Carry The Fire

In her 20s, Ruby tested positive for a rare genetic mutation that increases her chance of breast cancer. Knowing this, she was able to mitigate her risk of being diagnosed. But a thyroid cancer diagnosis just a few years later came as a total shock. Listen as Ruby and Dr. Stambolic from The Princess Margaret join Lisa for a discussion about the growing number of young people receiving a cancer diagnosis, and what we’re doing at The Princess Margaret to meet this moment.

After attending a free screening event, Rensford De Haan began treatment at Princess Margaret Cancer Centre for a cancer he didn’t even know he had. The mobile event was led by Dr. Neil Fleshner, Love Chair in Prostate Cancer Prevention at The Princess Margaret. This unique initiative was part of a concentrated effort to bring screening directly to more Black men, a community that faces a higher risk of prostate cancer due to both systemic barriers and genetic factors.

Claire Cameron is a best-selling Canadian author and winner of the 2025 Governor General’s Literary Award in Non-Fiction. A lifelong outdoors lover, her identity was upended when she was diagnosed with a hereditary skin cancer and told to avoid sunlight. After receiving treatment at The Princess Margaret, she found new ways to connect with nature and used writing – especially her book, How to Survive a Bear Attack – to process her grief, accept her new limits, and reimagine her love for the outdoors.

When Ryan Gullen, bassist for the popular Canadian rock band The Sheepdogs, lost his father to esophageal cancer, grief showed up in unexpected and complicated ways. In this deeply personal episode, Ryan reflects on navigating hope, guilt, and the quiet aftermath of loss, all while balancing his music and life on the road. Plus, Dr. Madeline Li, a world-leading psychiatrist from The Princess Margaret, unpacks what grief really looks like, why it rarely follows a tidy path, and how we learn to live with it.

Welcome to Season Two of Carry The Fire, hosted by Lisa LaFlamme. We have ten new and inspiring personal stories about what happens when world-leading doctors, researchers and their patients come together to ignite breakthroughs in cancer research, treatment, and care.
Special guests this season include Olympic bronze medalist ice dancer, Piper Gilles, Toronto Maple Leafs forward Dakota Joshua, musician Ryan Gullen of The Sheepdogs, and award-winning author Claire Cameron, as well as everyday Canadians who are helping to create a world free from the fear of cancer.
Carry The Fire is a podcast from The Princess Margaret Cancer Foundation, Canada’s largest cancer charity, dedicated to raising funds for Princess Margaret Cancer Centre in Toronto, Ontario. This season launches Tuesday, April 7. Subscribe to hear a new episode every week.