Dear Friends, Family & Supporters,

1 out of 2 men and 1 out of 3 women will face cancer in their lifetime.

I was stunned when I heard this at a recent Dana Farber event. In a speech where the focus should be the tremendous gains made in the past year in mapping and early detection and a revolutionary new drug for pediatric brain tumors it was this statistic that stood out.

On August 3rd and 4th, I will again pedal 200 miles across Massachusetts with one hope and goal: Raising money to support finding a cure for cancer.

This year the motto is “One in Billion” as this year's event will break the billion dollars raised mark in support of lifesaving cancer research and treatment at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in Boston. The ride’s individual goal is $75 million, and 100 percent of donations go directly to research and treatment at Dana-Farber.

I ride again this year with Team CTB and my friend Tom Balzano, and his wife Kate in memory of their son Charlie who lost his battle with cancer before his 1st birthday.

This year my goal is $18,000, your donations will directly support the doctors and nurses in the pediatric oncology department at Dana Farber Cancer Institute and Boston Children’s Hospital. It will directly fund research aimed at creating new treatments, drugs and advanced therapies to improve outcomes and survival rates in children like Charlie.

I also will always ride to honor the memories of Chris Manno, Erica Kaitz and Patrick Beauregard.

The statistics scare me, 1 out of 2 men and 1 out of 3 women means too many friends and family will have to face cancer head on. Pediatric researchers and doctors shouldn’t have to fight for funds because children's cancer research is typically some of the least funded programs globally. We need to gain more ground, and your donations will directly impact those on the forefront of fighting pediatric cancers and creating drugs, therapies and advanced detection methods.

My ask of you is to contribute whatever you can to help me reach my goal. 100% of every dollar you donate goes directly to the research, the treatments, and together we will find a cure for cancer.

Together we can do the impossible, we can be the one in a billion, we can cure cancer!

Many thanks for your support in committing to a world without cancer!

Matt