Thirty years ago, I walked into Gilda’s Club and the Wellness Community as a 22-year-old brain cancer survivor looking for people who understood. I recently returned to its successor, Cancer Support Community, and finally understood what those rooms, and the people who kept them open, had given me.

Millions cycle through eczema treatments that calm symptoms but never fix the cause. This essay explains how payment models, regulation, and product marketing keep patients trapped in repeat care instead of long term prevention.