Anyone going through a rough patch knows that the most important thing to help you navigate tough times is a calm, steadying force. That's exactly what Dana Farber was for me, and continues to be for the 100,000+ patients they treat on an annual basis. This August, I'm riding the Pan-Mass Challenge 77 miles from Bourne to Provincetown to raise money for a place that has had a significant impact on my life, and the lives of many other friends and family members who have been treated at this hospital.

There's nothing more unsettling and earth-shattering than hearing the word “Cancer” thrown out by your medical provider. In 2020, what I thought was a casual check up at a local ENT quickly turned things upside down for me in a heartbeat. Being told you have some sort of cancer, but we don't know what type and how serious until we conduct a further battery of tests over the next few weeks was terrifying. I broke down and felt truly hopeless. The first steadying force in my life, my wife Lauren, knew where to turn and within days we had an initial consultation set at Dana Farber. After my first visit with Dr. LaCasce on the Lymphoma floor, the confidence she displayed gave me the assurance I was in the right place. She had a plan A, plan B, and plan C to treat my Hodgkin’s Lymphoma and promised me that she knew how to beat this. Sitting here in remission 4 years later I can confirm she was right, and want to make sure that others can continue to feel that confidence in a time of uncertainty.

My year of treatment was very challenging, with multiple surgeries and biweekly chemo infusions, during the most challenging time of the COVID-19 pandemic. During all the stress and turmoil, I never doubted the commitment that the staff at Dana Farber had to my excellent care. Drs. LaCasce and Wengrod and the infusion nurses met me every other week with a spirit of positivity and compassion that I needed as much as the medicine. 2 years later, when my mom was diagnosed with a very rare tumor that required a complex surgery to treat, the team at Dana Farber was there for our family again with the same care, compassion, and commitment. We are truly so fortunate to have them by our side and in our city, and I feel privileged to be able to give back to an organization that has given our family so much.

Since its inception in 1980, the PMC has donated over $1.047 billion to Dana Farber. In 2024 alone, the ride raised $75 million which directly funded everything from pediatric oncology to their state of the art research labs at the Longwood campus. 100% of all donated funds go directly to Dana Farber and their continuing battle to cure cancer, and treat those who are fighting it in their own lives. I'm riding to ensure that Dana Farber can continue to be that steadying force in the lives of cancer patients for generations to come.