From Death To Life: Dr. Dawn Mussallem On Surviving Cancer Twice, Running A Marathon Post Heart Transplant, & Why Mindset Matters More Than Medicine
2/16/20262 hr 1 min
Dr. Dawn Mussallem is a Mayo Clinic oncologist who survived stage 4 cancer at 26, heart failure, and a heart transplant—then became the first person to run a marathon within a year of receiving a new heart.
This conversation explores the integrative approach to cancer treatment, why exercise might be as powerful as chemotherapy, the self-flagellation patients feel despite doing everything right, and the profound role of mindset in survival.
Typically, my guests fall into two buckets—incredible story or incredible expertise. I don't know that I've ever had a guest who inhabits both worlds the way...
Clips
Showing 10 of 12Transcript preview
First 90 secondsDawn Mussallem· Soundbite0:00
You have to take care of your body. Seven out of the 10 top chronic diseases are preventable with lifestyle.
Dawn Mussallem· Guest0:05
My name's Dawn Mussallem, and I'm a physician, and my specialty is integrative oncology.
Dawn Mussallem· Soundbite0:10
Five to 10% of cancers are genetic, 5 to 10% are family histories. That means 75 to 80% of cancers are happening because of things, not because of genes in our family history. They're happening because of external causes.
Rich Roll· Host0:21
When you are 26 years old, you're just starting your medical education, and out of the blue, you're hit with this stage four non-Hodgkin's lymphoma diagnosis.
Dawn Mussallem· Soundbite0:31
Dawn says it's her own experiences that's helped her career.
Dawn Mussallem· Guest0:35
My disease is basically what has defined me. I learned a lot in medical school, but I learned everything from being a patient.
Rich Roll· Host0:40
You survive this only to later suffer heart failure, which requires a heart transplant.
Dawn Mussallem· Guest0:47
Mm-hmm.
Rich Roll· Host0:48
And you go on to become the first person to run a marathon within a year of a heart transplant.
Dawn Mussallem· Guest0:53
It just set the stage for me to be in this position to help others in their moments of hardship. And whether it's me sharing my story, reaches someone so far across the world that we never would have met, great. But there is that listener out there that maybe this connects with them, and I hope it does.
Rich Roll· Host1:08
Dawn, it's an absolute delight to have you here today. So much to talk about. We're gonna talk about the, uh, lifestyle pillars that drive well-being and longevity, also, uh, cancer prevention and recovery for cancer patients. But I wanna begin,