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This image shows part of a six-step sequence of the death of a cancer cell.

Cancer & Environment: Searching for Answers

This week, the Environment Report is taking an in-depth look at the connections between cancer and the environment.When somebody gets cancer, one of the first questions is usually "why?"Does this kind of cancer run in my family?Was it something in the water, or in the air around me?Did I get exposed to something?What would you do, or where would you go to answer these questions? We'll explore how much we really know about the connections between cancer and the chemicals in our environment.We'll also meet both regular people and scientists trying to figure out if certain towns around Michigan are struggling with more cancer cases than other places because of current or past pollution.You'll hear about whether or not turning to the courts makes sense when it seems a company might to be blame for putting people at risk of cancer or other illnesses.Finally, we'll look at where we go from here. What do researchers know, and where are they looking next?

Doctor and cancer survivor develops "after cancer" treatment

Michigan Public | By Stateside Staff

Published January 6, 2015 at 5:31 PM EST

In the battle against cancer, patients and physicians can pull out all the stops – surgery, chemotherapy, radiation therapy.

If all goes as planned, the patient goes into remission and gets back to his or her life.

But what about the physical toll of all of these cancer therapies? Some treatments are inherently toxic.

Dr. Julie Silver is a physician, an associate professor at Harvard Medical School, and a breast cancer survivor. She's come up with a program of cancer rehabilitation and “pre-habilitation.”

Listen to our conversation with Dr. Julie Silver below.