Introduction: A Voice Born from Tragedy
“I was in the street on 9/11, and I got hit with that lovely dust cloud,” Principe recalls. “My company was downtown, so I returned every day. You hear my voice—it has been impacted by the toxins”
The dust settled, but the damage lingered. Principe was left gasping for air, reliant on machines and medications just to breathe. Doctors told her to go home and prepare for the worst. Instead, she decided to fight—not only for her life, but for the lives of thousands of others.
A Survivor’s Transformation
At the time, Principe was the single mother of a seven-year-old daughter, Micaela. Faced with mortality, she discovered an inner fire. “The one thing you will find about me is that I may be very emotional and open, but the minute somebody tells me I can’t do something, there’s something in me that says, watch me”
She heard about a detoxification program pioneered by Dr. David Root and others. Even though program leaders worried she was too ill to survive treatment, Principe insisted. “I told them: if you get me through this, if you help me, I will come back here and I will help you fund this place. And that is exactly what happened”
The results were transformative. She shed dozens of pounds, regained her breathing, and witnessed the same remarkable improvements in hundreds of other responders and survivors. Of nearly 4,000 people who went through the program, she notes, only three were known to have passed away—a survival rate she cites as proof of its value
A Relentless Advocate
Her advocacy is never abstract—it is rooted in lived experience. Principe herself has faced two battles with breast cancer, the second now metastatic. Doctors call it treatable but not curable. She refuses to accept that narrative: “Once again, there’s that ‘not’ in there. I believe that this can be cured. I want to be here to see my daughter walk down the aisle and meet my grandchildren.”
Rejecting chemotherapy, she opted for targeted radiation to spare her vocal cords and pursued holistic supplements—including AC-11, once given to NASA astronauts to mitigate radiation damage. For her, integrative care is not a luxury but a necessity. “Our bodies don’t react the same to the general medications they give to people. My cancer came from toxins, and I believe our treatment should reflect that”
Advocacy Beyond Herself
She teaches patients to “learn that there are choices, to learn that you have a voice in your medical care. Just because your doctor suggests something doesn’t mean that’s what you have to do. You need to research, you need to question, you need to advocate for yourself”
Her projects reflect both creativity and impact. The Serenity Sky bracelet, for example, memorializes 9/11 while raising funds for micro-grants that cover integrative treatments not paid for by insurance. “I don’t want a GoFundMe,” she insists. “If we’re going to do this, it needs to help other people too. When people give, there should be something that comes back for it. That’s important to me”
Imaging and Advocacy for 9/11 Responders
Recently, Principe connected with Dr. Robert L. Bard , a diagnostic imaging pioneer who has cared for 9/11 responders since the earliest days. Their discussion revealed a shared mission to validate exposures and deliver safer, non-invasive cancer care. “The beautiful thing about the work we do is, first of all, it’s non-invasive imaging,” Bard explained. “The first three cancers from 9/11 are basal cell, squamous cell, and melanoma. Lung is the fourth. But the more important one is the fifth, which is prostate cancer. We had no idea” Bard, himself a veteran exposed to Agent Orange, underscored their common ground: “We were both toxin survivors. So, you know, we have skin in the game”. He invited Principe to his Midtown clinic to see the technologies firsthand and undergo imaging. For Principe, the meeting affirmed the need to unite advocacy with cutting-edge tools. “It is critical to me to find the answers to help my community heal. Not just me, but the 140,000 other people in this community who are gravely ill”
Battling Systems—and Winning
Principe’s tenacity is legendary. When insurance denied her coverage for life-saving proton radiation therapy, she bypassed bureaucracies and went straight to the top. Within 30 minutes of emailing UnitedHealthcare’s CEO, she had an approval. “The worst thing they could say is no. What if they say yes?”This combination of fearlessness, persistence, and diplomacy has made her a powerful force in advocacy circles. As one colleague put it, she is “a nonstop voice—a force of nature when it comes to getting stuff done”
Expanding the Mission: Mental Health and Beyond
Principe also champions mental health solutions for veterans and the 9/11 community, particularly in the realm of PTSD. She is part of the Veterans Military Health Leadership Coalition, advocating for the rescheduling of psychedelics to support mental healthcare.
“So many in our community were left without resources. Pills upon pills only caused more problems. Veterans discovered that psychedelic therapies abroad—ayahuasca, psilocybin, MDMA—could help them overcome. I myself used ketamine and microdosing mushrooms. It made a huge difference in my mental health. Even while going through metastatic breast cancer, I am in a complete zen space”. For her, mental resilience and physical healing are inseparable: “This controls this—if your mind is centered and focused, it helps you overcome whatever problems you have”
From Cosmo to Congress
Before 9/11, Principe ran a thriving model and talent agency. “I say I went from Cosmo to Congress,” she jokes. Though glamorous, the work left her wanting more. September 11th gave her that chance. “My work did not make a difference to the world. 9/11 opened the door. It put me where I was supposed to be. I always had this voice, I just wasn’t using my gifts”
Conclusion: The Legacy of Refusal
Anne-Marie Principe is many things: a survivor, a patient, a mentor, a mother, an advocate, a disruptor. But above all, she is someone who refuses to accept “no” as the final answer. From reclaiming her breath after 9/11, to battling metastatic cancer with determination, to fighting for the rights of thousands of responders, survivors, and veterans, she embodies the power of defiance turned into service.
Her story is not just about survival—it is about transformation. What began in the dust of Ground Zero has become a crusade for cleaner, fairer, more humane cancer care. And in that mission, Anne-Marie Principe stands as a living reminder that sometimes the most powerful advocacy is born from the deepest wounds.
PART 2:
FROM THE HEALTH FIELD
Meeting Dr. Robert Bard: Imaging, First Responders, and a Shared Mission
Dr. Bard explained how non-invasive imaging became a cornerstone of care for the 9/11 community. “The beautiful thing about the work we do is, first of all, it’s non-invasive imaging. Specifically, we see what’s going on on the skin. The first three cancers from 9/11 are basal cell, squamous cell, and melanoma. Lung is the fourth. But the more important one is the fifth, which is prostate cancer. We had no idea”
Principe immediately recognized the importance of such technology, noting how survivors and responders need better, safer options. For Bard, the connection is personal—he, too, has faced toxic exposures in his service years. “We were both toxin survivors,” he said, referring to Agent Orange exposures in Vietnam and Thailand. “So, you know, we have skin in the game”
For Principe, the meeting underscored the importance of bridging advocacy with cutting-edge medical tools. “It is critical to me to find the answers to help my community heal. Not just me, but the 140,000 other people in this community who are gravely ill”
This encounter with Bard is more than a consultation—it represents a new partnership between survivor-advocates and clinicians determined to validate exposures, detect disease earlier, and spare patients unnecessary suffering. Principe sees this as part of her mission: connecting communities with the right people and technologies to turn awareness into action.
