PEDALING FOR A CURE FOR CANCER.

We ride because we can.
We ride for those who cannot.
We ride because the training rides and the 192 miles on the two days of the Pan Massachusetts Challenge are NOTHING compared to living with the impacts of cancer.

Thank you AS ALWAYS for your generous support, because as you know, There Is A LOT Riding On Us!!

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Dear Friends and Family,

I am hoping you can support us again this year with a generous contribution to the Pan Mass Challenge, which funds the Researchers and Caregivers at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute.

Pan Mass Challenge 2022

• This is my 24th year participating in the PMC, a 2-day 192-mile cycle each August across Massachusetts
• I began riding in 1999 to honor the memory of Emmett, my best friend from Charlestown growing up who passed away far too young
• I have learned too much about this awful disease, as we have had more family and friends impacted over the years including Bonnie’s mom, Betsy
• In addition to the memory of family and friends that we have lost, my ride in 2022 is dedicated to
  • Several friends and family currently undergoing cancer treatment (Tom, Maria, Polkie, Nella, Fran …)
  • Plus many ‘Living Proof Survivors’ who are post-treatment
    (Peggy, Pam, Ryan, Arthur, Mary, Boo, Richie C, Katelyn, Jack, Kate … )
  • This year in particular I am riding in honor of a very special teammate, Ellen

• In 2022 we have an unwavering $66 million goal to support the Dana Farber Cancer Institute …
  and what is remarkable … 100% of your contribution will go to Dana Farber.

Why I PMC

The Pan Mass Challenge continues to make an unparalleled impact in the fight against cancer.

Evidence of this is almost 1,000 fellow PMC riders - patients who have been treated at Dana Farber - who are now cancer SURVIVORS. These survivors are Living Proof of your donations and the PMCs efforts!

Your donations are used to fund direct care for patients, and importantly we fund Research and Clinical Trials for the latest advances in treatments –

• Stem Cell / Bone Marrow transplants, as well as more recently,
• the rapid development of personalized Immunotherapy,
  where the patient’s own cells are used to boost their body’s immune response to their cancers.

Government funding for this cutting-edge research is limited,
so your PMC funds allow Dana Farber to expand these research studies and the resulting treatment advances at a much faster rate.

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Important facts to know regarding your contributions:

• The Pan-Mass Challenge is the nation's original fundraising bike-a-thon, and today raises more money for charity than any other athletic fundraising event in the country
• Since its 1980 inception, donors and riders of the PMC have contributed over $831 million to lifesaving cancer research and treatment at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute (DFCI)
• The PMC raises more than 50 percent of the annual revenue at The Jimmy Fund, which goes toward easing the burden of patients that are enduring cancer treatment at the Center
• Our New England Patriots-sponsored team, the 180+ member “Patriots Platelet Pedalers” (The PPP)
  raised over $1.4MM for our 2-day ride in 2021, with just under $14,000,000 raised in the last 14 years!
  
  A great team of riders, with a great sponsor, the Kraft Family and the New England Patriots Foundation

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I want to Thank You as always for your ongoing support of the Dana Farber Cancer Institute and The Jimmy Fund!

The patients of DFCI really benefit from your generosity!

Sincerely,

Jim Sullivan

We are getting Closer By The Mile ...........

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I cannot end my annual appeal without an invitation to join us
Weekly … Monthly … Even Once ...
AT THE KRAFT FAMILY BLOOD DONOR CENTER IN BOSTON TO DONATE PLATELETS

So, as I once asked … what are Platelets, and why are Platelet donations needed?

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Platelets are a component in our blood to stop us from bleeding.
Platelets are the cells that circulate within our blood and bind together when they recognize damaged blood vessels. When you get a cut, for example, Platelets bind to the site of the damaged vessel, thereby causing your blood to clot.

Our Platelet counts drop when something is preventing the body from producing Platelets.
There are a wide range of causes for this, including:

• Certain types of cancer, such as leukemia or lymphoma
• Chemotherapy treatment for cancer
• Kidney infection or dysfunction,
• Certain medications

Considering that Platelets have a short 5-day shelf life, supplies for the Dana Farber patients need to be continuously replenished.

Casey Is Living Proof of the Value and Importance of Platelet Donations

Here is a 2-minute video of Casey, one of our Platelet beneficiaries:

http://www.tinyurl.com/CaseyIsLivingProof

I am a proud member of the KFBDC ‘Team 20’ Platelet donors who donate 20 + times/ yr.
Donating takes about 1 ½ - 2 hours, and typically yields 2 or 3 units of Platelets for the patients.
You can contact me to learn more about donating Platelets

Or
by sending an email to blooddonor@partners.org

Or
by following this link: https://tinyurl.com/DonateAtKFBDC

Or
by calling (888)-LETS-GIV or (617) 632-3206

Please consider this very important donation. It is truly a gift of life

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A Note About The Team We Ride for - The Patriot Platelet Pedalers

I continue to ride with the New England Patriot Platelet Pedalers – the “PPP”.

Our (Your!) donations continue to fund the research efforts of Dr Kenneth Anderson. Ken is a remarkably successful investigator at Dana Farber, and his achievements have had profound and wide-ranging benefits in the treatment of blood-based as well as solid tumor cancers.
For glimpse into his character, I have excerpted from an interview with Ken a couple of years back.

Quoting:
“I was introduced to academic medicine by Richard L. Humphrey, MD, from Johns Hopkins Medical School, a myeloma specialist who taught me two important lessons that have served as my motivation ever since:

• “Make science count for patients by improving diagnosis, prognosis, and treatment,
  and
• Treat patients like family.”

Visit https://tinyurl.com/DrKennethAnderson
to learn about his remarkable success
which is FUNDED BY YOUR DONATIONS!

Dr Anderson’s DFCI BIO is at https://tinyurl.com/DrKenAnderson

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( If you prefer to bypass Facebook, you can visit http://www.JimsPMC.com to contribute. )