This August I will be riding in my 7th Pan-Mass Challenge. This year's ride will not quite be back to normal. I will be riding 100 miles on Sunday of PMC weekend. Since 2007 100% of rider-raised revenue has gone directly to cancer research and treatment at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute (DFCI). Once again I am a member of the Patriots Platelet Pedalers (PPP) the biggest team in the PMC.

Tina is a nurse practitioner at DFCI and treats patients with multiple myeloma with Dr. Ken Anderson and Dr. Nikhil Munshi. Tina was recently recognized in the Boston Globe's Salute to Nurses for her outstanding work at DFCI (picture in gallery).

The money raised by the PPP is earmarked to support the research of Dr. Anderson's team and development of novel therapies. While the team fundraising is restricted to this research, a recent quote from Dr. Anderson explains that our fund raising helps more than just those diagnosed with multiple myeloma:

Our ongoing progress together is helping patients with myeloma, as well as patients with breast cancer, lung cancer, colon cancer, ovarian cancer, and many other cancers. There two major areas where we are as a PPP TEAM making great strides. First is the area of precision medicine-defining the abnormalities in cancer cells and in their environment which allow tumor cells to grow and survive in order to develop selective targeted new medicines. Since abnormal circuits are common to many cancers, new selective targeted medicines will be more effective, have fewer side effects, and help patients with a broad range of cancers.

* Did you know you can double your impact in seconds? Many employers sponsor matching gift programs and will match charitable contributions made by their employees.