Emily Cohen’s Story

How has breast cancer affected your life?

Emily Cohen’s connection to breast cancer is deeply personal.

She lost her mother to breast cancer in 2003 and her cousin in 2010. Her aunt, her mother’s sister and her cousin’s mother, has survived breast cancer three times.

In a 2016 reflection, Emily shared that walking with Runway gave her a place to honor all three of them: her aunt, her mother, and her cousin.

“We walk not only to celebrate her,” Emily wrote of her aunt, “but also my mother and my cousin who both lost their battles to breast cancer.”

For Emily, Runway has always been about remembrance, celebration, and the power of sharing family stories.

“It’s an honor to be able to celebrate them and share our story,” she wrote in 2016.

 

How did breast cancer shape your work?

Breast cancer has also shaped Emily’s professional life.

Emily grew up in Concord, Massachusetts and attended Nashoba Brooks, where she was classmates with Olivia’s sisters, Nell and Kristin. She later attended Dana Hall and graduated from Connecticut College in 2006 with a degree in biochemistry.

She went on to receive her PhD in Genetics from Yale University in 2014 and completed postdoctoral research at Harvard Medical School, where she studied breast cancer signaling and metabolism.

In 2016, Emily shared how meaningful it was to work in a breast cancer research lab.

“Being able to work on a disease that has so much personal meaning is so rewarding,” she wrote.

How has genetic risk become part of your story?

In 2014, Emily was diagnosed with a BRCA1 mutation.

After learning she carried the mutation, Emily underwent a prophylactic double mastectomy with reconstruction in 2017.

She has also used her experience to support others. Emily completed the 39-mile Avon Breast Cancer Walk five times, raising more than $10,000. She has also served as a Bright Pink and Imerman Angels mentor, providing guidance and support to fellow previvors.

Through science, advocacy, mentorship, and prevention, Emily has turned a deeply personal family history into a lifelong commitment to helping others.

 

What has Runway meant to you?

Emily first walked the Runway in 2012 and 2013 and has been an alumni model since 2016.

In that 2016 reflection, Emily wrote about how much she loved being part of the Runway family.

“I have thoroughly enjoyed being a part of the Runway family,” she wrote. “Even attending as a guest, I am always amazed and inspired by the incredible women and families that take part.”

Over the years, that connection has only deepened.

Emily has been a Runway family grant reader since summer 2019 and has served as a family liaison volunteer since early 2021. Through that work, she has supported families facing breast cancer in some of their most difficult moments.

 

How did the Linda K. Cohen Tuition Fund begin?

Through her work with one Runway family, Emily was especially moved by Athena, an incredible student whose mother had wanted so much for her to have a strong education.

Emily understood that deeply. Her own family also valued education, and she knew how much education could shape a person’s future.

“I know how much education makes such a huge difference in this world,” Emily shared in a 2023 interview.

When Emily learned there was a gap in tuition support, the decision felt clear.

“As soon as I learned that there wasn’t enough available, I was always thinking, can I just make this up myself?” she said.

Emily helped cover the tuition that would not otherwise have been funded. Wanting to create a bigger, long-term impact, she then started the Linda K. Cohen Tuition Fund within Runway in memory of her mother.

The fund helps additional family grant recipients in extreme circumstances who need tuition assistance through high school.

For Emily, it was a way to honor her mother while helping children facing breast cancer and loss access the kind of opportunity their families dreamed of for them.

 

What are we celebrating this year?

This year, we are celebrating Emily’s many layers of impact on Runway.

We can’t wait to cheer her on yet again.