1st International Pregnancy and Postpartum Associated Cancers Online Symposia

Mummy’s Star and So Brave

invite you to join our 1st International Pregnancy and Postpartum Associated Cancers Online Symposia.

Hear from world-leading clinicians and researchers and the organisations leading the change in outcomes and supporting women facing cancer during pregnancy and postpartum across the world.

Join us for this interactive live workshop and Q&A - everyone welcome. Register now!

About our Speakers:

Pete Wallroth (Hon MBE)
Founder and CEO, Mummy's Star (United Kingdom & Ireland)

Pete Wallroth is the founder and CEO of Mummy’s Star, the only charity in the UK and Ireland dedicated to supporting women and birthing people diagnosed with cancer during pregnancy, within 12 months post-birth, or following pregnancy or baby loss. He founded the charity in 2013 in memory of his late wife, Mair, whose own experience inspired a mission to ensure that no family faces this situation alone.

Deeply passionate about equity in maternity care, Pete advocates for women and birthing people to have access to the same informed choices during pregnancy as they would without a cancer diagnosis. He works closely with universities, hospitals, and cancer centres across the country, sharing vital case studies and examples of good practice that directly benefit the families Mummy’s Star supports every day.

Pete is also a strong advocate for partners’ mental health, particularly in the context of supporting a seriously ill loved one or coping with grief. He actively challenges societal assumptions about the role of partners—especially fathers—in pregnancy, care, and loss.

Before founding Mummy’s Star, Pete spent a decade in the housing and regeneration sector, delivering youth, health, and environmental projects in some of Greater Manchester’s most deprived communities.

Rachelle Panitz
Founder and Managing Director, So Brave (Australia)

Rachelle Panitz was diagnosed with breast cancer at just 32 years old, only six weeks after giving birth to her son and with a three-year-old daughter at home. With no family history, she trusted her instincts that something was wrong and went on to endure nearly 18 months of intensive treatment including surgery, chemotherapy, radiation, immunotherapy, and years of hormone therapy. The emotional toll of grappling with her identity, body image, and the isolation of being a young mother with cancer fuelled her determination to create change. Recognising the lack of tailored support for young women navigating fertility, career, relationships, and survival, she founded So Brave in 2017. What began as a young breast cancer body-art and photography project has grown into Australia’s only charity dedicated to young women with breast cancer, providing education, community, advocacy, and systemic change. Through So Brave, Rachelle continues to ensure no young woman feels invisible or unsupported because of her age, turning her trauma into a powerful legacy of courage, visibility, and hope.

Na'ama Carlin
Senior Lecturer, UNSW

Na’ama Carlin is an award-winning educator and Senior Lecturer in Sociology at the University of New South Wales. She has written about the need for policy reform concerning pregnancy and cancer and has advocated for equitable access to cutting-edge cancer medication. Her co-authored book, Being Patient: Close Encounters in Cancer World (NewSouth 2026) is out now. 

Dr Surabhi Nanda,
Fetal Medicine Consultant, Guys & St Thomas Hospital London (United Kingdom)

Dr Surabhi Nanda is an experienced Consultant Obstetrician and Gynaecologist specialising in Maternal and Foetal Medicine at St Thomas' Hospital. She completed her medical degree at Barkatullah University, India in 2000 before relocating to the UK.

After moving to the UK, she underwent her specialist training in obstetrics and gynaecology and became a Member of the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists in 2009. In 2011, she completed her Diploma in Foetal Medicine and began her subspecialty training in maternal and foetal medicine. After completing her subspecialist training at Guy’s and St Thomas’, Dr Nanda led the North West Cheshire and Merseyside multiple pregnancy service at Liverpool Women’s Hospital for four years in her first consultant role. In 2017, she completed her Research MD at King’s College London.

Since 2018, Dr Nanda has served as a Consultant at St Thomas’ Hospital where she is the lead consultant for multiple pregnancies. Her expertise includes managing expectant mothers with various medical disorders, particularly those related to neurological, liver, respiratory, and cancer conditions. Dr Nanda is also the clinical lead for foetal medicine and co-block lead for year two medical students at King’s College London. Additionally, she serves as a medicolegal expert in her specialised areas, further showcasing her comprehensive skill set.

Dr Nanda has specialist expertise in medical disorders in pregnancy, multiple pregnancies (twins, triplets), high-risk obstetrics, and foetal medicine. She offers a range of procedures and treatments, including non-invasive prenatal testing, bespoke pregnancy scans, pre-pregnancy counselling, and bereavement services.

Alongside her clinical work, Dr Nanda has published extensively in international journals and continues to share her insights at national and international meetings.

Professor Elyce Cardonick,
Professor in Obstetrics and Gynaecology at Cooper Medical School of Rowan University (United States)

Dr Elyce Cardonick is a Professor in Obstetrics and Gynaecology at Cooper Medical School of Rowan University and a member of the division of Maternal Fetal Medicine as a perinatal consultant. She received her Bachelor’s Degree in Biology from the University of Delaware, Summa cum Laude, in 1987. She was also a member of Phi Beta Kappa. She then earned her Medical degree from the Medical College of Pennsylvania in 1991. A residency in Obstetrics and Gynaecology was completed in 1995 at Albert Einstein Medical Centre in Bronx, New York. Subspecialty training in Maternal Fetal Medicine was completed at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital in 1997. In 1998, Dr Cardonick became Board Certified for Obstetrics and Gynaecology, and in 2000, Board Certified for the subspecialty of Maternal-Fetal Medicine. She is a member of the American College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists as well as the Society of Maternal Fetal Medicine.

Dr Cardonick maintains a registry of pregnant women diagnosed with cancer during pregnancy and follows closely the outcomes for mother and child. A second portion of the registry is dedicated to the pregnancy outcomes of cancer survivors who have children after completing cancer treatment. Dr Cardonick has presented on the topic of cancer and pregnancy at international meetings, including the Society of Maternal Fetal Medicine and both the American College in the US and the Royal College of Obstetrics and Gynaecology in London, UK. She was also invited to speak at the international collaborative meeting of INCIP, an International Network on Cancer, Infertility and Pregnancy, as the sole attendee from outside of Europe. She has been invited several times to lecture on cancer in pregnancy at the postgraduate course of the Society of Maternal Fetal Medicine. She also presented a poster on the perinatal complications of pregnant women with a history of radiation therapy at the MD Anderson Cancer Centre during a cancer and fertility conference. She was an invited participant for the closed meeting the following year

Assistant Professor Phil Koken,
Assistant Professor Radiation Oncology, Amsterdam University Medical Centre (Netherlands)

After my PhD defense in December 1993, I started my training as a medical physicist. In September 1996, I joined the Radiation Oncology Department of Amsterdam UMC. In addition to clinical work, I specialize in TBI treatments and peripheral dose, for example in relation to cardiac devices and cancer during pregnancy. I was involved in the development of care pathways in Varian’s ARIA system. I am a lecturer at VU University and Inholland University, and I hold a University Teaching Qualification. Recently, I have started working with AI functionalities to improve teaching, student training, and examinations.

Since 2021, I have been a member of the Dutch Advisory Group for Cancer during Pregnancy. This group of 47 medical experts advises referring medical teams caring for pregnant patients with cancer. In 2023, the group published a book, which I co-edited and co-authored; an English version is forthcoming.

In 1997, I founded the Varian Users Group in Belgium and the Netherlands, which I still chair. I am also a member of the Dutch Societies of Clinical Physics and Radiation Oncology, and I have participated in several task groups. I have (co-)authored dozens of peer-reviewed papers related to my work.

In my spare time, I conduct research in natural history and art history, on which I have published several papers in peer-reviewed journals. I am also working on two books on these subjects and write a column for a nature magazine. My nature photographs are occasionally published in national and international books and magazines.

Lucy Armitage,
Registered Midwife and PhD Candidate, University of Canberra, (Australia)

Lucy is a midwife and PhD candidate working between NSW and the ACT. Lucy’s research examines pregnancy associated cancer care, a much needed and under-researched aspect of maternity care. Lucy is passionate about the opportunity for midwives to expand and promote their practice to improve women’s outcomes and experiences of maternity care.