A four-time breast cancer survivor, integrates her personal journey with an unwavering passion to enhance healthcare. This dedication has fueled her 21-years of experience in research, patient, and policy breast cancer advocacy.

Diane supports researchers at the University of California San Francisco Breast Oncology Program, Stanford Health, and University of Colorado Anschutz Medical, translating their medical science findings into the clinic. She serves as a research advocate for three national clinical trials: the WISDOM Study, advancing precision breast cancer screening; the I-SPY Trial testing novel agents for women at high risk for recurrent breast cancer; and biomarker-driven targeted therapy for late recurring ER-positive breast cancer at Stanford. As a National Breast Cancer Coalition Project LEAD and Research Advocacy Network-trained science advocate, Diane is a consumer reviewer for both the Department of Defense Congressionally Directed Breast Cancer Research Program and Susan G. Komen grants. She is a member of Komen’s Advocates in Science and an advocate for the National Cancer Institute’s MetNet Consortium through the Curtis laboratory at Stanford.

Diane often addresses physician, researcher, and patient audiences on breast cancer topics. She developed and presented An Advocate’s Prescription for Survivorship Care at ASCO’s inaugural Cancer Survivorship Symposium. For two decades, she has been serving as a breast cancer peer counselor including with Living Beyond Breast Cancer and UCSF Health’s Breast Care Center. Internationally, Diane is a member of Inspire2Live: The Patient Voice. She was awarded a Fulbright Specialist designation in Cancer Advocacy to help develop cancer advocacy programs around the world.

•Purdue University– BS degree

•Retired laboratory scientist – 50+ years

•Member Cancer League of Colorado

As a long-term cancer survivor and patient advocate, I use my lived experience to help bridge the gap between patients and researchers in language that is compassionate, accessible, and easy to understand. My journey has included Hodgkin lymphoma, breast cancer, and recurrence to metastatic breast cancer, which has shaped my passion for advocacy, education, and advancing patient-centered research.

I am an advocate for GRASP and a member of Susan G. Komen’s Advocates in Science (AIS) program. I have also attended the San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium (SABCS) through the MARP and ALAMO scholarship programs, where I expanded my knowledge of emerging metastatic breast cancer research and patient engagement in science.

My advocacy interests include metastatic breast cancer fundraising, research communication, patient education, and supporting efforts to find a cure. Outside of advocacy, I enjoy spending time with my husband and our three rescue dogs, creating art, and fishing.

Read more about Mallory's story here: https://www.glamour.com/story/mallory-smith-stage-4-breast-cancer