One of our neighbors, Dr. Bob Rodvien, is creating a series of podcasts to help people living with cancer, or have friends or family living with cancer, to cope with the situation. These podcasts are free and Bob is doing this, in part, in memory of his wife, Reyna, who passed away from cancer in 2006 after a long illness. Bob is an oncologist at California Pacific Medical Center and a long-time resident of Bayside Acres. Below is his letter regarding his project for your information. I hope you find it useful.

Hi,

Podcasts are one of many FREE audio programs available to everyone, anywhere. They're growing in numbers and in popularity because people can listen to a podcast anytime they want on the Internet. You can download podcasts on any computer; you don't need an iPod. But, If you have an iPod or listen to music on your computer, you may be familiar with iTunes and the iTunes Store. These sites on the Internet provide the widest and best selection of podcast content...for free. When you get a subscription to a podcast, new episodes will automatically download to your computer as they become available, whether they're daily, weekly, or less frequently. The subscriptions can be free also.

With that as background, you can understand why I’m involved in creating podcasts to help people with cancer. The conversations are designed to allay the anxiety of people with cancer, their friends and their family. Greene Creative Services has launched a podcast network -- http://www.smarterpodcasts.com one of which is called "SMARTER CANCER CARE". Because I think you might be interested, and because the only way for us to eventually retain a sponsor for these shows is to first develop an audience, I invite you to check us out. Go to http://www.smarterpodcasts.com and then click on "SMARTER CANCER CARE". If you like what you hear, please subscribe ---it is FREE --- and let us know by sending me an email (see below), or click on the contact button on the podcast page of the website. If you're already familiar with the iTunes Store, another option is to go there, click on Podcasts, and then search for our podcasts by title. Either way takes you to the same site.

"Smarter Cancer Care" consists of informal conversations designed for people dealing with cancer, their family members and friends. In each episode, Joanne Greene and I focus on a different aspect of living with cancer. What can you expect when you first hear you have cancer? What is cancer? How can you get the most from medical appointments? When should you get a second opinion? How can a patient prepare for their appointments? How can you tell your friends and family about your diagnosis? What can you expect from these individuals in return when they first hear you have cancer? These and other questions are important and rarely, if ever, does the oncologist have time to explore the answers.

Thanks, in advance, for taking the time to read this email and for taking even more time to check out SmarterPodcasts.com. I look forward to hearing your honest feedback.

Once the podcasts can be produced efficiently, my next personal goal is to expand my activities in Rayna’s memory. I have taken the first steps to set up a series of meetings at California Pacific Medical Center to expose health care professionals to state of the art information about the various women’s cancers. These conferences will take place once or twice a year. Two to three speakers will be invited each time for a period of four days. I will not be setting up these conferences without precedent; there is a similar program in cardiac diseases that has been extremely successful. It is a template for what I want to do. The goal will be to merge the latest research findings with everyday patterns of practice in people with gynecologic or breast cancer. Hopefully, the conference will be copied in other cities. There is a real need for this type of educational format. Each conference will require about $ 80,000. My hope and intent is to endow the program.

Let me know what you think of the podcasts and of my intention to create conferences for physicians treating women with cancer. If you want to donate to these programs, the contact data is:
RRR Memorial Fund
California Pacific Medical Foundation
1255 Post Street
Suite 700
San Francisco CA 94109

Take care,
Bob Rodvien
rrodvien@yahoo.com