THE VFA PIONEER HISTORIES PROJECT
Dr. Susan Love
February 9, 1948 – July 2, 2023
“The only difference between a researcher and a patient is a diagnosis. We’re all patients.”
Surgeon, author, researcher and activist. Regarded as one of the most respected women’s health specialists in the United States and one of world’s most visible public faces in the war on breast cancer. Assistant clinical professor of surgery, Harvard, 1987. Founder, Faulkner Breast Center at Faulkner Hospital, Boston, 1988. Co-wrote, Dr. Susan Love’s Breast Book, termed “the bible for women with breast cancer,” published, 1990; now in its sixth edition and has sold nearly half a million copies. Founder, National Breast Cancer Coalition, 1991. Joined the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, 1992. Founder and clinic director, UCLA Breast Center (now Revlon/UCLA Breast Center). Retired from active practice of surgery to dedicate her time to finding the cause for breast cancer, 1996. Appointed by President Clinton to the National Cancer Advisory Board, 1998-2004. Adjunct Professor of Surgery, UCLA. Clinical professor of surgery, David Geffen School of Medicine, UCLA. Founder and Medical Director, Dr. Susan Love Foundation for Breast Cancer Research.
Photo. Dr. Susan Love and life partner, Dr. Helen Cooksey (married, 2004).
More About Susan:
- Obituary, The New York Times
- Susan Love Foundation for Breast Cancer Research website
- “Susan Love, a transformative leader in breast cancer movement, dies at 75. She intuitively understood the right thing to do—and then just did it.” The Cancer Letter, by Frances M. Visco, JD, President of the National Breast Cancer Coalition
- Tribute to Dr. Susan Love
- Susan Love on breast cancer activism in the 1990s
- Susan Love is a Trouper and a Leader, Dr. Love’s keynote at the 2018 Velocity Women’s Leadership Summit
- Q&A: Dr. Susan Love, by Diane Mapes, October 2015
- Breast Cancer Awareness Month: My Interview with Susan Love, by Joan Lunden