Duke Health Hosts 10th Annual "What’s Best for Breasts?" Community Education Event

A group of 11 women gather for a photo while wearing fun pink accessories to celebrate the What's Best for Breasts annual community event
Members of the Department of Surgery and the community come together for the 10th Annual "What's Best for Breasts?" community education event on Oct. 3

Duke Health hosted the 10th annual “What’s Best for Breasts?” (WB4B) and 3rd annual “Women’s Health Research Review” (WHRR) on Sat., Oct. 3. The free community education event welcomed more than 160 attendees—the highest WB4B attendance on record—and 22 vendors to Trent Semans Center for Health Education for a day full of presentations and interactive information sessions about breast imaging, genetic testing, breast cancer risk assessment, breast cancer 101, breast reconstruction, survivorship, and more. 

WB4B featured 13 speakers and moderators, and breast cancer survivor Dorthell Little provided the keynote address.

The WHRR was moderated by Ton Wang, MD, Assistant Professor of Surgery, and included 18 research posters from researchers at Duke and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, six podium presentations, and a keynote research presentation by Shelley Hwang, MD, Mary and Deryl Heart Distinguished Professor of Surgery.

Four trainees were awarded Best Presentations:

  • Best Podium Presentation, Scientific: Sofia Wood, “Generation and Validation of 
    Primary Breast Cancer Epigenetic Classifiers of Pathological Nodal Burden in a Multi-Center Breast Cancer Cohort”
  • Best Podium Presentation, Audience Favorite: Lauren Miller, MS3, “Reevaluation of the N Category for Breast Cancer Staging”
  • Best Poster Presentation, Scientific: Megan Zhao, MS3, “Evaluating the Impact of Neoadjuvant and Trimodality Therapy on Outcomes in Radiation-Associated Angiosarcomas of the Breast"
  • Best Poster Presentation, Audience Favorite: Gina Wilson, DNP, “Promoting Menstrual Health Equity: Student-Centered, Period Product Distribution”
Six individuals post for a photo at the Whats Best for Breasts community education event, including three research presentation winners
Left to right: Jennifer Plichta, MD, MS, Associate Professor of Surgery; Ton Wang, MD, Assistant Professor of Surgery; Gina Wilson, DNP; Sofia Wood; Lauren Miller, MS3; and Shelley Hwang, MD, MPH, Professor of Surgery

Now in its tenth year, WB4B was created in order to empower the community with accessible, evidence-based education about breast health and breast cancer.

"This year's event was extra special because it was our ten–year anniversary, and we had more than 160 attendees, our largest attendance to date," said event co-creator and chair Jennifer Plichta, MD, MS, E. Fulton Brylawski Associate Professor in Women’s Health and Associate Professor of Surgery. "In addition to engaging with our community, we were also lucky to highlight some of the research being done by trainees at Duke, and they did a phenomenal job."

Thank you to the core planning committee of Chevitta Talley, Administrative Assistant; Jackie White, NP; and Dr. Plichta for putting on another successful community education event.

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