In a few weeks, I'm running the Falmouth Road Race to raise money for Dana Farber Cancer Institute/Children's Hospital's Brain Tumor Center. This cause hits very close to home for me. I lost my mother to a brain tumor 5 years ago. She was perfectly healthy and a few short months later she was gone. I did not think it could get worse than losing your mother to brain cancer but, unfortunately, my friends Mike and Meryl McClellan had to endure the same fight with their wonderful 8 year old daughter, Adelia, over the last year and half. The McClellan's asked me to join their Adelia the Wonder Girl team this year to raise money for Adelia's doctors and help find treatments so other families do not need to lose their children too soon. I'll be running in honor of my mom, in honor of Adelia, and in support of all families who desperately need more time with their loved ones.
Thank you for your support!
A message from The McClellans:
"When our daughter Adelia was diagnosed with Diffuse Midline Glioma, or DMG in February 2023, we were propelled into a world that needs our attention and support. We quickly learned how vastly underfunded pediatric cancer research is, and how promising breakthroughs in labs can never reach patients due to lack of funding. Or sometimes, a trial will be cut off due to lack of funding, causing patients to abruptly change their treatment plans.
Only 4% of all federal funding for cancer research is allocated for pediatric cancer research. And of that 4%, only 1% is allocated for pediatric brain cancer - amounting to a mere 0.04% of all federal funding for cancer research. For a condition that is the most common type of brain tumor in children under the age of 5, these numbers are startling.
Each year, 300 to 500 families in the United States receive the same diagnosis we did. And here's a fact that brings home the urgency of our mission: the only standard of care for DMG is radiation, a treatment that has remained unchanged since Neil Armstrong's daughter received her diagnosis in 1962.
We can, and we must, do better for our children."
Learn more about your donation will help: Dana Farber's Brain Tumor Center
Learn more about Adelia the Wonder Girl and how unbelievably strong she was: #AdeliaStrong and Adelia the Wonder Girl Facebook Group
