Sacramento Survivor Outreach Chair Danielle Baham spoke with Community Engagement Senior Specialist Paula Mukherjee about her favorite experiences as a volunteer and her work as a registered dietitian. This interview has been edited for clarity and length.

Paula: How did you first learn about PanCAN?

Danielle: I'm a registered dietitian. I've worked at two major cancer centers. I used to work at MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, and I learned about PanCAN from working with pancreatic cancer patients there. One of the dietitians at MD Anderson, Maria Petzel (a member of PanCAN’s Emeritus Scientific and Medical Board), helped create PanCAN Patient Service’s diet and nutrition booklet. I shared that booklet with newly diagnosed patients and their families.

I’ve now been working for UC Davis Comprehensive Cancer Center for over seven years. I still order that booklet to hand out to patients and families. I've been using PanCAN as a resource for patients for years.

Paula: What made you decide to look into volunteering?

Danielle: I attended PanCAN PurpleStride here in Sacramento with a good friend whose father passed away from pancreatic cancer. At the walk, there was a sign-up sheet to learn more about volunteering. I thought that maybe I could help, so I signed up and my staff partner Arianne Chapple reached out to me about volunteering with the Sacramento PanCAN Affiliate.

I talk to pancreatic cancer patients and their families all the time, so survivor outreach fits well with my role as a dietician at the cancer center. In fact, when I started reaching out to survivors who had registered for PurpleStride, some were patients I already knew.

Paula: How does your professional role interact with your volunteer role?

Danielle: When I meet newly diagnosed pancreatic cancer patients, I tell them about PanCAN and encourage them to reach out to PanCAN Patient Services. I put the word out about PanCAN within my facility. Once I get to know my patients, I can see how PanCAN would be able to assist them.

For example, the wife of one patient asked if there was somebody who she could talk to as a caregiver. I gave her a flyer on PanCAN Survivor and Caregiver Network and circled where she can call to get that support. PanCAN now has a table at my cancer center’s National Cancer Survivors Day celebration and our Affiliate Chair joins as well.

I like having knowledge of the medical treatment side as well as what PanCAN offers.

Paula: What does your typical workday look like?

Danielle: In my role as a dietitian, I talk to patients and their families about nutrition to help with symptom management. Often patients don't know what to eat because they're having these symptoms. The common symptoms from pancreatic cancer are gas, bloating, cramping, and diarrhea.

Patients have so many other things on their mind. If they can know what to eat, that makes a world of difference for them. Eating is such a big part of this diagnosis. I may give them menu suggestions, sample meal plans, or shake recipes. I calculate the calories and grams of protein.

I also talk to them about how to use pancreatic enzymes. A patient yesterday said, “I started taking Creon (prescription enzymes) and I feel so much better!” I'm so glad she told me that; those are the stories that bring me joy.

I collaborate with my patients’ medical teams to determine their Creon dosages and what to eat to help them maintain their weight. Even after the Whipple surgery, patients may say, “I don’t know what to eat. I can’t gain weight.” I reassure them about their new normal. They may not regain the 20 pounds that they lost, but they can maintain their weight and get strong. I help them along that journey.

Paula: Do you see patients who have different types of cancers?

I primarily work with GI cancers. I also see some head and neck cancers.

Paula: What do you enjoy most about your volunteer role?

The highlight of this role has been pairing up survivors, so they won’t feel alone.

There was one young man, newly diagnosed, with no close friends or family here. I asked if he would like to come to PurpleStride Sacramento. I introduced him to two survivors at the walk, and they talked the entire time. That was so great.

I also reach out to survivors who I've met and ask them if I can connect them to newly diagnosed patients. There are two I paired up who still talk almost every day.

Paula: What were some of your highlights from PurpleStride this past year?

Danielle: One of the best parts was engaging other members of my care team to get excited about PurpleStride and raising money for PanCAN!

The cancer center already had a PurpleStride team, but the Team Captain was a busy surgeon. When I became the Survivor Outreach Chair, I talked to him about taking over as the Team Captain. I picked it up and told my GI nurses about it. They got so excited and had so many ideas. We had good old-fashioned bake sales. We sold roses with lollipops for Valentine's Day.

By event day, UC Davis Comprehensive Cancer Center raised just over $5,000 for the first time ever.

One of the nurses brought her husband and her sisters to volunteer that day. They got there bright and early to help me set up the survivor tent.

An oncology nurse I work with suggested that I reach out to one of her patients, a nine-year survivor, to encourage her to register for PurpleStride. When I initially contacted her, she declined. However, she and her husband showed up on the morning of the walk! Her husband said that they took the advice from the care team seriously: “If her oncology nurse suggests we go, then we’re going!”

At the event, a survivor's wife came up to me to say, “I really want to thank you for getting him involved and connecting with other survivors.” Connecting with other survivors has given him hope. She said that it’s really great for him to have this as his thing.  

Paula: Do you think other healthcare professionals should consider volunteering for PanCAN?

Danielle: Absolutely, especially if you love connecting with others. I'm a people-person all around; I love community service and community projects.

As a clinician, sometimes what you need to see your patient as a complete person is to see them outside of the clinic. Patients are also seeing you as part of their team. They are really appreciative to have someone from their care team also reach out to them on the community side. It makes your heart full to be a part of something outside of the usual treatment spaces.

Paula: Thank you for everything you do for pancreatic cancer patients!

Please feel free to contact Danielle Baham (dbaham@pancanvolunteer.org) or Paula Mukherjee (pmukherjee@pancan.org) with any questions.