By Jennifer Schaffer Leone
At Still Rise Farms, Dr. Monique Gary blends science and soul in the service of survivorship
As a breast surgical oncologist and medical director of Grand View Health, Monique Gary, DO 鈥�09, MS/Biomed 鈥�05, has built a career defined by precision medicine and radical empathy. Her patient-first philosophy extends beyond the operating room into the fields and quiet spaces of a place she has dreamed of for decades: .
Nestled on 40 acres in Bucks County, Pennsylvania, Still Rise Farms is a living, breathing sanctuary. It is a place where women living with cancer can reconnect with their sense of self, restore their bodies through nourishment and rediscover healing in its most holistic form.
鈥淚 knew I wanted to create a space where people could simply be,鈥� Dr. Gary shares. 鈥淭here is a deep need for stillness鈥攆or renewal, for learning how to live well again.鈥�
That vision is rooted in personal experience. At just seven years old, Dr. Gary lost her mother to cancer. Later, her grandmother faced breast cancer. This profound sense of loss not only shaped her choice of medical specialty but also sparked a lifelong devotion to healing in all its dimensions.
Dr. Gary performs some of the most intricate procedures in medicine with surgical precision. But she knows that removing the tumor is just the beginning. Healing truly starts when patients begin to ask, 鈥淲hat should I eat? Can I fight cancer naturally? How should I live?鈥�
Her answer is Still Rise Farms鈥攁 balm, a prayer, a place that echoes the resilience of Maya Angelou鈥檚 poetic verse: 鈥淏ut still, like air, I鈥檒l rise.鈥�
At its quintessence, Still Rise speaks to both motion and repose. 鈥淚f you鈥檝e ever seen the sunrise at the farm, you would understand,鈥� she says. 鈥淚t commands you to be still. It is a place to be still鈥攕o you can recharge and get back up again.
鈥淭he name is a play on words,鈥� Dr. Gary explains. 鈥淭he historical significance of a Black woman owning 40 acres is not lost on me. And, culturally, we are still grappling with what equity means. We see disparities in land ownership and food sovereignty. We are still rising.
鈥淧atients are looking for more than survival,鈥� she says. 鈥淭hey want a way to live fully鈥攖o rise again after everything they鈥檝e been through.鈥�
The osteopathic philosophy informs every dimension of Dr. Gary鈥檚 work: as a surgeon, as a farmer and as a guide through survivorship. 鈥淲e鈥檙e not just treating disease. We鈥檙e restoring wholeness. This is how I view my role in medicine. This is how I view my role in society,鈥� she says.
At Still Rise Farms, Dr. Gary welcomes patients into a healing environment grounded in evidence-based practices that complement traditional treatment鈥攆rom guided meditation and yoga to tai chi, journaling and gentle movement. A medical advisory board ensures all programs align with clinical best practices. Physicians lead workshops that reflect current research and real-life concerns: clinical trials, gut health, symptom management through food, stress and its physiological effects, nutrition for comorbid conditions and conversations around sex and intimacy during and after treatment.
Still Rise is also piloting precision oncology tools that offer personalized wellness recommendations and help patients monitor their integrative care beyond the retreat.
Dr. Gary鈥檚 belief in food as medicine especially comes alive in this environment. Organic vegetables grown on-site nourish both body and spirit. Cooking demonstrations highlight anti-inflammatory ingredients like turmeric, ginger, garlic, berries, citrus fruits, and omega-3-rich fish鈥攆oods that support immunity, reduce inflammation and ease side effects of cancer treatment.
For patients who are newly diagnosed or overwhelmed, she encourages starting simply. 鈥淪tart with one meal at a time. Find the medicine in every meal,鈥� she says. 鈥淟ifestyle changes don鈥檛 have to be daunting. I talk about substitutions rather than subtractions and offer healthy alternatives.鈥�
Dr. Gary prefers that patients turn to food, not supplements, to meet their nutritional needs. 鈥淚 always say, expensive supplements often just make for expensive urine. Whole foods offer more than nutrients. They offer healing.鈥�
Based on current research, Dr. Gary emphasizes that while the role of nutrition in treating cancer is evolving, the link between poor nutrition and cancer development is well defined. 鈥淔ocusing on the things we can control鈥攐ur meals, our movement, our mindset鈥攃an make a powerful impact not only on cancer but on overall health. The synergistic effect improves outcomes across every chronic condition.鈥�
She routinely recommends increasing intake of antioxidants and trace minerals like zinc, chromium and selenium, as well as boosting protein where medically safe. But beyond these guidelines, she keeps the emphasis personal. 鈥淚 follow up with patients to see how they feel when they eat certain foods, how they鈥檙e healing and how their other conditions are improving through intentional nutrition.鈥�
Although she jokes about learning to be a farmer鈥攖ending vegetables and maintaining barns and ponds鈥擠r. Gary sees each moment on the land as part of a deeper calling.
鈥淚t鈥檚 medicine in another form,鈥� she reflects. 鈥淭his land is teaching me how to slow down, listen and care in new ways.鈥�
Still Rise Farms is, at its core, a return to purpose.
Her farm overflows with leafy greens like kale, chard and spinach; cruciferous vegetables; squash and tomatoes; berries; and fruit trees bearing peaches, pears and cherries. But the harvest isn鈥檛 just for nourishment. It is for justice.
鈥淭his year, we鈥檙e using the farm not only as a classroom but as a source of support,鈥� Dr. Gary shares. 鈥淲e鈥檙e providing CSA produce boxes for cancer patients at reduced or no cost. When you鈥檙e fighting cancer, it鈥檚 an expensive journey. Not everyone has access to the foods they need to heal.鈥�
Her philosophy is simple but powerful: wellness should be democratized. At Still Rise Farms, that belief is planted in every row鈥攁nd passed on, one box of fresh produce at a time.