Life on Pause
by Penn State Health
Latest episode
"Carried" — Survivorship Is Partnership in Action
"Carried" — Survivorship Is Partnership in Action
About this podcast
Life On Pause is a podcast for and by young adults living with cancer. Each month, young adult cancer patients from Penn State Health share honestly about their cancer diagnosis, treatment and life afterwards. As cancer causes the group to reflect on issues both large and small, surprisingly relatable stories and themes emerge. From relationships to body functions, nothing is off the table.
Produced by Q'd Up, a podcast and video production company in Hummelstown, Pennsylvania. qd-up.com
Episodes
The newest 20 of 86 episodes
- "Carried" — Survivorship Is Partnership in Action · 19 min · Season 2 Episode 28Twenty-one years ago, Brady Lucas walked into Penn State Health Children's Hospital as an eight-year-old with acute lymphoblastic leukemia. He was treated for thirty-nine months…
- "The Next Finish Line" — Hodgkin's Lymphoma at 14, and the All-Clear That Never Came · 11 min · Season 2 Episode 27When Vivienne Connor was fourteen, she found a lump under her arm and told her mom she didn't think it was anything. By that fall she had a diagnosis: Stage 2 Hodgkin's Lymphoma…
- Dakota's Army: A Mother's Story · 22 min · Season 2 Episode 26When Alicia Dixon's son Dakota was six, a headache and a facial droop sent them to the ER. She read his CT results off her own phone before the doctors reached the room — and…
- "Put It In The Freezer" — Fertility Preservation, Cancer at 14, and What Comes Next · 10 min · Season 2 Episode 25When Vivienne Connor was diagnosed with Stage 2 Hodgkin's Lymphoma at fourteen years old, her family faced two conversations almost simultaneously — one about cancer treatment…
- 46 Hours, No Walls: When THON 2026 Came to the Hospital · 8 min · Season 2 Episode 24🎥 VIDEO EPISODE NOTE: This story was made for video and includes powerful visual moments from both sides of the THON 2026 Hospital-to-THON Bridge — from patient rooms at Penn…
- Full Cup: How Eliot Dean Fought Leukemia Twice and Learned Not to Wait · 8 min · Season 2 Episode 23At twenty years old, Eliot Dean was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia. For weeks, his world shrank to a single hospital floor he couldn't leave — a window with a good…
- THON 2025: Inside Penn State's 46-Hour Stand for Kids with Cancer · 11 min · Season 2 Episode 22🎥 VIDEO EPISODE NOTE: This story was created for video and includes incredible visual moments from THON Weekend — from walking through Penn State's player cheer tunnel to…
- Finding Your Voice After the Bell: A PhotoVoice Journey of Young Adult Cancer Survivors · 57 min · Season 2 Episode 21What happens when treatment ends but the journey continues? For young adult cancer survivors, the ringing of the bell marks not an ending, but the beginning of something more…
- Mind Over Matter: Health Maintenance After Cancer · 33 min · Season 2 Episode 20What does health maintenance really mean when you're a young adult cancer survivor? Eliot and Hailey—both acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) survivors—share the reality of life…
- When Heroes Meet Heroes: Life Lion's Impact on Cancer Families · 11 min · Season 2 Episode 19When a Life Lion flight nurse saves a teenager's life, he never expects to meet him again. Ten years later, that young man returns—not as a patient, but as a father—to say thank…
- The Tape Job: How Cancer Taught Tony Campisi to Redefine Heaven · 12 min · Season 2 Episode 18Tony Campisi, a two-time cancer survivor, shares a story about hockey, resilience, and discovering that heaven doesn't have to look the same to still be heaven. Diagnosed with an…
- The Long Way Around: Living With Osteosarcoma at Age 12 · 9 min · Season 2 Episode 17At twelve years old, Ariana was living for sports — two softball teams, church basketball, and constant motion. Then her knees started hurting. What seemed like a sports injury…
- From Provider to Patient, Part 2: Karen Powell on Early Detection, Tough Choices, and Self-Advocacy · 29 min · Season 2 Episode 16Karen Powell, a nurse practitioner at Memorial Sloan Kettering who specializes in breast cancer care, returns for Part 2 to share the night everything changed: her own diagnosis…
- Three Generations of Strength, Part 1: How Family Legacy Shaped a Nurse’s Journey · 18 min · Season 2 Episode 15Karen Powell, a Penn State graduate and nurse practitioner at Memorial Sloan Kettering, shares a deeply personal story that spans three generations of women affected by breast…
- Brave, Bold, Gold: Ariana & Tony Share Their Childhood Cancer Awareness Designs · 9 min · Season 2 Episode 14Ariana McDonell and Tony Campisi share how they turned their childhood cancer journeys into powerful designs for Childhood Cancer Awareness Month. At just 12 years old, Ariana…
- A Taste of Independence: Cooking Up Confidence After Cancer · 6 min · Season 2Taylor, Eliot, Shelly, and Tony share how something as simple as a cooking class can spark confidence, connection, and independence after cancer. Hosted at Zest! Cooking School…
- God Didn’t Give Me Cancer—But He Didn’t Stop It Either: Robyn’s Story · 17 min · Season 2 Episode 13Robyn, a 21-year-old from Lancaster County, was diagnosed with T-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia during her second year of college. What started as what she thought were boils…
- Healing Through Hoofbeats: Paige’s Story of Strength and Therapeutic Horsemanship · 11 min · Season 2 Episode 12Paige, a 15-year-old from Pennsylvania, was diagnosed with Burkitt’s leukemia at stage 3. After spending seven months in the hospital undergoing intensive treatment, she found…
- Cancer Camp Changed My Life: AYA Survivors Share the Power of Connection · 28 min · Season 2 Episode 11Emma, Lucas, Ariana, and Casey open up about what it’s really like to attend a cancer camp as a young adult. From fears about fitting in to late-night laughs and life-changing…
- Mason’s Mission: Fighting Cancer Across Continents · 7 minMason, a 21-year-old from Iran, shares his remarkable story of fighting neuroblastoma for more than a decade. Diagnosed at age 7, Mason has faced multiple relapses, treatment…
