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I'm Dr.

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Rob Winn and you're listening
to Real Cancer Talk

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from VCU Massey
Comprehensive Cancer Center.

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Welcome to Community Conversations
locally in Virginia.

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Nationally.

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And I mean globally too.

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Live from Uganda with the Black Health
Wins podcast.

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My guest is Doctor Robert Winn, director

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of the VCU Massey
Comprehensive Cancer Center.

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Doctor Winn, how are you?

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You know what?

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I’m feeling good.

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And I mean that all the way around.

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I mean, it is good to be in Uganda and

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but is it good to be always
reminded of home with you, Sis.

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Thank you for... Yes.
Thank you for doing that.

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Thank you
for always representing the community.

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That's right. In the motherland.

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Joining us today.

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One team, one fight. Massey.

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And we also have a special guest
on this show.

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She is Mary Simmons,
a Massey Cancer Champion.

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And I watched her story.

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It is amazing.

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She was diagnosed with cancer
in April of 2022.

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She's going to share that story with us.

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Now locally, nationally and globally

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right here on this Black Health
Wins podcast with Doctor Robert Winn.

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We're going to dispel
the myths about clinical trials

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because we got the information
upfront, close and personal.

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Right, Doctor Winn?

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Absolutely, and part of my being in
Uganda

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is the awareness and,
for example, in Africa.

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They have some of the worst
outcomes from cancers.

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And it turns out it's
not because they don't have doctors.

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But what happens, it turns out,

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is that there are not enough doctors
who are skilled or trained.

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I would say not skilled,
trained in clinical trials.

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So when you look at the United States
since 1991,

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34% fewer people are dying from cancer.

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In 2024 than in 1991.

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It result, because,
you know, more people are going to the gym

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drinking carrot juice and eating kale.

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It's because we have screening,
we have prevention,

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but in large part it's
because we have clinical trials.

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I keep saying the people
that clinical trials these days,

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unlike in the 1970s,
we seen something about hope.

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It's hope that it's going to work for you
when you get the trials.

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But it's hope
that even if it doesn't work for you,

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it's going to work
for somebody else in the future.

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But the days of just being completely
experimental are gone.

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When I think of clinical trials today
in 2025, yeah, it's the standard of care.

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So when you reach the end of the standard
and all the chemo and stuff not working

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the standard is to offer trials and
we're doing that in Virginia, VCU Massey

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and we're doing that
globally at this point because, you know,

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all lives actually matter.

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And so it's been pretty cool to sort of
see that in rural areas

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and even in Africa, that they are paying
attention, understanding

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that clinical trials aren’t so much
an experiment, as an extension of care.

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More than an experiment, an extension
of care that was a powerful statement.

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Doctor Robert Winn, and I'm
so glad you're traveling internationally

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to carry this word of one team,
one fight from VCU Massey.

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And that's why it's so important
to have a show like this, the Black Health

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Wins podcast internationally so we can
deliver the word, we can show the word.

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And now your clinical trials,
we have it up close, live and personal.

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Mary Simmons I introduced her earlier.

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She is a Massey Cancer Champion.

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She was diagnosed in April of 2022
with acute lymphoma leukemia.

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Now, Mary, take us on that journey
because you only had about

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two weeks to live
when you went to the emergency room.

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Talk to us. Yes.

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That was heart wrenching.

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I went in for pneumonia,

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and, I was diagnosed.

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They did some X-rays.

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I was diagnosed with ALL,

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and once I got settled,

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I had myself transferred,
as me as a patient,

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I advocated, I transferred myself
to VCU Medical Center, and I refused,

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not for them to not send me there,
so I advocated.

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They got me stabilized.

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I got to VCU like... Oh, what's.

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Hold up, Sis? Hold up?

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She refused.

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You just said, oh, I’m taking control.

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That's right.

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Yes, I did, I did.

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I advocated for myself.

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I wanted a second opinion.

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And the best there is is VCU Massey
and many innovative studies.

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Now, Mary, I don't mean to cut across you
because this is so powerful.

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Number one, you were an advocate
for yourself as Doctor Winn did mention,

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but you had you were diagnosed
with lymphoma, leukemia,

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and they told you, go home,
get your house in order with your family

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because after two weeks your life is up.

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Literally, right?

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Yes, yes, yes.

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And you wouldn't accept death. You

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know, I did not accept it.

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I wanted a second opinion, I refused to,

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so when I got to VCU Medical Center,
I got my X-rays, my scans.

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They said, okay, it looks peaky.

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But we can fight if you willing,
to put in your head to fight.

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I say yes, because I refuse to say no.

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So I was introduced to clinical trials
at that time.

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Went over it.

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My doctor, Doctor
Keri Maher, went over it with me.

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She got in detail with me
and she asked if I had any questions.

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I said, I've read it.

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I'm good to go.

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You explain my concerns.

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Let's get it started.

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Clinical trial is groundbreaking.

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So in other words,
you're saying you take me to VCU Massey

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Comprehensive Cancer Center,
and I'm going to head on over

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to the clinical trials office,
and we're going to make this thing work.

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She informed me that it would get ugly
before it gets better.

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And are you willing to fight?

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I said, Sis, I got my boxing gloves on.

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I must do it is because here at
mass is one team, one fight.

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Let's do it.

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And I did.

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Sister Mary, Sister Mary. Yes. Yeah.

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You can’t see the smile I got on my face,
but I'm, get a little MC Hammer on you.

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I’m gonna get a little MC Hammer on you.

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That’s too legit to quit, girl.

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Oh my goodness.

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You participated in that clinical trial.

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Now for black and brown people
and people as a whole.

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We can't fix certain things.

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If you don't be a part
of a clinical trial.

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You had less than two weeks to live.

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You go when you thought you had pneumonia
and they are telling

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you get your fears in order
because you're going to be out.

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What are you talking about?

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It's like I said,
I've been going to the bathroom

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and I was trying to figure out,
are you not in a coma?

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What's going on?

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You're awake.

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You know what the day is?
I said, sure, I do.

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And it was like,
because my hemoglobin was so low,

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my body had kind of like, empty out
and at that time.

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When I started the clinical trial,
I actually was bleeding.

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And so the clinical trial
reduced the bleeding.

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But after two weeks
it started to turn in my favor.

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And that's God's blessing. Yeah.

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Mary, thank you so much for joining us
because I'm

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pretty sure someone is going through
something may be similar

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or you just know
something is going on in your body.

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And the first step is
you went to the emergency room

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and you were like, look, I'm not done.

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I am not leaving this earth yet.

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I'm going over to Massey,
VCU Massey clinical trials.

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We're going to take a break
and come on back.

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There is more. We got to talk.

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Stay where you are.

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This is Community Conversations,
the Black Health Wins podcast.

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You've been staying right there, right?

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Welcome back to Community Conversations
the Black Health Wins podcast.

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Oh, I love this show.

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Doctor
Robert Winn is joining me on the show.

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He is director of the VCU Massey
Comprehensive Cancer Center.

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Now, you know we do this for the world.

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He's presently in Uganda
doing this show live.

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One team, one fight globally with VCU
Massey Comprehensive Cancer Center.

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Doctor Robert Winn, welcome back.

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Yeah, it's good to be here.

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Good to be with you.

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And I'm at the University of Makerere,
which is one of the oldest universities

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within Africa and in Uganda,
and considered to be one of the best

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universities in all of Africa.

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I'm here, in Uganda.

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And what we are talking about the show
today is interesting

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because we're talking about
how we are going to need

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and how essentially not with our Africa
in Uganda,

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to actually see the value
in clinical trials

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in improving the lives of Africans
and Ugandans,

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because they see, clinical trials
as not so much of an experiment

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these days as an extension of care.

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I was actually going to ask Sister
Mary, you know,

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you know,
when you were thinking about this,

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because you know, this
how we grew up thinking about trials,

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they’re experimenting on us
and all of us, this stuff.

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How did you know?

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What was your first experience
in the context of understanding that,

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you know, trials weren't so much

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an experiment that they were a potential
offering of hope and information?

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Well, when I first heard
about clinical trials and just listening

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about, you know, research,
how was that prepares.

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My first thing is I said,
am I'm a guinea pig?

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Are they experimenting on me?
What's going to happen?

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I might have a third ear or three eyes
or what's going on.

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And but as my doctor
made me aware of clinical trials

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and they, is very innovative
and extension.

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So I had to educate myself
on clinical trials.

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She was able to explain it
so that I can understand it.

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And actually,

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clinical trial is a study of ways
to prevent and find and treat the disease.

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You have to have the mindset
to not to give up in the fight

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and communicate with your physician
about how you’re

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feeling and what works for you
if there's too much.

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When you gave me this
dose, is this too much?

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Is this working for me? How am I feeling?

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So each step of the way

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I was educated and knowledgeable
about each phase of my treatment plan.

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It has changed
from what other people used to talk.

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So that's hearsay.

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That's mythical.

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This is a now and it's groundbreaking.

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Groundbreaking.

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And I hear you talking.

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Yeah, It is groundbreaking. Your courage.

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And I know this courage, and I'm familiar
with this courage.

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And it only comes from God.

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Now, a lot of times when people are saying
God at the forefront,

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and then some people would say, well,
how would

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why would this happen to me
if God loved me?

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And people ever said
something like that to you before?

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Yes, because I said
that God said I was a special soldier.

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He wanted to make groundbreaking news
with me.

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I had a story,
and my story is to get it out there

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so that people can understand
and to save lives.

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And especially with VCU Massey on my side,
they never failed me.

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The staff there.

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They were a family away from my home

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down to the nursing, housekeeping,
anything that I needed.

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They made me comfortable.

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They didn't talk at me.
Oh girl, you can do it.

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Each person made it felt like home. Yes.

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That is I wasn't on vacation while away.

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That team was just a family away from home
and they were very knowledgeable

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about my care.

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Well, we are about to do this phase,
miss Simmons.

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How you feeling?

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You know,
what can I do to make it comfortable?

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Each step was just,

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It's just extraordinary.

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I never had that type of experience
besides having my kids,

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and I didn't get treatment like that.

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Wow.

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From it. Yes, I thank you. Yeah.

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When I think about VCU Massey
Comprehensive Cancer Center

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or just all of the offices and departments
of dealing with cancer to

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to cure it,
okay. Prevention and treatment.

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When I was afraid and Doctor Winn,
I always go back and I share this.

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We started the show a few years ago
and there was a doctor who was misreading

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mammograms, and Doctor
Winn said, Clo, just going over to Massey.

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I said, I'm scared,
he said girl, get on over to Massey.

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I go over to Massey. And I was like,
oh, I know.

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They were like, I understand.

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They were so attentive to your care.

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They didn't look at you
as, and Doctor Winn, a lot of times

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when it comes to women
or women who have bore children, people

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automatically think that we can take pain.

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Oh, well, you know, that's

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been a problem with us for literally 2016.

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Remember that study
that came out in that UVA?

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I get asked a bunch of medical students,

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do black and white
people feel pain differently?

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And the answer has always been
since the old times, since the 1600s.

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Right, that we can tolerate pain.

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You know, the reality

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is that when it comes to the anatomy,
that's probably not true.

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But the perception

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that as African-Americans
and African-American women in particular,

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that you can go without anesthesia
because y’all don't feel pain

00;13;23;09 - 00;13;25;22
the same way, has never been true.

00;13;25;22 - 00;13;27;21
And so I say that one of the things
we've done

00;13;27;21 - 00;13;31;25
as African-Americans, we've become super
adaptive to pain, is that

00;13;31;25 - 00;13;36;17
we have convinced ourselves that, yeah,
we should be in pain, but that's not true.

00;13;36;22 - 00;13;38;24
We we feel pain just like everybody else.

00;13;38;24 - 00;13;41;28
And I'm actually going to say to you, 
Sister Clo,

00;13;41;28 - 00;13;46;04
I am so grateful for this show
because you're given an opportunity.

00;13;46;04 - 00;13;48;20
What you just talked about
when you two were just talking about.

00;13;48;20 - 00;13;52;04
Yeah, they tell you that
even if someone's on a clinical trial

00;13;52;04 - 00;13;57;03
and you don't get the experimental drugs,
you outcomes are still better. Why?

00;13;57;09 - 00;14;00;08
Because you're getting an even better
standard of care.

00;14;00;08 - 00;14;03;04
So when people enter clinical trials,
they say to themselves, well,

00;14;03;04 - 00;14;04;24
if I don't get the experimental drug,

00;14;04;24 - 00;14;07;24
then it ain't gonna go any
nothing good for me, in this whole deal.

00;14;08;00 - 00;14;09;16
That’s not true.

00;14;09;16 - 00;14;13;08
The literature will say that even
if you’re in a trial because you getting

00;14;13;08 - 00;14;16;12
more attention, more eyes on you
for all the rest of that stuff.

00;14;16;18 - 00;14;18;14
Even if you don't get the drug,

00;14;19;25 - 00;14;22;24
the reality
is your outcomes tend to be better.

00;14;22;24 - 00;14;25;24
And by the way, when they figure out
that the drug is working,

00;14;26;01 - 00;14;27;22
you get right on that truck.

00;14;27;22 - 00;14;30;20
So there's no new downside, actually.

00;14;30;20 - 00;14;33;15
But being part of a clinical trial
rather than what's in our mind,

00;14;33;15 - 00;14;36;07
just like when people think
we don't feel pain like other people,

00;14;36;07 - 00;14;39;19
which is actually been factually proven
not to be true.

00;14;40;29 - 00;14;45;08
And I think sometimes in our lives, Doctor
Winn, when we walk around with pain,

00;14;45;16 - 00;14;49;26
it's almost in some instances I can't say
that today it was like a badge of honor.

00;14;49;27 - 00;14;51;06
Oh yeah, it hurt.

00;14;51;06 - 00;14;54;10
But I'm good, I'm good I don't,
I don't take meds.

00;14;54;15 - 00;14;56;07
I don't do those things.

00;14;56;07 - 00;14;57;06
But guess what?

00;14;57;06 - 00;14;58;22
It gets into your psyche.

00;14;58;22 - 00;15;00;07
It messes with your mental health.

00;15;00;07 - 00;15;01;25
People don't believe that.

00;15;01;25 - 00;15;02;14
Come on.

00;15;02;14 - 00;15;04;17
And not only a mess of your mental health.

00;15;04;17 - 00;15;07;12
Because you’re having pain,
you haven’t accomplished the other things.

00;15;07;12 - 00;15;08;29
So that whole thing about

00;15;08;29 - 00;15;11;29
testing it out and being pain
and all of us that we don't feel.

00;15;12;13 - 00;15;15;12
That's
actually the more psychological than it is

00;15;15;12 - 00;15;18;05
actually physiological
because it's not true.

00;15;18;05 - 00;15;18;20
Okay.

00;15;18;20 - 00;15;20;24
Well thank you so much for clearing that.

00;15;20;24 - 00;15;24;01
So you we don't have to you know,
we don't have to stop being super

00;15;24;01 - 00;15;25;05
adaptive to pain, entirely.

00;15;25;05 - 00;15;28;04
We don't have to get over that
at some point. Yeah.

00;15;28;04 - 00;15;29;20
Doctor Winn. This is so good.

00;15;29;20 - 00;15;31;07
Thank you for all of you.

00;15;31;07 - 00;15;34;21
Do you take us right into the lab
when you're back here

00;15;35;02 - 00;15;39;04
in the United States of America, and now
we're talking about clinical trials.

00;15;39;04 - 00;15;42;10
Clinical trials
were something that you hear like

00;15;42;10 - 00;15;45;16
in an information
session and clinical trials.

00;15;45;16 - 00;15;47;20
And it was a breeze over,
oh, clinical trials.

00;15;47;20 - 00;15;48;29
That's not me.

00;15;48;29 - 00;15;50;29
But now
we're talking about clinical trials.

00;15;50;29 - 00;15;54;02
We have someone whose life was saved

00;15;54;02 - 00;15;57;02
by clinical trials who says, look,

00;15;57;12 - 00;16;01;09
if something is not right,
I don't care what they tell you.

00;16;01;13 - 00;16;03;24
I don't care if they told you 24 hours.

00;16;03;24 - 00;16;04;26
Right? Mary?

00;16;04;26 - 00;16;07;17
Yes. Go with clinical trials.

00;16;07;17 - 00;16;09;09
Go with clinical trials.

00;16;09;09 - 00;16;10;12
And now we hear it from you.

00;16;10;12 - 00;16;14;09
And you didn't feel like it was a
guinea pig, or you were an experiment

00;16;14;14 - 00;16;17;14
because they were communicating with you
the entire time.

00;16;17;19 - 00;16;21;24
Now, if Mary, when you were having
or you were feeling uncomfortable

00;16;22;19 - 00;16;27;13
at some point during the actual treatment,
you talked to the doctor

00;16;27;13 - 00;16;30;24
and you tell that doctor like,
this is giving me a slight headache.

00;16;31;03 - 00;16;34;11
So what they're going to do is go in
and start adjusting, right?

00;16;35;00 - 00;16;39;03
Yes, they will go in and adjust
and I say communication is very effective

00;16;39;03 - 00;16;43;03
in your treatment plan
because I generalized the whole time.

00;16;43;03 - 00;16;46;03
My whole time, three years of treatment.

00;16;46;19 - 00;16;48;13
Generalized what worked for me.

00;16;48;13 - 00;16;50;24
And my doctor
was able to make the adjustment.

00;16;50;24 - 00;16;54;23
It made me comfortable and I was able
to be successful in my journey.

00;16;55;12 - 00;16;57;12
So I'm actually cancer free.

00;16;57;12 - 00;16;59;24
Well, say it again. Say it again.

00;16;59;24 - 00;17;01;28
I am cancer free.

00;17;01;28 - 00;17;05;03
And she is a Massey Cancer Champion.

00;17;05;08 - 00;17;08;06
And she's advocating
she's a patient advocate for you.

00;17;08;06 - 00;17;13;01
So for folks who are just joining us
and you have the diagnosis of cancer,

00;17;13;05 - 00;17;16;18
what to do next, whether it's a date,

00;17;16;27 - 00;17;20;20
24 hours, six months to a year,
what is it that you can do?

00;17;20;21 - 00;17;24;14
Please, please go to VCUMassey.org.

00;17;24;21 - 00;17;26;23
That's Massey.org.

00;17;26;23 - 00;17;29;19
Massey.org.

00;17;29;19 - 00;17;31;15
We're going to take another break
and come on back.

00;17;31;15 - 00;17;33;02
We have more good news.

00;17;33;02 - 00;17;38;01
This is Community Conversations
the Black Health Wins podcast.

00;17;38;08 - 00;17;41;08
Welcome back to Community Conversations
the Black Health

00;17;41;08 - 00;17;44;27
Wins podcast locally,
nationally and globally.

00;17;45;02 - 00;17;48;14
Doctor Robert Winn is currently in Uganda.

00;17;48;14 - 00;17;49;00
Right now.

00;17;49;00 - 00;17;50;11
He's over there at the university

00;17;50;11 - 00;17;53;19
and he's talking about clinical trials
and not experiments.

00;17;53;24 - 00;17;55;26
It's a lifestyle now.

00;17;55;26 - 00;17;58;08
And joining me on
the show is Mary Simmons.

00;17;58;08 - 00;18;03;26
She is a Massey Cancer Champion
and she's also a patient advocate.

00;18;03;26 - 00;18;08;05
She shared her story with us
how clinical trials saved her life.

00;18;08;11 - 00;18;13;05
Doctor Robert Winn, we're in a win win
situation, whenever you on the show.

00;18;13;09 - 00;18;15;11
Well you know what though,
I’m triple-winning today.

00;18;15;11 - 00;18;20;05
Because, Sister Mary and you, y'all
bringing it, come on now.. But,

00;18;21;11 - 00;18;22;15
but but you know what?

00;18;22;15 - 00;18;23;29
I was intrigued by what?

00;18;23;29 - 00;18;27;12
You know, Mary, Miss Mary
you said about the trial.

00;18;27;12 - 00;18;31;01
Because when I think about trials,
when you have when you've gone

00;18;31;01 - 00;18;34;25
to every doctor and every doctor tells you
there is no nothing, there's nothing

00;18;34;25 - 00;18;35;22
we can do.

00;18;35;22 - 00;18;39;24
And I'm giving you
all the standard...The reality is, for me,

00;18;39;27 - 00;18;43;21
what your story tells me,
though, is that by being on a trial

00;18;43;21 - 00;18;46;21
in some ways between God
and the trial, you're here.

00;18;46;27 - 00;18;50;09
And so can you tell me,
you know, you know, how did that

00;18;50;09 - 00;18;53;22
I mean, how did that discussion go down
because there's a number of people

00;18;53;22 - 00;18;57;06
who probably, you know, in the country
because people still get I mean, remember,

00;18;57;06 - 00;19;01;29
cancer may not be you think about us, but,
you know, we may not be think about the,

00;19;01;29 - 00;19;05;15
you know, 74% of people in United States
believe they'll never get cancer,

00;19;05;15 - 00;19;06;08
which is crazy.

00;19;06;08 - 00;19;09;25
And when you think of 1 or 2 men and 1
in 3 women getting cancer, United States,

00;19;09;29 - 00;19;10;29
you know, something's wrong.

00;19;10;29 - 00;19;12;28
But we got to educate
people based on that.

00;19;12;28 - 00;19;15;01
But thinking about it
from their perspective,

00;19;15;01 - 00;19;17;22
what was the conversation
that you and your family had?

00;19;17;22 - 00;19;18;02
Yeah.

00;19;18;02 - 00;19;23;01
So you your doctor had that
got you from y'all just experiment on me

00;19;23;01 - 00;19;27;02
a nothing that could be done
to let's at least give this a shot.

00;19;27;02 - 00;19;28;20
How does that work?

00;19;28;20 - 00;19;31;12
And what's left
and what's changed for you?

00;19;31;12 - 00;19;36;02
What changed for me and what worked for me
is when my doctor gave me a prognosis

00;19;36;13 - 00;19;40;12
and I said, well, is there any alternative
because I'm a praying woman?

00;19;40;23 - 00;19;44;17
And so she explained to me, well, there's
some clinical trials that's available.

00;19;44;17 - 00;19;47;02
We found one that meets your criteria.

00;19;47;02 - 00;19;50;12
And she explained it to me
and I was like, I'm in to fight.

00;19;50;21 - 00;19;52;18
I'm willing to take that on.

00;19;52;18 - 00;19;55;24
And she said, well,
it could get ugly before it gets better.

00;19;55;24 - 00;19;58;17
And I said, well,
let me and God handle that.

00;19;58;17 - 00;19;59;03
You, her,

00;19;59;03 - 00;20;03;09
you were about the clinical stuff,
the scientific stuff and lets get at it.

00;20;03;19 - 00;20;06;16
And so I took and forged ahead.

00;20;06;16 - 00;20;11;17
I then I explained to my husband
and my family that it was a 5050 chance,

00;20;11;22 - 00;20;13;10
but I'm not thinking that way.

00;20;13;10 - 00;20;15;08
So I moved that out of my mind.

00;20;15;08 - 00;20;18;11
It was the mentality thing to fight
and to move forward,

00;20;18;18 - 00;20;23;17
because research is so groundbreaking
and very innovative at this time.

00;20;23;23 - 00;20;27;09
So my thing was
I gambled on the clinical trial.

00;20;27;22 - 00;20;29;26
I knew once it was explained to me.

00;20;29;26 - 00;20;33;14
I educated myself on it,
understood the side effects

00;20;33;14 - 00;20;35;26
and what I had to do mentally.

00;20;35;26 - 00;20;39;14
And my thing was to keep my my focus
on a treatment because there was light

00;20;39;14 - 00;20;42;20
at the end of the day,
because my God was not finished with me.

00;20;43;00 - 00;20;46;20
And so me coming back this way,
I want to promote

00;20;47;00 - 00;20;51;24
women of my color of color,
to be educated about clinical trial,

00;20;51;28 - 00;20;56;03
to be educated about cancer,
and to get your annual screening.

00;20;56;08 - 00;21;00;13
And I'm lobbying hard
for that to get educated on it.

00;21;01;02 - 00;21;04;02
So if you decided not

00;21;04;06 - 00;21;07;11
to take the route of the clinical trials,
what would have happened?

00;21;07;21 - 00;21;12;07
I would have I would have passed away
because I was already at ground zero.

00;21;12;11 - 00;21;15;18
So she did explain to me
if I didn't do the clinical trial,

00;21;15;25 - 00;21;19;10
I would need to go ahead and proceed
to get my affairs in order.

00;21;19;23 - 00;21;23;06
And I was not going to do
that because I'm a fighter.

00;21;24;25 - 00;21;27;15
And you could have said, well,
just keep me comfortable.

00;21;27;15 - 00;21;28;17
I'll be gone in two weeks.

00;21;28;17 - 00;21;31;17
But she said, no, no.

00;21;31;19 - 00;21;33;05
Because I'm a soldier.

00;21;33;05 - 00;21;36;11
Soldiers
don't give up and Massey doesn't give up.

00;21;36;22 - 00;21;39;11
So my team, they they cheered me on.

00;21;39;11 - 00;21;40;15
We don't give up.

00;21;40;15 - 00;21;43;07
That’s why we’re One fight. One win.

00;21;43;07 - 00;21;46;12
Yeah, we don't give up at Massey.
Don't give up at Massey.

00;21;46;12 - 00;21;52;11
And having Doctor Robert Winn at the helm
of this as director is so important.

00;21;52;15 - 00;21;55;11
And we need to be raising up
more researchers and scientists.

00;21;55;11 - 00;21;59;10
So if there's anybody listening locally,
nationally and globally

00;21;59;10 - 00;22;03;29
and where we can have to support our kids
if they want to go to school

00;22;04;09 - 00;22;07;02
to pursue the medical arena

00;22;07;02 - 00;22;10;02
and research and science,
because we need it.

00;22;10;15 - 00;22;12;19
Research and scientists
saving lives, right.

00;22;12;19 - 00;22;13;21
Doctor Robert Winn?

00;22;14;29 - 00;22;15;20
You know,

00;22;15;20 - 00;22;19;18
I keep telling people sometimes
wonder, well, where my tax dollars go?

00;22;19;18 - 00;22;21;07
You know, y'all, y'all try this.

00;22;21;07 - 00;22;24;26
Someone said to me once,
I know y’all got the secret for cancer?

00;22;25;18 - 00;22;26;21
But y'all holding it back.

00;22;26;21 - 00;22;29;26
And I said, well,
that's the is the worst kept secret ever.

00;22;29;26 - 00;22;31;11
I know because it's right in front of you.

00;22;31;11 - 00;22;35;20
The problem isn’t so much that you
that the medicines aren’t here.

00;22;35;20 - 00;22;38;28
One of the problems
that we are going to be fighting with,

00;22;38;28 - 00;22;42;08
and that one of the reasons
why I came to Massey, and I love Massey.

00;22;42;14 - 00;22;46;15
And I love our community, is because it's
about giving people more access

00;22;46;25 - 00;22;50;06
to care
and giving people more access to hope.

00;22;50;18 - 00;22;53;09
And I think that
what we've done at Massey, we've

00;22;53;09 - 00;22;57;19
sort of said that the science is going to
continue to move and the science is real.

00;22;57;20 - 00;23;02;23
You can't get 34% fewer people dying from
cancer just because the air got better.

00;23;02;26 - 00;23;04;07
Come on, quit playing.

00;23;04;07 - 00;23;05;01
Things happen.

00;23;05;01 - 00;23;06;22
You know, we got better with screening.

00;23;06;22 - 00;23;08;01
We got better with prevention.

00;23;08;01 - 00;23;11;03
Although we going to come back
you know, Sister Clo, you and I

00;23;11;06 - 00;23;14;03
will do another show
about diet and exercise.

00;23;14;03 - 00;23;17;22
I know that's a bad word
but you know diet and exercise, removing

00;23;17;23 - 00;23;20;23
stress have a mental health
and spiritual health lately.

00;23;20;26 - 00;23;23;09
I know it was all bad words,
but at some point

00;23;23;09 - 00;23;26;09
we are going to have to talk about
prevention strategies.

00;23;26;12 - 00;23;28;22
We're
all going to have to talk about screening.

00;23;28;22 - 00;23;33;15
But when you get cancer,
this is going to be that you got to know

00;23;33;22 - 00;23;37;03
that the science that is
science is going to also equal

00;23;37;03 - 00;23;40;14
more people being healthy
because the science has gotten better.

00;23;40;24 - 00;23;41;12
Think about it.

00;23;41;12 - 00;23;45;21
In 30 years,
that means from the 1990s to the 2000’s,

00;23;45;21 - 00;23;48;24
10%, fewer over 30 years from 1990

00;23;48;24 - 00;23;51;24
to now, 34% fewer people die.

00;23;51;25 - 00;23;54;18
But, you know, that means that
if we keep our foot on the pedal,

00;23;54;18 - 00;23;58;28
what about a world in the United States
would be 50% fewer

00;23;58;28 - 00;24;03;02
people are dying and 60% fewer
people are dying from cancer.

00;24;03;06 - 00;24;04;23
That's the world I want to live in.

00;24;04;23 - 00;24;08;00
And that doesn't happen
because the air gets better.

00;24;08;04 - 00;24;10;11
It happens because you have scientists.

00;24;10;11 - 00;24;14;09
You have communities working together
for screening, for preventive,

00;24;14;09 - 00;24;17;09
and for coming up
with the next miracle molecule.

00;24;17;09 - 00;24;19;02
That will be the miracle medicine.

00;24;19;02 - 00;24;20;12
That will be the trial.

00;24;20;12 - 00;24;21;29
But, Miss Mary, you know what I'm saying?

00;24;21;29 - 00;24;26;25
So there's all this conspiracy stuff
that we be getting on Dr.

00;24;26;25 - 00;24;29;07
Tiktok, and Dr. Google.

00;24;29;07 - 00;24;30;12
Everybody's telling ya.

00;24;30;12 - 00;24;33;28
I mean, there's so much mind-trickeration
because there's so much white noise out

00;24;33;28 - 00;24;36;26
there
that sometimes all folks in our community

00;24;36;26 - 00;24;39;00
don't understand that this is real.

00;24;39;00 - 00;24;43;19
There are real Docs of real medicines
that can do good and we're just.

00;24;43;19 - 00;24;45;13
Hoping to bring that message to everybody.

00;24;45;13 - 00;24;50;11
And and I Sister Mary’s is one example
of what happens when science does

00;24;50;11 - 00;24;54;11
what it's supposed to do,
which is to allow people to have hope

00;24;54;24 - 00;24;57;24
and allow
all people to have access to that hope.

00;24;58;06 - 00;25;01;15
Well, that's how we're going to health it
all the way up.

00;25;01;15 - 00;25;05;05
We had a miracle, Miss Mary Simmons,

00;25;05;13 - 00;25;09;12
our Massey Cancer Champion,
and of course, the king of it.

00;25;09;20 - 00;25;10;01
Yeah.

00;25;10;01 - 00;25;15;05
Doctor Robert Winn, director of the VCU
Massey Comprehensive Cancer Center.

00;25;15;05 - 00;25;19;21
He's traveling the world to bring this
message about clinical trials and more.

00;25;19;22 - 00;25;21;27
God bless you. Be safe.

00;25;21;27 - 00;25;23;15
Be safe. Internationally.

00;25;23;15 - 00;25;24;27
Doctor Robert Winn,

00;25;24;27 - 00;25;29;14
this has been Community Conversations
the Black Health Wins podcast.