Although it is sad to say, a majority of people have been affected by cancer in some way, either directly or indirectly. For me personally, my grandfather was a victim of brain cancer, and my grandmother is a survivor of lung cancer. The goal of the PMC for over 40 years has been to generate money to fund cancer research and eventually beat this disease for good. And 100% of donations made to Pan-Mass riders (no matter who you donate to) go directly to support the Jimmy Fund and Dana-Farber Cancer Institute's tireless commitment to finding a cure.
This is my 6th year riding in the PMC, and I will again be riding 160 miles over two days with Team Fear Nothing. Team Fear Nothing was originally started by the Griffin brothers after their father Stephen passed away from colorectal cancer. This team has consistently “restricted” their fundraising in order to contribute directly to research performed by Dr. Kimmie Ng, the oncologist who treated Stephen during his fight. All of the funds I raise this year will also be directed to Dr. Ng.
I have included below some links that further explain Kimmie's work to give you an idea of what your potential donation will be used to fund.
Thank you for your consideration in donating!
PMC 2024
The funds raised by Team Fear Nothing will be allocated to Dr. Kimmie Ng for her cancer research. She is a gastrointestinal oncologist at the Dana Farber Cancer Institute. As a clinical oncologist, she treats all GI cancers including colorectal, pancreatic, gastric, and esophageal amongst others. But as a translational scientist, her research work focuses on colorectal cancer and to a lesser extent pancreatic cancer. Below are some examples of how Team Fear Nothing funds have supported her work and future projects which will need help.
PMC IMPACT video https://vimeo.com/359115745
1. One of Dr. Ng's patients - Doron Broman - was diagnosed with metastatic pancreatic cancer and given a dismal prognosis of 6 months to live (the median survival of metastatic pancreatic cancer is 12 months). Kimmie's team sequenced his tumor (a very costly procedure which is mainly available at large research institutions) and found a BRCA mutation - most commonly known to be a hereditary mutation in breast cancer. He was treated with traditional chemotherapy but with an additional *targeted* drug specifically against this BRCA mutation. He's been disease free now for 6 years and is thriving. He went back to work as a real estate developer, taken up surfing, and looks great. This research was funded by philanthropy.
https://blog.dana-farber.org/insight/2017/04/attacking-a-weak-point-in-pancreatic-cancers-defense/
2. The Young-Onset Colorectal Cancer Center (YOCCC) at the DFCI (one of the first worldwide) celebrated its Third Year Anniversary in March of 2022. There has been a huge jump in the incidence of colorectal cancer in young patients (<50 yo) and slated to be the leading cause of cancer death in young patients. And the reasons for this are completely unknown.
Main goals for YOCCC
1. Provide a clinical and comprehensive support structure tailored for younger patients
2. Establish a cohort of patients in order to conduct multidisciplinary research to elucidate the reasons for the increase in incidence in order to better prevent and/or treat colorectal cancer
Currently there are almost 1000 patients in the center. As Kimmie looks to gather grant support for the Center, philanthropy will be needed to bridge the funding from the initial limited DFCI support.
Although a year has passed since we said goodbye to Chadwick Boseman and our own Pat Beuregard, we continue to celebrate our heroes.
Pat's story:
https://www.dana-farber.org/young-onset-colorectal-cancer-center/
https://www.boston25news.com/news/colon-cancer-rates-rising-in-young-adults/928133233/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ylLpNsTZSMM
Chadwick Boseman:
ABC: Tribute for a King - Part 3
Today Show: colon-cancer-is-on-the-rise-among-young-people
Today Show: Warning Signs of Colon Cancer
Screening:
https://www.conquer.org/news/screen-timing
3. Ongoing clinical trials that Dr. Ng has with Vitamin D and improved survival in metastatic colon cancer. The phase 2 SUNSHINE trial showed that Vitamin D (an inexpensive drug) can increase survival in metastatic colon cancer. The treatment effect is similar to targeted oncological drugs that the pharmaceutical companies sell for tens of thousands of dollars a month. The cost difference is literally less than pennies on the dollar compared to some of the current treatment armaments. The phase 3 (gold standard for clinical effectiveness) SOLARIS trial opened in September of 2019 and aims to confirm this finding in a larger cohort. Enrollment started strong with accrual reaching 50% quickly. However, the COVID pandemic has since hampered trial progression. Due to social distancing requirements and the shut down of the DFCI clinical trials office, enrollment was significantly decreased. Although there has been a return to pre pandemic office staffing, other pandemic related supply chain issues (such as shortage of CT contrast necessary to adequately perform staging scans). Currently, the study is about 367/400 accrued. Philanthropy will still be needed to run additional important studies from data generated from this phase 3 trial.
https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jama/fullarticle/2678617
4. The microbiome consists of the trillions of microorganisms that inhabit our body and has recently been recognized as playing important roles both in human health and disease. Changes in this microbiome are now suspected to be involved in cancer genesis and perhaps responsible in part for modulating the ability of the host patient to respond to treatment therapies. One of the projects of the Young Onset Colorectal Cancer Center will be exploring if the microbiome in these young patients is significantly different such that it predisposes them to cancer at an earlier age. Philanthropy currently supports the DFCI BioBank which is the repository for patient samples at the Center. Having this resource has paved the way for the DFCI to be selected by the Cancer Research UK foundation to participate in a multi-national team (including Johns Hopkins, University of Leeds, Oxford as well as other institutions from Barcelona, Netherlands, British Columbia, and Toronto) trying to elucidate any role that the microbiome plays in cancer. Dr. Ng was part of this cohort awarded one of three highly selective grant prizes, each totalling $25 million dollars.
https://cancergrandchallenges.org/teams/optimistic
5. We have learned how the COVID pandemic has laid bare the disparities in our healthcare system with those of color often being left behind. Cancer treatment for patients of color is not immune from these systemic barriers preventing access to care. The YOCCC is actively continuing conversations about these disparities in hopes of finding some solutions. The YOCCC invited Professor Ibram Kendi, a well known black scholar who is well known for his writings on how to be an anti-racist, to discuss his personal journey with metastatic young onset colorectal cancer and his perspective on race in the healthcare system. Philanthropic support allows the YOCCC to host this type of important programming for patients and family.
YOCCC patient forum: Ibram Kendi
GQ: pictorial story-the-scars-of-colon-cancer-surgery
GQ:story/what-every-guy-should-know-about-colon-cancer
