personal.Tune in for a raw, honest, and empowering conversation that sheds light on the lived reality of cancer survivors.

Welcome to today’s episode, where we bring you an incredibly moving and inspiring story. Joining us is Lydia Staats, a 46-year-old wife and mother of two daughters, who has faced a battle few can imagine. Diagnosed with stage 3 breast cancer in February 2022, Lydia’s journey has been one of incredible courage, resilience, and faith. From enduring multiple rounds of chemotherapy, a mastectomy, and radiation delays due to systemic backlogs at Charlotte Maxeke Hospital, Lydia faced a recurrence in May 2023. Despite the setback, she underwent another round of intensive treatment and surgery, emerging stronger than ever. But Lydia’s story is more than just a personal battle—it’s a fight for thousands of cancer patients left waiting for critical care. As a voice for these patients, Lydia is actively involved in a court case against the Gauteng Department of Health, challenging the ongoing radiation crisis. Today, Lydia shares her journey, her unwavering faith, and her passion for helping other breast cancer patients stay positive and keep fighting. Her story is one of hope, perseverance, and advocacy. We are honoured to have her with us, and we know her story will inspire and uplift you. So, sit back and listen to Lydia Staats’ powerful testimony of strength, survival, and purpose.