About Me

My Goal: Run the Boston Marathon on April 15, 2019 with the Dana-Farber Marathon Challenge. Raise $17,000 (or more!) where 100% of funds raised benefit the Claudia Adams Barr Program in Innovative Basic Cancer Research. I run in honor of my friend Chris Davie who is battling brain cancer. I also run in honor for my friend RJ and his continued cancer-free life, in memory of Heather Thomson, and for other family and friends who are or have battled cancer. Together we can help Dana-Farber Cancer Institute reach the ultimate finish line: a world without cancer

Barr Program Impact Statements

Barr Program Impact Statements

Immunotherapies: New Ways to Activate the Immune System—An important area of cancer research asks why the human body's defense systems do not always attack and destroy tumors as they form. Funded by the Claudia Adams Barr Program, Glenn Dranoff, MD, discovered complex regulatory pathways in the human immune system that cancers exploit in order to escape destruction. Reversal of these effects can lead to the development of vaccines against cancer, like Provenge for prostate cancer. This research has also enabled the development of immune-activating drugs such as ipilimumab, which showed striking effects in melanoma in a trial led by Dana-Farber scientists and is now approved by the Food and Drug Administration for treatment.

Saturday, April 25, 2015

Marathon Complete!

DFMC #4 and Boston 2015 are complete!  What started off as a great weekend with BAA events, family coming into town for the marathon and a good run on a rainy, windy day, ended with a wheelchair ride and using crutches the rest of the week.  I'll get to that in a bit but some pictures from the weekend...

We got to see Team Hoyt in the BAA 5K

We hit the BAA Expo to pick up our bibs and peruse the gear

We couldn't pass up a tasting of Sam Adams 26.2 Brew.  It was afternoon somewhere!

We walked by the sites of the bombings 2 years ago and ran for those affected by the bombings

Some nice weather and grabbing a quick photo near the John Hancock VIP seating area

The Team Fundraising chart - $4.5 Million raised so far!

Cards in Honor of RJ and in Memory of my Grandmother and Aunt

Premarathon Pic in Hopkinton

Last words of advice from Jack Fultz, our team coach and 1976 Boston Marathon winner

Starting corral in the rain and wind.  The first 13 miles were wet and chilly; the last 13 were windy and chilly

High-five line at Mile 25!

Stopping to see family just before the finish line.  You can't see it, but I was in a lot of pain at this point
The finish line on a nicer day and a sight that I was soooo happy to see!

One last photo after completing the marathon!
Thanks to more than 140 donors, we have raised more than $13,000 this year for DFMC and innovative cancer research at Dana-Farber.  These donations and this support was what helped me complete this year's marathon.  I knew that I might have some hip pain during the marathon, but looking back I'm not exactly sure how I completed the race.  With about 4 miles to go, I had to start alternating running with walking/limping.  Running through Mile 25 and exchanging ~50 high-fives with DFMC supporters I knew I would make it the final 1.2 miles.  I thought of RJ, my grandmother and all those that I ran in honor of and in memory of during these last few miles.  With these thoughts and the mile 25 energy motivating me, I ran all of Boylston St and crossed the finish line.  It wasn't pretty but I made it!

After finishing the race, the BAA medical staff gave me a nice wheelchair ride toward the DFMC hotel.  Training through a historic winter, running the marathon in the rain and wind and finishing with my 2nd fastest time in Boston (no idea how this happened!), 2015 is a year I won't forget.  Luckily my muscles are relaxing a bit and I can start to put some weight on my right leg now.  I hope to be off crutches soon, but don't think I'll be running for a few weeks/months.



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