WEEI/NESN Jimmy Fund Radio-Telethon: Recent Episodes
Audacy
Hear stories of hope and inspiration for a cancer-free future from the annual WEEI/NESN Jimmy Fund Radio-Telethon presented by Arbella Insurance.
During Red Sox Postgame, Will Flemming chats with Lisa Scherber to recap a record-setting two days of the Radio Telethon and how much more can be done with all these donations.
The President of Cape Cod Lumber Tom McManus joins to share the generous donation his company is making to The Jimmy Fund.
At the end of 2023, Brenna was experiencing foot pain. She had physical therapy, but in June 2024, her foot swelled and imaging and a biopsy in August showed Ewing sarcoma diagnosis. Brenna’s cancer treatments included chemotherapy and radiation, which were completed this past spring. Brenna loves playing volleyball and field hockey. She loves to craft, shop, and hang out with her friends. Brenna is going into eighth grade this fall.
BFCU was established in 1947 by a group of Boston Firefighters who saw a need to help each other with safe and affordable financial services. Today the credit union serves all first responders in Massachusetts and that small group has grown to now almost 12,000 members strong. BFCU is proud to be the only credit union in Massachusetts that is exclusively dedicated to serving first responders and their families.Karla McCarron has been the Director of Marketing for Boston Firefighters Credit Union since April 2024. She has spent over 3 decades in credit union marketing in the Boston area. Karla is also a breast Cancer survivor and current patient at Dana Farber Cancer Institute. She was diagnosed April 1, 2021 with ER positive and Triple Negative Overlapping site.
Gayle O'Connell, the EVP and CMO of Arbella insurance joins with a 100,000 dollar donation.
Craig Breslow joins to talk about what the Jimmy Fund means to the Red Sox organization.
Tony Rose, a 75 year old battling Kidney cancer joins with his family to talk about his story
Ali Kelleher and her family join as well as Dr. Hal Burnstein to share her journey battling breast cancer
Derek Lowe joins to share his story and what the Jimmy Fund means to former players as well as share some old stories from his playing days.
Brittany Kee, her husband Ricky and two kids Amelia and Dylan join to share how Dana-Farber has helped them with their battle against cancer.
Kevin Martin, a 62 year old cancer patient details his journey with cancer and how he continues to run marathons.
Red Sox manager and Celtics head coach Joe Mazzulla share what the Jimmy Fund means to them
Ted Komenda, a 54 year old melanoma patient is joined by Beth Buchbinder to share his story.
Kevin Tronkowski. a 56 year old Rectal Cancer patient is joined by his wife and Dr. Ben Schlechter
20 year old B-cell acute lymphoblastic Leukemia patient Martina Reardon joins to share her story
Christopher Lathan, MD, Chief Clinical Access Officer, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute● Dr. Christopher Lathan is the Chief Clinical Access Officer at Dana-Farber, foundingDirector of the Cancer Care Access Program and a clinical oncologist focusing on lungcancer.● His research is centered on the effects of race, class, and access to care in canceroutcomes, including racial disparities in lung cancer treatment, differences in accessto precision medicine by race and social class and equitable distribution of newtreatment across historically marginalized populations.● Dr. Lathan aims to bridge the gap between research in disparities and the realities ofpatient care by developing interventions to increase access to high quality care,developed in part through community engagement.
Wyatt Amaral, 9 months old, glioma, Whitman,with parents Becca and Denis Amaral● When Wyatt was 3 months old, his parents noticed that his head was rapidlygrowing. His head grew from the 17thpercentile to the 99thpercentile. X-raysrevealed he had tumors in his brain. His treatment has included multiple surgeriesand chemotherapy and he is expected to complete treatment in July of next year.Today he is tumor free.● Wyatt enjoys developing new skills like standing and jumping, playing with his 4 cats.He loves trying new foods and salmon is his favorite food. He has twin cousins whohe enjoys playing with as well.● His parents are so appreciative of the Jimmy Fund Clinic for all of their support andhelp throughout a difficult process.
Emily Bailey, nurse navigator, Jimmy Fund Clinic, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, and Amelia “Mia”McDonough, nurse, Jimmy Fund Clinic, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute● Emily graduated from University of North Carolina Wilmington in 2018. She has been a nursefor eight years transitioning from the population of adult solid tumor oncology to pediatriconcology.● At the Jimmy Fund Clinic, she is solid tumor nurse navigator. As a nurse navigator, she assistswith guiding young patients and their families through the complex cancer diagnosis andtreatment. They coordinate care and provide continuous education and support.● In her free time, Emily enjoys running and will be running the Boston Half presented byDana-Farber and Jimmy Fund in November.About Mia McDonough● Amelia grew up in Dedham and graduated from Villanova University in Pennsylvania. She’shad multiple family members treated at Dana-Farber as adult patients and always knewDana-Farber was a special place.● Amelia joined the Jimmy Fund Clinic as a nurse in 2024. In the infusion room, she hasanywhere from four to six patients per day - they maybe getting chemotherapy, bloodproducts, or coming in for sick visits. She is responsible for coordinating with their providersto make sure they get all they need while they're in the infusion chair.
MacFarlane Energy Founder, Peter MacFarlane, was born in Boston's South End in 1919. Son to a widowed mother of three, Peter began working in the oil business at the age of 12. He worked part time, after school, delivering oil in five-gallon cans. Following his service in the Pacific Theatre of World War II, Peter returned to the oil business he had worked for before the war. In 1946, he purchased the business and established Peter MacFarlane Oil Inc.When Peter MacFarlane passed away in 1987 his son Scott took over operations. A Needham resident, Scott works alongside his wife of 50 years, Cathy, and son Scott E.Scott’s dedication to philanthropy includes giving back to the communities his company serves by supporting local non-profit organizations including the Light Foundation, South Shore YMCA, The Home for Little Wanderers, The Salvation Army, The Charles River Center, CCALS (Compassionate Care ALS), Dana Farber, Boston Centers for Youth & Families, and others.
For four years, starting in 2012, John was under active surveillance for elevated PSA levels. Biopsy and other tests confirmed a prostate cancer diagnosis. At the time of his diagnosis, John was Dana-Farber's Vice President of Finance. He has since retired.Two years after his diagnosis, a second biopsy indicated faster progression. John underwent surgery to remove his prostate, but his cancer had spread. John’s treatment included hormone and radiation therapy, and active monitoring. John was in remission for a year when his PSA levels came back elevated, and his cancer returned. John underwent more treatment and active monitoring. John completed radiation last September.
Bob Eddy is chairman of the board, president and chief executive officer of the company. Mr. Eddy joined the company in 2007 as senior vice president, finance and was named executive vice president and chief financial officer in 2011 and served as executive vice president, chief financial and administrative officer from 2018 to April 2021 when he joined the board of directors and became president and chief executive officer. Mr. Eddy was named chairman of the board in June 2023. Prior to joining BJ’s, Mr. Eddy served retail and consumer products companies as a member of the audit and business advisory practice of PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP, in Boston and San Francisco. Mr. Eddy is a graduate of Babson College in Wellesley, Massachusetts, and Phillips Academy in Andover, Massachusetts.Mr. Eddy currently serves as chairman of the board of directors and executive committee of the National Retail Federation and as a member of the board of trustees of the Boston Children’s Hospital Trust. In September 2023, he became a director of Dick’s Sporting Goods. From 2013 to 2017, Mr. Eddy chaired the Financial Executives Council of the National Retail Federation. He is also a member of the College Advisory Board for Babson College.
Frank Martin explains how his battle with colon cancer inspired him to get involved with The Jimmy Fund.
Lisa Scherber has worked in the Jimmy Fund Clinic for over 30 years. Lisa and her team are responsible for the programs that help take the patients and their families minds off of the treatment. In the past, they hosted a Summer Festival, Winterfest, Teen Red Sox Spring Training Trips, and Girls’ Weekend. They also plan programs for parents whose children are being treated at the Jimmy Fund Clinic, and for siblings of patients in treatment.
In March 2024, Roman had an upset stomach and high fever. He was feeling worse and his parents took him to a local hospital. Tests were negative, but his mom, Heather, pushed for more tests. When his blood work results came in, Roman was diagnosed with ALL at age 4. Roman is in treatment now, and has nine more months to go. He loves action figures, playing with cars, baseball, basketball, and spending time with his two sisters Mila (8) and Georgie (1).
Trot Nixon felt the impact of The Jimmy Fund throughout his time with the Red Sox. He is grateful for the support from The Jimmy Fund and Dana-Farber as his father battles with cancer. He also feels something in the air with the 2025 Red Sox.
Dr. Ghobrial is the Senior Vice President for Experimental Medicine, Director of the Center for Early Detection and Interception of Blood Cancers, Co-Leader of the Lymphoma/Myeloma Cancer Center Program, Lavine Family Chair for Preventative Cancer Therapies, Director of the Ghobrial Lab, and Professor of Medicine at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and Harvard Medical School. Her research focuses on precursor conditions of multiple myeloma, aiming to understand genetic, epigenetic, and immune mechanisms of disease progression, identify novel biomarkers, and develop therapies to eliminate disease before progression. She has led 15+ clinical trials in Waldenstrom macroglobulinemia and multiple myeloma precursor conditions. Dr. Ghobrial received her MD in 1995 from Cairo University School of Medicine, Egypt. She completed her Internal Medicine training at Wayne State University, Mich., and her Hematology/Oncology subspecialty training at Mayo Clinic College of Medicine, Minn. She joined Dana-Farber in the field of Waldenstrom's macroglobulinemia and multiple myeloma in 2005.
Benjamin L. Ebert, MD, PhD, is president and CEO of Dana-Farber Cancer Institute. He is also Director of Dana-Farber/Harvard Cancer Center and the Richard and Susan Smith Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School. Dr. Ebert is an elected member of the National Academy of Medicine, the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, the American Society for Clinical Investigation, the Association of American Physicians, and the Academy of the American Association for Cancer Research. He served as president of the American Society for Clinical Investigation in 2017. He currently serves on the Board of Directors for the Broad Institute and Break Through Cancer. Dr. Ebert received a bachelor's degree from Williams College and a doctorate from Oxford University as a Rhodes Scholar in the laboratory of Sir Peter Ratcliffe. He completed an M.D. from Harvard Medical School, a residency in internal medicine at Massachusetts General Hospital, and a fellowship in hematology/oncology at Dana-Farber.
Fitzy sits down with Vinny Del Negro who breaks down Dana-Farber's impact on his family after his mother was diagnosed with small cell lung cancer.
Hadley had a cough that would not go away. She was tired and lethargic. When the cough lingered for three-to-four weeks, her pediatrician thought it was pneumonia and ordered imaging. Hadley’s chest x-ray showed a mass and she was diagnosed with T-Cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia last August. Hadley is currently in treatment. Her treatment includes infusions, lumbar punctures, spinal taps, and medication. She has one year left of her treatment. Hadley loves Opry, Dana-Farber's support dog. Hadley is starting first grade next month she loves riding on her scooter, arts and crafts – especially coloring and drawing and follows artwork on “Art for Kids” on YouTube, she likes to swim, watching “Bluey,” and loves elephants and Opry the dog (Dana-Farber's facility dog). Following in her older sister’s footsteps, she is starting cheerleading in the fall.
During a routine chiropractic appointment, Taylor learned she had developed masses around her collarbone. Her primary care doctor ordered tests and sent her to the hospital for more testing, where she was diagnosed with Hodgkin lymphoma last Christmas Eve. Taylor went on the Jimmy Fund Clinic’s Spring Training Trip and Jimmy Fund Clinic's Boston Weekend. Taylor finished her last chemotherapy in May. She is starting her senior year of high school this year and she enjoys gardening, camping, and animals.
Jim had a rash and shortness of breath. A chest X-rays revealed cavities (fistulas) in his chest. Blood draws and a bone marrow biopsy confirmed a multiple myeloma diagnosis. Originally living in Georgia, Jim didn’t hesitate to come home to New England when it he needed cancer treatment — traveling back to Massachusetts to be seen at Dana-Farber. Jim began treatment with RVD and reached remission within six months. Jim is still in treatment today and receives reduced-dose therapy 21 days a month. Jim considers music part of his therapy. He plays in a band on Cape Cod, where he now lives with his wife, just a few doors down from his mom. A lifelong guitarist, he’s been with this band since 2020 and describes his passion as “making noise with great people.” After certification in Internal Medicine, Hematology and Medical Oncology, as well as working in Cancer Pharmacology and stem cell transplant from 1994 onwards at Dana-Farber. Dr. Richardson joined the Jerome Lipper Myeloma Center in 1999, was appointed Clinical Director in 2001, and led the study and development of several pivotal novel drugs including thalidomide, lenalidomide, bortezomib, pomalidomide, panobinostat, daratumumab, elotuzumab, and ixazomib. In this context, Dr. Richardson was appointed the inaugural RJ Corman Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School in 2012, and then became Clinical Program Leader and Director of Clinical Research in 2014.
Former Red Sox utility man and Co-Chair of The Jimmy Fund Brock Holt joins the show. Holt says he is still growing in his new position, but he loves the city of Boston and has seen the impact The Jimmy Fund has firsthand. He breaks down his favorite moments in Boston, and more.
Bruins CEO Charlie Jacobs joins on Day One of the WEEI/NESN Jimmy Fund Radio-Telethon. Jacobs talks about new Bruins Head Coach Marco Sturm and how the team wants to reinvent their identity in 2025.
Derek is a childhood leukemia survivor and was one of the first Jimmy Fund patients treated at age 2. He received spinal taps, bone marrow transplants, and radiation. His cancer cleared in the early 1980s. Years later, Derek was diagnosed with rectal and esophageal cancer. His care team believes the full-body radiation treatment he received as a child in the mid-1970s led to recurrence as an adult. Derek’s treatment includes chemotherapy, radiation, rectal reconstruction, and rehabilitation due to surgical complications. Derek is also diagnosed with cerebral palsy and uses a wheelchair. Today, the rectal tumor shows no evidence of disease, and the esophageal tumor has shrunk. Despite challenges, Derek is working to regain independence. Derek is a 1982 graduate of Brookline High School where he kept track of the baseball team’s books and traveled with them to games. His high school classmates included Theo Epstein and Sam Kennedy. Derek is a lifelong fan of the Red Sox and especially loved the 2004 season. At a Red Sox game last summer, Derek threw out the first pitch. Dr. Jackson earned a Bachelor of Science in Nursing from the University of Pennsylvania in 1998. She went on to earn both a Master's in Public Health (2002) and medical degree (2003) from Johns Hopkins University Bloomberg School of Public Health and School of Medicine, respectively. She completed residency in internal medicine at Johns Hopkins Hospital in 2006 and fellowship in clinical hematology and oncology at Dana-Farber/Partners CancerCare in 2009. She joined the staff of Dana-Farber and Brigham and Women’s Hospital in 2009 where she is a medical oncologist and clinical investigator. Her research is focused on improving health and treatment outcomes for older patients with cancer.
Red Sox play-by-play broadcaster Will Flemming joins Jones and Keefe on day one of the WEEI/NESN Jimmy Fund Radio-Telethon. Will thinks the Red Sox low leverage relievers need to be better. He also thinks Garrett Crochet can win the Cy Young award this season, and prospects like Payton Tolle could help the Major League team this season.
Last fall, Greg got an MRI after a high PSA reading. The scan showed probable cancer in various parts of his prostate and an unknown area around his hip. A biopsy revealed an aggressive form of prostate cancer and he moved his cared to Dana-Farber. Greg is currently in treatment. His treatments include hormonal therapy and radiation. Greg had surgery in early July for sarcoma. Greg’s father was a prostate cancer survivor 25 years ago. Greg works at a small software company in the North End for the past ten years and loves going to Red Sox games with his wife, Alma, and two children, Emilia and Daniel.
Deb is a co-owner of Howes Products along with husband Robert Howes, and children Erika and Rob Howes II. Deb has been heavily involved at Howes for well over 30 years. She has taken on many roles and responsibilities within the business over the years, but one of the most rewarding has been serving as the heart of Howes. Deb upholds the Howes core values, and always demonstrates traits such as honesty, loyalty, trustworthiness, and strength. Over the years, Deb has formed a true bond with all Howes employees and makes everyone within the company feel like family. By always having an open ear and giving selfless support to others, she inspires everyone to put their best foot forward. She sincerely cares for each and every individual. Deb puts her heart and soul into the business day in and day out. Her efforts have helped the company become everything it is today, and she has set a wonderful example for future generations to follow. Erika is a fifth-generation family member of Howes Products, leading developers of the highest quality additives and lubricants. Born and raised in Rhode Island, Erika has grown up in and around the family owned and operated business, participating in various and assorted ways all throughout her youth. Officially, she has worked in different areas of the company for nearly 20 years. She is currently the V.P. of Business Development and oversees many of the company’s marketing initiatives. She spearheads the company’s social media efforts, running the Howes Facebook and Instagram pages. In addition to being the main copywriter for the company, Erika can be heard on the radio as the voice of the Howes. She is also the Commissioner of the Howes Hall of Fame. Jed is a recent addition to Howes Products. He grew up in Rhode Island and joined the Air Force which had him stationed in Tucson, AZ. After over 15 years as a chemist in material science, he returned to RI recently to spend time with his mother who sadly passed during Covid. Jed was brought in as a QC Chemist specializing in Quality and R&D.
Olivia was having severe pain in her leg that didn't go away. Her doctor recommended an MRI to investigate further and testing revealed that it was leukemia. The journey has been incredibly difficult for her family, but they have stayed positive with help and support from the Jimmy Fund Clinic staff, doctors and nurse teams. Olivia is slated to finish treatment in another 1.5 years. In her spare time, she loves playing outside, especially baseball with her brother. She also loves playing video games with her cousin. Olivia has the best sense of humor with a very bright spirit.
In fall 2012, Wolfram noticed a growing pimple on his right cheek. He saw his dermatologist who treated it with antibiotics and steroid injections. When the pimple continued to grow, a biopsy led to a diagnosis of angiosarcoma. Wolfram’s cancer treatment includes chemotherapy, surgery (which took the right half of his face), radiation, another surgery following a recurrence that took the left half of his face, immunotherapy He’s had , facial reconstructive surgery to allow him to eat, speak, and be seen in public, and has been part in a clinical trial. He remains in treatment, wrote a book about his experiences and was featured in a documentary. Dr. Andrew Wagner is medical director of ambulatory oncology and a senior physician in the Sarcoma Center at Dana-Farber, and an associate professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School. Dr. Wagner earned his medical degree from the University of Chicago, completed his residency in internal medicine at Brigham and Women’s Hospital, and completed a fellowship in hematology and oncology at the Dana-Farber Brigham Cancer Center.
Kate’s journey with cancer started 30 years ago when her mother passed away from breast cancer at age 58. Her mother’s doctors in New York City felt it wasn’t familial, but genetic testing in 2018 revealed Kate was positive for a breast cancer gene mutation; her sister was negative. Kate opted for aggressive preventative care, including a mastectomy and ovary removal in 2019. This was contrary to her mother’s approach, who always chose the least aggressive treatments during her two-year journey with cancer. In early 2023, Kate started experiencing shoulder pain. She was an avid racquet ball player, but knew this pain was different, because it affected everyday movements. After a CT scan, she was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. Kate is undergoing chemotherapy. Kate is slowly integrating back into her old hobbies and habits like racquet sports, painting, and being around friends and family. Kate worked as a school counselor for 18 years before retiring during the pandemic. She’s supported by her husband, her twin children, her sister, and her sister’s twin children. Dr. Giannakis received his undergraduate degree from the University of Toronto in 2001 and his medical and doctoral degrees from Washington University School of Medicine in 2009. He subsequently completed his Internal Medicine residency at Brigham and Women’s Hospital and his fellowship in Medical Oncology and Hematology at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute.
After seeing blood in his urine, Angel went to the doctor and was diagnosed with metastatic upper tract urothelial cancer. The primary tumor was on his right kidney and had spread to his bones. Angel had surgery to remove his kidney, and received chemotherapy, radiation, scans, biopsies, and he will soon begin a new chemotherapy. Angel was a chemistry professor for 35 years at the University of Miami before retiring in 2021. He’s married with four children and enjoys reading, cooking, and playing and watching sports in his free time. Dr. Bellmunt specializes in treating prostate, bladder, and kidney cancers and has led major clinical trials that helped bring new treatments, particularly immunotherapies, to patients with bladder cancer.
Charlie Davies breaks down his soccer comeback after being involved in a car accident, and how his recovery and support of his wife and children led to discovering he had Liposarcoma. He has been an avid supporter of Dana-Farber and The Jimmy Fund.
Heather was diagnosed with lung cancer in January 2012 and was enrolled in a clinical trial at Dana-Farber. She spent four years on the clinical trial, benefiting from Dana-Farber’s strength at bringing groundbreaking research from the lab to the bedside. Now 14 years after her diagnosis, Heather is thriving and living a full life along the coast of Maine, where she enjoys beading, walking, and joking that she’s “sort of interesting.” Dr. Jänne received his MD and PhD from the University of Pennsylvania in 1996. He completed postgraduate training in internal medicine at Brigham and Women's Hospital and in medical oncology at DFCI in 2001.
Dan Shaughnessy has watched The Jimmy Fund evolve throughout his time in Boston sports media. He also is confident that the Red Sox are a playoff team this season.
In fall 2020, Jason experienced GI symptoms and saw his doctor. Jason was diagnosed with Stage II colon cancer and six months later, he was diagnosed with Stage III rectal cancer. His doctors recommended that Jason undergo genetic testing to determine if his cancer was inherited due to a cancer-causing genetic mutation. Tests confirmed that Jason has Lynch Syndrome, an inherited condition that increases one’s risk for a variety of cancers. Lynch Syndrome increases the lifetime risk of colorectal cancer by up to 80 percent. Dr. Matt Yurgelun is a medical oncologist and cancer genetics specialist at Dana-Farber, where he evaluates and cares for individuals with a wide variety of GI cancers. He also serves as the Director of Dana-Farber's Lynch Syndrome Center, that evaluates people and families with known or suspected Lynch Syndrome, including the oversight and development of personalized cancer preventative care plans for people with Lynch Syndrome.
Anne Gross, PhD, RN, FAAN, Senior Vice President of Patient Care Services, ChiefNursing Officer, Ning Zhao Chair of Nursing, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute● Anne is responsible for adult and pediatric nursing across all care sites atDana-Farber, The Phyllis F. Cantor Center for Research in Nursing and Patient CareServices, and the Center for Clinical and Professional Development. She alsooversees a variety of other clinical services, patient and family programs, andVolunteer Services.● Since joining Dana-Farber in 2002, she has led implementations of a primary nursingcare model and a residency training program for newly licensed nurses and hassecured funding for programs and research to support inclusion, diversity and equity,positive practice environments, and self-care and renewal programs. She also isinvolved in committees, boards, and initiatives nationally and internationally and is aFellow in the American Academy of Nursing.
BC HC Bill O'Brien joins, challenges Belichick to UNC vs. BC at Gillette, talks personal experience with cancer and the Jimmy Fund
Red Sox President Sam Kennedy joins, talks road woes, last leg playoff push, and of course the giant impact of the Jimmy Fund
Christian Mayo, 17, Ewing sarcoma, Buzzards Bay, with his Mom Debbie Mayo● Christian was having leg pain during his basketball tryouts in 2023. Doctors thought itwas a sports injury, but testing revealed sarcoma.● His treatment has included chemotherapy, radiation, and surgery to remove thetumor.● Christian went on the Jimmy Fund Clinic’s Spring Training Trip.● Christian is now cancer free! He loves to play basketball and lacrosse.● His family is very grateful to the Jimmy Fund Clinic for saving his life and he is veryexcited to be at Fenway today.
Jeanine Rundquist (JUH-NEEN RUND-QWIST), DNP, RN, NEA-BC, Dana-Farber Cancer Institutewith Jolie Bellemore (JO-LEEN BELL-MORE), BSN, RN, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute● Dr. Jeanine Rundquist is executive director of Dana-Farber's Center for Clinical andProfessional Development which provides programs for nursing education andprofessional development, a newly licensed nurse residency program, oncologyfellowship, patient education, nursing quality, resiliency and well-being. Dr.Rundquist received her bachelor’s degree in nursing from North Dakota StateUniversity in 1995, her master's degree in nursing, Leadership, and Education fromthe University of Phoenix in 2002, and her Doctor of Nursing Practice, AdvancedLeadership in Healthcare from Regis University in 2014.About Jolie Bellemore● Jolie Bellemore, RN is a newly licensed nurse in Dana-Farber's Oncology NurseResidency Program, a 12-month transition to practice program that providesoncology-focused clinical education, mentorship, and hands-on training tailored tothe needs of complex patient populations. She is one of two inaugural members onthe pediatric track, training to become a pediatric infusion nurse at the Jimmy FundClinic.● While attending Northeastern University, where she earned her Bachelor of Sciencein Nursing in May 2024, Jolie completed a six-month internship as a clinical assistantat the Jimmy Fund Clinic.
Rob Hale, President and CEO of Granite Telecommunications and a co-founder of Copley Equity Partners promises a 1 MILLION dollar match for donations!
Lisa Scherber sits down with Joe Weil and Joe Castiglione to discuss the 2024 the Jimmy Fund Radio-Telethon. She also shares the different ways in which the Jimmy Fund is working to help children battling cancer.
Porter discusses the Jimmy Fund and what it means to him, and the city of Boston being a selling point for free agents. Boston is a hungry soccer city, time to build the Revs a new stadium!
· During the summer in 2022, Emelie was swimming with her siblings, Olivia and Liam. When they came inside for lunch, Emelie screamed and cried from pain. Her family took her to the local emergency room where it was confirmed she had masses on her kidneys. The family went to Boston where Emelie was diagnosed with Bilateral Wilms Tumors, a form of kidney cancer. Within 24 hours, Emelie had a port put in and began her first round of chemotherapy.
· Starting August 2022, Emelie underwent 12 weeks of chemotherapy to shrink the tumors on her kidneys, leaving her with half of her right kidney and two-thirds of her left. Emelie’s last round of chemotherapy was in February 2023. She visited the Jimmy Fund Clinic on a monthly basis for blood work, and prescription renewal until end of May 2023, when she graduated to quarterly visits and scans.
· Emelie enjoys swimming, playing with her brother and sister, and all kinds of crafts. This past summer, Emelie was a patient partner with Homegoods and HomeSense and designed artwork for their annual bag campaign to raise money for the Jimmy Fund and Dana-Farber. Her bag designs included an underwater scene with fish and turtles, and a panda bear eating a watermelon. Emelie is going to enter second grade in the fall.
· When Leilani was 4 months old, they noticed a lump in her neck. Her pediatrician ordered an x-ray, which revealed several tumors, including in her chest.
· Her treatment has included chemotherapy as well as surgery to remove tumors.
· Her family is enjoying a treatment-free summer ahead of her upcoming scans in September. They are hoping to be cancer-free for the first time.
· Leilani remains vibrant and happy; despite everything she has been through.
· Leilani’s parents are both former military helicopter pilots (Chris, for the Marine Corps and Liz, for the Navy).
Mason was experiencing back pain that continued for three months. Then one day, Mason couldn’t walk or get out of his bed. His family took him to the hospital where he was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia in March of this year.
· Mason’s treatments have been tough, and they’re expected to last for two years as he continues to need many procedures and chemotherapy.
· Mason loves baseball, golf, and swimming. He is in pre-K.
Calista had aches and pains in her legs, lower back, and shoulder. In July 2023, she developed a fever which continued for a week, accompanied by fatigue, severe lower back and stomach pain and difficulty lifting her arms. She had lab work done to rule out viruses and infections. Her family took Calista to the emergency room where lab work confirmed acute lymphoblastic leukemia in July of last year.
· Calista began chemotherapy treatment. During one cycle in October 2023, she was “off,” and her family reported this to her team. Doctors discovered a blood clot in her brain due to a rare side effect from one of her chemotherapies. Calista is still in treatment and undergoes chemotherapy, a lumbar puncture every nine weeks, and medications. She is expected to finish her treatment in August/September 2025.
· Calista is a huge hockey fan and used to be a goalie. She hopes to return to the ice soon. She loves to craft, cook, swim, go to the beach, and spend time with her three dogs: Charlie, Cocoa, and Cleo.
Max was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia in 2014. His doctors
thought he was having recurrent ear infections and then they noticed his stomach had become distended. His pediatrician suggested blood work, which revealed leukemia.
· His treatment included chemotherapy, and he is slated to complete treatment in
September.
· Max enjoys lacrosse, soccer, video games, skiing and sailing, and he’s looking
forward to starting seventh grade.
The family thinks the Jimmy Fund Clinic is filled with especially caring doctors,
nurses and staff who always do their best to ensure that families are safe and
comfortable.
Sarah Laffey, 27, neuroblastoma, Charlestown
· In 2015, Sarah’s right eye swelled shut and she went to the hospital in Colorado, where she was living at the time. She was having lower back pain as well so the doctors did a CT scan, which revealed neuroblastoma.
· Her treatment has included chemotherapy, immunotherapy, and radiation. She has had several remissions and relapses and is currently in active treatment.
· Sarah is singing the national anthem before tonight’s game.
· Sarah is a huge Red Sox fan. She also loves the Patriots, baking, and playing video games. She works as a caterer.
Nick Pivetta speaks on how much the Jimmy Fund means to the Red Sox players and staff, and more!
Kristen Van de Geer was living in Alaska, where her husband was stationed in the Coast Guard, and was experiencing stomach pains. As a teenager, she was diagnosed with irritable bowel syndrome or IBS, but with a family history of colon cancer and her mother’s passing in 2017 from gallbladder cancer, she wanted to be sure that nothing else was wrong. For 5 years, she was given different reasons for her stomach pains but never referred for the colonoscopy. Eventually, Kristin got her gallbladder removed.
· In 2022 a doctor agreed to perform a colonoscopy too. A single “wonky polyp” was discovered which led to a rectal cancer diagnosis in early 2023.
· Now living in Massachusetts, Kristen followed a chemotherapy treatment plan and had two surgeries: one to remove the polyp and one for a resection. Kristen’s focus on seeking and embracing joy during treatment helped her through the most difficult times. She is grateful for the unwavering support of her husband, her sisters, and extended friends and family who showed up for her - and still show up - in the most beautiful ways.
· For the past 8 months, she has been out of treatment and feeling better. Kristen’s diagnosis encouraged her three sisters to seek screenings as well. One sister was able to catch an advanced polyp that doctors estimated was within months of turning cancerous. Through genetic testing, which her sister Juliette received first, it was discovered that three of them have a genetic mutation that makes them more likely to be diagnosed with colon cancer. Kristen feels grateful for the genetic testing options provided at Dana-Farber, both to her and her sisters.
Kristen loves crocheting stuffed animals, like highland cows and mermaids and advocates for screening awareness to anyone who will listen
Sponsor Find Mass Money.gov's representative Deb Goldberg states how much the Jimmy Fund means to her and her collogues.
Following a typical, fun night out with friends Ryan woke up the next morning with severe stomach pains. He went to urgent care the same morning where scans revealed several masses in his stomach. Additional biopsies confirmed that Ryan had Desmoplastic Small Round Cell Tumor or DSRCT, a type of sarcoma that forms in the body’s connective tissue.
· This past November, Ryan started his treatment regime of 2-day and 5-day increments on a biweekly basis. Since then, he’s completed 8 of 14 planned rounds of chemotherapy and 2 surgeries. Once he finishes chemotherapy, he’ll have an additional 28 days of radiation.
· Ryan graduated with his bachelor’s degree from Bridgewater State University in 2021 and now works as an Account Executive for the public relations firm, Spectrum Science. Outside of work, he enjoys traveling, trying new restaurants, and hanging out with his friends and family.
He talks about his family and how important it is for him to keep everyone happy. Also, his goals and a season outlook for the Boston Red Sox.
· Cecilia was diagnosed with optical pathways glioma in November 2023. Her mom had noticed that one of her eyes was moving differently than the other eye. Her pediatrician sent her to the hospital where doctors discovered a tumor in her eye.
· Cecilia’s treatment has included chemotherapy and surgery.
· Her mom, April, homeschools Cecilia and her three siblings, Xavier (9), Ricky (6) and Felix (5)
· Cecilia loves going to the beach, boogie boarding, swimming and riding her bike.
· Their family thinks the Jimmy Fund Clinic is so special because they go above and beyond in all that they do. Cecilia especially loves the toy room and crafts at the Jimmy Fund Clinic.
Before cancer touched Robb, it impacted his family when both his mother and father were diagnosed with the disease. In 2013, Robb’s mother was diagnosed with T-Cell Lymphoma and treated at Dana-Farber, by Dr. Philippe Armand, before passing gracefully in 2017. Three months later, Robb’s father was diagnosed with bladder cancer and began treatment with Dr. Brad McGregor at Dana-Farber as well.
· Recently, when a large mass was discovered on Robb’s kidney, he knew he wanted to receive treatment from the same doctor who cared for his father. Before coming in to see Dr. McGregor, Robb was told that initial CT scans of his abdominal and chest area showed signs of possible metastasis from the kidney to his upper respiratory system. Robb met with Dr. McGregor who felt Robb was showing signs of sarcoidosis, not metastasis. Sarcoidosis is an inflammatory disease causing the immune system to overreact and sarcoid-like reactions associated with kidney cancer are rare.
· Based on Dr. McGregor’s evaluation, a thoracic surgeon removed some of the lymph nodes from Robb’s upper-chest area, which confirmed he had sarcoidosis and not metastatic disease.
· A separate biopsy confirmed that Robb had Stage 3 Clear Cell Renal Cell Carcinoma, so his right kidney was removed. Robb is now waiting to begin immunotherapy and potentially join a clinical trial.
· In his free time, Robb loves to golf, listen to music, play guitar and spend time on the lake in New Hampshire with his family. He’s supported by his wife, Jennifer, and his 3 children, Ethan, Lily and Grace who are all currently college students.
Nicole Olivera:
● 7 Years worked for Flynn Applebee’s
● General Manager of Westfield, MA Applebee’s
● Store raised $3100 for Jimmy Fund
● In 2000, my grandmother was diagnosed with lymphoma. She was treated at St. Elizabeth's Hospital in Brighton and at some point the Hematology-Oncology Department at Dana Farber took over. She received chemotherapy and radiation and at the end of her treatment she was in remission. She was 68 years old - due to the treatment she received and the dedication of the Dana Farber team she lived to be 91.
In January 2018, at 8 months old while living in Puerto Rico, Lia suddenly lost movement and sensation from her hips down. She began treatment in Puerto Rico, but their experience wasn't the best, and one of the doctors told Lia’s mom that her tumor was very rare. Her mom conducted research and learned that Dana-Farber was one of the best places to be treated.
Lia is in a clinical trial for the second time. Oral medication twice a day, the same medicine/treatment she used from 2018 -2020.
Julibeth has no words that can describe what Lia has been through, but Lia is always excited when she knows she's having an appointment, she feels safe, she feels happy, and for the entire family seeing her like that make them happy. The Jimmy Fund
Clinic is her special place, around people that love, care and always want what is best for her and her family.
Lia loves to draw, paint, dance, play pretend, Bluey, and unicorns. · Lia will be saying “Play Ball” at tonight’s game.
Phaedra was 14 years old and sitting in her high school nurse’s office. The nurse noticed her pupils were dilated different sizes and called Phaedra’s mom, recommending she get checked out by a doctor. At the hospital, it was discovered that they had a benign tumor, which was promptly resected. Scans a few years later at 17 indicated that there were no signs of the cancer coming back.
Dr. Kimberly Perez, MD is a member of the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute/Harvard Cancer Center Gastrointestinal Oncology and Cancer Genetics and Prevention disease centers. She is a Senior Physician in Medical Oncology at Dana-Farber, an Associate Physician in Medical Oncology at Brigham and Women’s Hospital, co-Director of the Dana-Farber Gastrointestinal Clinical Trials program, and an Assistant Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School.
Jenn Perry discovered her breast cancer like many women do: finding a lump. She had a biopsy which confirmed a tumor. But Jenn is not like most breast cancer patients and survivors. Jenn has an inherited genetic syndrome known as Li-Fraumeni Syndrome (LFS).
When Jenn was treated for breast cancer, she didn’t know what LFS was. She just knew there were a number of relatives in her family who had cancer, including her mother who lost her life to breast cancer. She underwent genetic testing to see if her cancer was caused by genetics and she learned that it was.
Jenn felt she would get the best care at Dana-Farber, especially being pre-disposed to multiple different cancers from LFS. Dana-Farber is home to one of the only LFS Centers in the country. The knowledge that her cancer was caused by an inherited condition, while empowering in some ways, gave rise to a more difficult question – could her daughters also have LFS and should they undergo genetic testing. When the timing was right, both her daughters underwent genetic testing revealing that they both have LFS. Her oldest daughter Samantha was diagnosed with breast cancer this year.
Jenn does not let breast cancer slow her down and takes a glass half-full approachto life. Her passion is competitive show jumping in the equestrian world.
Jenn also serves as president of the Li-Fraumeni Syndrome Association, an organization dedicated to a world without genetic cancers.
Jenn is married to her best friend and love of her life, Bert, and has two wonderful daughters, Samantha, 30 and Lexi, 21.
Kevin M. Haigis, PhD, joined Dana-Farber as Chief Scientific Officer in 2020. Prior to assuming this role, Dr. Haigis was Director of Cancer Genetics at Beth Israel Deaconess Cancer Center. Dr. Haigis received his PhD in genetics from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and did post-doctoral work at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, where he was a Robert Black Fellow of the Damon Runyon Cancer Research Foundation.
Dr. Haigis has a long-standing interest in intestinal biology and the molecular pathogenesis of colorectal cancer. His laboratory combines computational and informatic approaches with experimental approaches in genetically engineered mice to study the relationship among Ras oncogene signaling, colorectal cancer, and inflammation.
Two miles there and two miles back. That’s the distance John Warner would walk from his Back Bay home to Dana-Farber to keep himself in shape while in treatment for renal cell carcinoma, or kidney cancer. John was diagnosed in the winter of 2021. John experienced blood in his urine which led to a scan at his physical. That scan revealed a tumor between one of his kidneys and ureters that was promptly removed. He consulted several top medical centers around the country before ultimately undergoing a chemotherapy plan with Dana-Farber. He was cancer-free after six months, until it returned three months later. John pivoted to immunotherapy treatment under the care of Dr. Toni Choueiri for several months before joining a chemotherapy clinical therapy exclusive to Dana-Farber patients.
John stayed on the trial for 16 months and just came off it a few months ago. He’s continued to work as a Senior Partner at McKinsey and Company throughout his treatment, while also doing activities he loves like playing golf and going on long walks. Last year, he walked in the annual Jimmy-Fund Walk and hopes to ride in the Pan-Mass Challenge in 2025 once his neuropathy goes away.
John has developed a personal, and somewhat joking, connection with Dr. Choueiri, whom he knows is always just a phone call away if he needs him. Plus, they are both Browns fans from Cleveland.
Craig Bunnell, MD, MPH, MBA, is the Morse Family Chief Medical Officer of the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, an NCI-designated Comprehensive Cancer Center and Harvard Medical School-affiliated teaching hospital. In this role, Dr. Bunnell oversees adult and pediatric clinical services at Dana-Farber. Under his leadership, the Institute has become a leader in implementing technology to enhance patient flow, operational efficiency, and patient access.
Dr. Bunnell is also a breast medical oncologist at Dana-Farber and an Associate Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School. He has been the principal investigator of several institutional and multicenter clinical trials and serves on several editorial boards.
Dr. Bunnell received his MD from Harvard Medical School, MPH from the Harvard School of Public Health, MBA from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He completed his medical training at Brigham and Women's Hospital where he also served as Chief Medical Resident.
Dr. Bunnell has more than 120 original publications focused on innovative breast cancer treatments and improvements in the safety, quality, and efficiency of cancer care delivery.
He holds, or has held, leadership positions at the National Comprehensive Cancer Centers, American Society of Clinical Oncology, Association of American Cancer Institutes, Massachusetts Society of Clinical Oncology, and the American Cancer Society.
Dr. Jänne received his MD and PhD from the University of Pennsylvania in 1996. He completed postgraduate training in internal medicine at Brigham and Women's Hospital and in medical oncology at DFCI in 2001. He is the Senior Vice President for Translational Medicine and the Scientific Director of the Belfer Center for Applied Cancer Science. His main research interests include studying the therapeutic relevance of oncogenic alterations in lung cancer. He was one of the co-discoverers of epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) mutations and has led the development of therapeutic strategies for patients with EGFR mutant lung cancer.
In September 2020, amid downsizing to a forever home with her husband, Barbara Ackerman, was diagnosed with stage 4 lung cancer.
After experiencing persistent back pain, a chiropractor suggested an x-ray, leading her to consult her doctor. She knew she wanted to be treated at Dana-Farber due to its reputation, and Dr. Janne, a specialist in EGFR, was highly recommended. Doctors found tumors not only in her lung, but bones, liver, and spine as well. Despite her diagnosis, she is now on her fifth line of treatment and second clinical trial, feeling wonderful and experiencing no side effects.
In June 2018, Gloria was playing golf when she realized something was wrong. Her primary care doctor was alarmed when Gloria asked to bump up her physical and arranged for an immediate appointment and blood tests, which revealed she had Acute lymphocytic leukemia.
· Referred to Dana-Farber by her son, a physician, Gloria began a grueling chemotherapy regimen, sometimes undergoing treatment for 21 hours a day. Undeterred, she requested a stationary bike for her room and continued to walk - even while attached to IV poles. Her determination paid off, and after becoming cancer-free, Gloria underwent a stem cell transplant in December 2018, with a donor from California. But her journey didn't end there. A few years later during a winter vacation in Florida, doctors discovered her cancer returned. This time, she underwent Dana-Farber’s innovative CAR T therapy and was once again deemed cancer-free.
· Throughout her cancer journey, Gloria remained active and engaged, chatting with nurses about fashion—she owned a women's boutique—and embracing healthy habits. Now back to walking, exercising, and teaching aerobics, Gloria strives to complete 10,000 steps a day.
· A passionate advocate and mentor, Gloria belongs to a transplant Zoom group and dedicates her time to supporting other patients. Her motto, "be strong and positive," has become a guiding light for many who reach out to her for encouragement.
The Dubowik household came down with the flu. While everyone else recovered, Evelyn got worse and had “bizarre” bruising. Her mother took her to the emergency room for difficulty breathing. After some lab work, doctors discovered she had cancer.
· Evelyn is in a two-year treatment plan and went from “standard risk” to “high risk” when she didn’t hit remission when she was supposed to. This meant giving her a stronger chemotherapy regimen. Today, Evelyn is in remission and is set to finish her treatments at the start of 2025.
· When she’s at The Jimmy Fund Clinic, Evelyn loves the people there, crafts, the decorations, music therapy, and Opry the facility dog. Evelyn will be in first grade and is home-schooled. She loves to swim, do acrobats, dance, and sing. Evelyn is a hard-core Swiftie and one of Taylor Swift’s biggest fans.
Nine years ago, Joel was diagnosed with prostate cancer at his annual wellness exam while living in Connecticut; his best friend was his urologist at the time. He began making regular visits to Boston to get treated at Dana-Farber.
Dr. Mark Pomerantz is a medical oncologist and Clinical Director for the Lank Center for Genitourinary Oncology at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute. Dr. Pomerantz received his undergraduate degree from Yale University and his medical degree from Stanford University. He trained in Internal Medicine at Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston, Massachusetts. He then pursued a fellowship in Medical Oncology at Dana-Farber. Dr. Pomerantz received his post-doctoral training in cancer genetics with Dr. Matthew Freedman at Dana-Farber and the Broad Institute of Harvard and MIT. He also teaches as an Assistant Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School.
Paul Mossberg, 58, esophageal cancer, Brookline, with Melissa Levin, MSW, LICSW, Senior Clinical Social Worker and Programmatic Specialist for the Neuro-Inclusive Oncology Care and Empowerment Program, Dana-Farber.
Dr. Meyerhardt is the Chief Clinical Officer for Dana-Farber and Co-Director of the Colon and Rectal Cancer Center as a medical oncologist specializing in cancers in the GI tract. He is also the Douglas Gray Woodruff Chair in Colorectal Cancer Research and a Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School.
- Dr. Meyerhardt received his MD from Yale School of Medicine in 1997. He completed a residency in internal medicine at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, in Boston, followed by a medical oncology fellowship at DFCI. He joined the Gastrointestinal Cancer Center at Dana-Farber in 2002.
Anne Gross, PhD, RN, FAAN, is senior vice president for patient care services and chief nursing officer. Dr. Gross is responsible for adult and pediatric nursing practice across all sites of care at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, The Phyllis F. Cantor Center for Research in Nursing and Patient Care Services, and the Center for Clinical and Professional Development. She also oversees a variety of other clinical services, patient and family programs, and Volunteer Services.
- Since joining Dana-Farber in 2002, she has led implementations of a primary nursing care model and a residency training program for newly licensed nurses, and secured funding for programs and research to support inclusion, diversity and equity, positive practice environments, and self-care and renewal programs. She also is involved in committees, boards, and initiatives nationally and internationally and is a Fellow in the American Academy of Nursing.
- Dana-Farber continues to grow, and Nursing and Patient Care Services is continually evolving to meet the increasing need for our services with an inclusive and welcoming environment. Dana-Farber recently opened the International Patient Center in the Yawkey Center for Cancer Care. At our regional campuses, collaborative efforts among clinical teams led to increased enrollment in clinical trials and the first regional campus-specific trial. In Patient Care Services, there was a notable rise in requests for interpreter services and support through the patient-volunteer One-to-One Program.
- These initiatives, and many others, have contributed to Dana-Farber’s Magnet culture, resulting in the organization’s fifth consecutive designation in 2024. Out of an estimated 6,200 hospitals and health systems nationwide, fewer than 1% have achieved a total of five Magnet designations. Dana-Farber’s Inpatient Hospital also recently received two awards from Press Ganey for excellence in patient experience.
- Nursing and Patient Care Services offers many educational and career development opportunities for current staff and future hires to advance their careers and ensure a highly skilled workforce.
- Anne is touched by the stories she hears every day of the amazing work of our nurses and patient care services staff who often go above and beyond. Some examples include:
• Staff at our Milford campus who recently organized and celebrated a high school graduation with a party for a patient.
• Our Brighton campus recently celebrated its 10-year anniversary of caring for patients. - Adults with cancer experience a significantly higher level of anxiety compared with the general population and so a group led by nurses launched a project to evaluate the feasibility and effectiveness of using medical-grade weighted blankets to reduce patient anxiety. They found that patients felt much less anxious using the weighted blankets, and now these are available in almost every infusion area across the institute.
· This year, the Institute celebrates 25 years of our all-volunteer adult and pediatric Patient and Family Advisory Councils (PFACs).
Lisa Scherber talks about what the first day of the Jimmy Fund Telethon has been like so far and the stories that have touched her the most.
Arbella Insurance Vice President Gayle O'Connell brings a BIG donation check for the Jimmy Fund Radio Telethon.
Laurie H. Glimcher, MD, was named President and CEO of Dana-Farber Cancer
Institute in 2016. She is also Director of the Dana-Farber/Harvard Cancer Center and the Richard and Susan Smith Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School. Previously, she was the Stephen and Suzanne Weiss Dean and Professor of Medicine of Weill Cornell Medicine and Provost for Medical Affairs of Cornell University. Dr. Glimcher is a distinguished immunologist, widely renowned for her work in one of the most promising areas of cancer research.
A trailblazer in cancer research, Dr. Glimcher's research identified key
transcriptional regulators of protective immunity and the origin of pathophysiologic
immune responses underlying autoimmune, infectious, and malignant diseases. Dr. Glimcher speaks nationally and internationally on cancer, immunology, skeletal biology, and translational medicine, and has contributed more than 350 scholarly articles and papers to medical literature.
Aside from her research efforts, Dr. Glimcher has been a staunch proponent of
improved access to care, health policy, and medical education, while simultaneously serving as a pioneering mentor and role model for cancer research trainees and for all women in science. Notably, she was the first female to be appointed Dean of Weill Cornell Medicine in New York and is the first female President and Chief Executive Officer of Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Dr. Glimcher is a magna cum laude graduate of Radcliffe College, and holds an MD degree cum laude from Harvard Medical School.
In early 2020, it became difficult for Clinton to eat. It was during the pandemic
and much harder at the time to see a doctor, so it took a while before he was able to get checked out. In January 2021, Clinton was diagnosed with esophageal cancer that metastasized into his lungs.
His treatment included six months on a feeding tube, chemotherapy and radiation
treatments. In summer 2021, he received an esophagectomy and now comes in for
chemotherapy every other week. He will continue these sessions for the foreseeable
future.
The American Cancer Society estimates that there will be about 22,370 new
esophageal cancer cases diagnosed (17,690 in men and 4,680 in women) in 2024. Esophageal cancer is more common among men than among women. The
lifetime risk of esophageal cancer in the United States is about 1 in 127 in men and
about 1 in 434 in women.
Red Sox legend and Hall of Famer Carlton Fisk talks about the long-time support he has given to the Jimmy Fund and how Fenway has changed since his playing days.
Dr. Hartley-Brown's clinical area of focus is treating patients with Multiple
Myeloma. This is an incurable blood cancer, that affects African Americans more
prevalently than other ethnic populations. She also practices clinical research, mainly in the relapsed refractory myeloma disease setting. Dr. Hartley-Brown actively participates as a principal investigator in clinical trials within the Alliance for Clinical Trials, investigator-initiated and investigator sponsored trials. Her area of interest in clinical trials includes use of immunotherapies and targeted therapies, such as
bispecific/tri-specific antibodies, antibody-drug conjugates and modern immune
modulating drugs (ex. cereblon modulators).
Jaimey was diagnosed with prostate cancer in 2008. He was treated and received a clean bill of health and remained cancer-free. In May 2015, a routine blood donation led to a life-changing discovery when the Red Cross director urged him to seek immediate medical attention. Jaimey was diagnosed with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL), which, contrary to its typical slow progression, advanced rapidly in his case.
Jaimey remained active, cycling and running to maintain his mental well-being.
However, six to nine months ago, his CLL numbers began to rise again, prompting
discussions about future treatments. Although his white blood cell count is high and he has low antibodies, making illnesses particularly severe, Jaimey remains optimistic with Dana-Farber's support.
After obtaining an A.B. cum laude in chemistry at Harvard College, Dr. Davids
completed his M.D. cum laude at Yale University School of Medicine. He served as an intern, resident, and assistant chief resident in internal medicine at New
York-Presbyterian Weill Cornell Medical Center and Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in New York City. He then completed his fellowship in hematology and oncology in Dana-Farber/Partners CancerCare, and a Masters in Medical Science (M.M.S.c.) at Harvard Medical School. He is an attending physician in the Division of Lymphoma, and serves as the Director of Clinical Research, as well as Associate Director of the CLL Center. He is also an Associate Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School, and attends on the inpatient hematologic malignancies service at Brigham and Women's Hospital.
Acute lymphocytic leukemia is the most common type of cancer in children, and
treatments result in a good chance for a cure. Acute lymphocytic leukemia can also occur in adults, though the chance of a cure is greatly reduced.
Erica Howes is joined by patient Sophia and her daughter Alice to share that Howes will be making a big donation to the Jimmy Fund.
Brock Holt nicknamed, “The Brock Star” is a former Major League Baseball utility
player who played for the Boston Red Sox (2013–2019). He served as the Jimmy Fund Captain from 2015-2019 and has been a long-time supporter of Dana-Farber’s fundraising efforts.
After serving as Jimmy Fund Captain, Holt and Lakyn have remained steadfast
supporters of Dana-Farber and the Jimmy Fund. They ran the Boston Marathon ®
for the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute Marathon Challenge in 2023, sold t-shirts to raise funds for the Jimmy Fund Clinic, where pediatric patients receive care, and have participated in many Jimmy Fund Clinic patient events, virtually and in person, always focused on promoting the work at Dana-Farber.
Melany Duval is the Senior Vice President and Chief Philanthropy Officer at
Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and responsible for the fundraising strategy and tactics in the Division of Philanthropy; including The Dana-Farber Campaign. Duval is a seasoned development executive with over three decades of experience in advancement, campaign planning, and strategy.
Matt Waning's cancer journey began in 2021, at the age of 34, when he was
diagnosed with testicular cancer. The aggressive nature of his illness led to surgery that removed a tumor the size of a watermelon, along with his left testicle and kidney, as the tumor had reached his aorta. Following surgery, he underwent two months of preventive chemotherapy known as VIP treatment and celebrated being in remission by August 2021. However, the VIP treatment came with a rare side effect—a potential risk of developing acute myeloid leukemia (AML). Unfortunately, in January 2023, Matt was diagnosed with AML as a result of the chemotherapy he had previously received.
Matt is an avid Boston sports fan, with a particular passion for the Bruins. Music
is another love of his, offering solace and joy throughout his journey. As the oldest of three siblings, he shares a special bond with his family, including his dog Mogley, named after the main character from "The Jungle Book."
Dr. Stone is currently the Director of the Adult Acute Leukemia Program at
Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, serves on the Medical Oncology Board of the American Board of Internal Medicine, and is vice chair of the Leukemia Core Committee for the national cooperative trials group Cancer and Leukemia Group B.
As the Senior Leukemia Protocol Research Nurse Practitioner at Dana-Farber
Cancer Institute, Ilene Galinsky practices autonomously and in collaboration with
physicians and other members of the multidisciplinary team in the diagnosis, treatment, and management of patients with acute and chronic myelogenous leukemia (CML), myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS), myelofibrosis, and other bone marrow failure diseases.
Dr. Cutler received his MD from McGill University, Montreal, Canada. He
subsequently received his MPH from the Harvard school of Public Health. He completed postgraduate training in Internal Medicine at Royal Victoria Hospital, Montreal, followed by a fellowship in Hematology/Oncology at DFCI. In 2002, he joined DFCI, where he currently is a member of the Hematologic Malignancies staff.
Dr. Cutler is a Director of the Adult Cell Transplantation Program, Director of Clinical
Research for Stem Cell Transplantation and Director of the Stem Cell Transplantation
Survivorship Program. He also works as an Associate Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School.
Eva had unexplained fevers for about a week. She was pale and sleeping a lot. Her
parents took her to the pediatrician, who advised them to take Eva immediately to the
emergency room. Her bloodwork revealed she had acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL).
After two years of treatment including chemotherapy, she was finally in remission,
but cancer returned just two weeks later. Eva needed a stem cell transplant and her twin brother, Joey, was a perfect match for the procedure.
She received a stem cell transplant from Joey in 2022. She also has received CAR-T
cell therapy, a type of immunotherapy. She received her cells in May and continues to be seen twice weekly to track her progress with therapy and platelet infusions.
Acute lymphoblastic leukemia is aggressive and progresses quickly. It affects the
lymphoid-cell-producing stem cells, in particular a type of white blood cell called T
lymphocytes as opposed to acute lymphocytic leukemia (ALL) which commonly affects B lymphocytes. ALL is the most common type of childhood cancer. It most often occurs in children ages 3 to 5 and affects slightly more boys than girls.
“It was nothing to worry about,” Andrew was repeatedly told, when he visited
urgent care twice for pain in his pelvis area. But the discomfort wouldn’t go away, so he met with his primary care physician who referred him to a urologist for an ultrasound. The scans led to a testicular cancer diagnosis in early 2023. It was caught early enough, and he was told there was a good prognosis. The cancer had only spread very lightly to his lymph nodes.
Adam works as the director of data analytics for a pharmaceutical company. He
loves vacationing with his family, watching his children play their sports (soccer for his son Jacob and gymnastics for his daughter Julia) and caring for his 2004 BMW. He hopes to help normalize conversations around testicular cancer for other men so they can overcome stigmas and shame around it. Today, he and his wife Kara are
celebrating their wedding anniversary.
Dr. Atish Choudhury is a medical oncologist and clinical/translational investigator
within the Lank Center for Genitourinary Oncology at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, and currently serves as Chair of the Gelb Center for Translational Research. He also serves as an Assistant Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School. His research interests include investigation of genetic and epigenetic biomarkers from circulating free DNA from patients with metastatic cancer, biomarker studies from other banked human specimens from patients participating in clinical trials, and clinical investigation in novel therapeutics for genitourinary malignancies.
According to the American Cancer Society, testicular cancer is not common. About 1 of every 250 males will develop testicular cancer at some point during their lifetime. The American Cancer Society’s estimate for testicular cancer in the United States for 2024 is about 9,760 new cases of testicular cancer diagnosed. The average age of males when first diagnosed with testicular cancer is about 33. This is largely a disease of young and middle-aged men, but about 6% of cases occur in children and teens, and about 8% occur in men older than 55.
Red Sox reliever Liam Hendriks joins to share his personal battle with stage 4 non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, getting involved with the Jimmy Fund, and working back from injury to hopefully help the team as they push for the playoffs.
During the summer before her senior year in Boston College’s nursing program,
Zoe started having chronic headaches, which were brushed off as anxiety and
migraines. Eventually, her left arm went numb, so doctors thought she could be
experiencing a focal seizure: a seizure that affects only one side of the brain. An MRI led to a brain tumor diagnosis. After surgery in 2017, she was declared cancer-free.
Zoe worked at an infusion clinic in Waltham for two years prior to joining
Dana-Farber—Chestnut Hill in 2021. After transferring her own healthcare to
Dana-Farber, however, she learned there is no cure for her cancer. Zoe was enrolled in the Indigo clinical trial and expects to continue taking an oral drug for the remainder of her life to prevent the brain tumor from returning.
Zoe, who is currently pursuing her master’s degree in healthcare administration,
says she often forms emotional bonds with patients and shares her story when it is appropriate and helpful. She’s training and fundraising for the Berlin Marathon in
Germany in September for the Brain Tumor Charity, an organization based out of the United Kingdom.
Oligodendroglioma is a growth of cells that starts in the brain. The growth of
cells, called a tumor, begins in cells called oligodendrocytes. These cells make a
substance that protects nerve cells and helps with the flow of electrical signals in the brain and spinal cord. Oligodendroglioma is most common in adults, but it can happen at any age. Symptoms include seizures, headaches, and weakness or disability in a certain part of the body. Where this happens in the body depends on which parts of the brain are affected by the tumor.
Tina was 33 when she was diagnosed with breast cancer. She discovered a bump
near her clavicle and went to her OGBYN who promptly sent her for a mammogram.
Tina is among a growing number of young women being diagnosed with breast cancer. Tina’s treatment started with six rounds of chemotherapy, followed by a double mastectomy earlier this summer. She is currently doing some rounds of low dosage chemotherapy throughout the rest of this year and recently started radiation treatment as well.
Tina works as a Government Relations Manager and works in public policy for
DoorDash. Tina loves to travel and goes to Ireland several times a year. Tina and her
fiancé Erik also spend a lot of time on outdoor adventures with their dog, Buddy.
Dr. Mayer received her medical degree from Harvard Medical School, completed a
residency in Internal Medicine at Brigham and Women's Hospital, and a fellowship in
Hematology/Oncology at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute. She obtained a Master's in
Public Health from the Harvard School of Public Health. She was awarded the 2023
Canellos Award for Excellence in Clinical Investigation and Patient Care, the 2024
Dana-Farber Clinical Innovation Award, and is a Boston Magazine “Top Doctor.”
Dr. Hahn is the William Rosenberg Professor of Medicine in the Department of Medical Oncology at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and Harvard Medical School and an Institute Member of the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard. He serves as an Executive Vice President and the Chief Operating Officer at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute.
Dr. Hahn has made numerous discoveries that have informed our current
molecular understanding of cancer. His laboratory has pioneered the use of integrated functional genomic approaches to identify and validate cancer targets. The tools, models and approaches that his laboratory has developed are widely used worldwide to discover and validate molecularly targeted cancer therapies.
Dr. Hahn has served as the President of the American Society for Clinical
Investigation and has been elected to the Association of American Physicians and the National Academy of Medicine. Dr. Hahn has been the recipient of many honors and awards including the Wilson S. Stone Award from M.D. Anderson Cancer Center for outstanding research in cancer (2000), a Howard Temin Award from the National Cancer Institute (2001), the Ho-Am Prize in Medicine (2010), the Richard and Hinda Rosenthal Award from AACR (2015) and the Claire and Richard Morse Award (2019). He has been elected to the American Society of Clinical Investigation, American Association of Physicians, the National Academy of Inventors and the National Academy of Medicine.
Red Sox relievers Chris Martin and Kenley Jansen join the show to talk about their second year as part of the Jimmy Fund and the impact they've seen while being a part of it.
The pitchers also react to a walk-off win on the previous night and how ready the team is to make a push for the playoffs in the final month and a half of the regular season.
Dr. James Fanale worked in healthcare for nearly five decades, but never really
knew what it meant to be a patient until he was told he had cancer - Stage 4 lung
cancer. James was president and CEO of Care New England, retiring in 2022, shortly after being diagnosed.
Jim typically ran the Falmouth Road Race and insists on being able to continue
running. Since his cancer diagnosis, Jim has focused on his personal life. He’s retired and planning trips with his wife, Deb. Jim is in the middle of writing a book called “Onward,” which focuses on the empathy in medicine and the emotional weight of the journey of patients and their caregivers. All the proceeds will be donated to a new “caregivers fund” at the Dana-Farber.
Dr. Barbie is the Director of the Lowe Center for Thoracic Oncology at
Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and an Associate Professor of Medicine at Harvard
Medical School. He is also Associate Director of the Belfer Center for Applied Cancer
Science and an Associate Member of the Broad Institute.
According to the American Cancer Society, there will be an estimated 234,580 new cases of lung cancer in the United States for 2024. Lung cancer is by far the leading cause of cancer death in the U.S., accounting for about 1 in 5 of all cancer deaths. Each year, more people die of lung cancer than of colon, breast, and prostate cancers combined. On a positive note, the number of new lung cancer cases continues to decrease, partly because more people are quitting smoking (or not starting). The number of lung cancer deaths continue to drop as well due to fewer people smoking and advances in early detection and treatment, according to the American Cancer Society.
Denise Beady was 37 years old when she was diagnosed with early-stage breast
cancer in 2017. She sought out care at Dana-Farber, in part because she was so
young at the time of her diagnosis. In 2022, Denise felt another lump under her arm, and after tests and scans, it was revealed that Denise was having a recurrence of her breast cancer and it returned as stage 4
Denise works as a paramedic and dispatcher. When she’s not working, she enjoys
spending time with her husband Robert, and her two boys Tyler, 14, and Ryan, 11. She spends a lot of time driving them to different sports activities. Both of her kids do obstacle training at a gym in Weymouth. Her oldest runs cross country and her younger son plays soccer.
Dr. Burstein is one of the world’s leading experts in the multi-disciplinary and medical management of early- and late-stage breast cancer. Dr. Burstein has led or participated in innumerable clinical trials for breast cancer, including Phase 1, 2 and 3 studies of novel agents, biological treatments, chemotherapy, hormonal therapy, multi-disciplinary care, and quality of life. He writes widely on management of breast cancer, and his publications can be found in the New England Journal of Medicine, the Journal of Clinical Oncology, JAMA, and other leading medical journals.
Jillian McFall joins Gresh and Fauria to discuss her battle with pancreatic cancer. Dr. Brian Wolpin joins to further discuss Jillian's journey.
Jillian landed in the ICU and cancer unit in Boston; where she met Dr. Brian Wolpin, who explained that she’d need to start chemotherapy as soon as possible or she’d die. She was so sick and doesn’t even remember her first chemotherapy session. Today, the tumor has been reduced to half its original size. She’s now on a break from her job and credits her family and endocrinology team for their unwavering support.
Dr. Brian Wolpin received his medical degree from Harvard Medical School in 2001. He later completed his Internal Medicine residency at Brigham and Women's Hospital and his Medical Oncology fellowship at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute. He is the director of the Gastrointestinal Cancer Center and serves as the Robert T. and Judith B. Hale Chair in Pancreatic Cancer. His research focuses on biomarkers and novel therapeutics in gastrointestinal malignancies, and mechanisms by which lifestyle factors interact with malignant risk and progression.
Lorayne Wadden joins Gresh and Fauria to discuss her four year old daughter's acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) diagnosis in November 2023. Eliza's treatment has included chemotherapy, and she currently is in treatment.
Her family thinks the Jimmy Fund Clinic is so special because the staff, doctors, and nurses help make them forget about the illness at times and comforts the patients through the entire process. In the Jimmy Fund Clinic, Eliza loves the music room, playing, singing, dancing, and doing crafts.
Marlene joins Gresh and Fauria to discuss her battle with Myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS). Merlene is joined by daughter Jen and Dr. Lachelle Weeks. Dr. Weeks is an Instructor in Medicine at Harvard Medical School and a physician-scientist in the adult leukemia program at Dana-Farber Cancer institute.
Dr. Weeks’ clinic focuses on the care of patients with precursors of myeloid malignancies including clonal hematopoiesis of indeterminate potential (CHIP) and clonal cytopenia of undetermined significance (CCUS). Her research focuses on understanding features of CHIP and CCUS that impact the progression to overt myeloid diseases such as myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS) and acute leukemia.
Doug Grip, who was diagnosed with squamous cell sarcoma in 2018, sits down with Gresh and Fauria alongside Dr. Robert Haddad, the chief physician of the Head and Neck Oncology division.
Doug, who is celebrating being cancer-free for six years this month, praises the above-and-beyond support and caretaking of his wife, Karen, as well as their two daughters who wore necklaces with the word “Hopeful” throughout his treatment. He also credits his recovery with his relentlessly positive attitude.
Shirley Joseph, a breast cancer patient at Dana-Farber joins Gresh and Fauria alongside her husband, Mike, and Kristen Donoghue a Registered Nurse at Dana-Farber. Kristen says her best days at work are when she “throws myself into my patients’ lives” and helps them to redirect focus on their family, friends, and ambitions—not their cancer. Shirley and Kirsten discuss the relationship they have developed since meeting at Dana-Farber and Shirley's battled with breast cancer.
Shirley came to Dana-Farber for treatment and has been undergoing chemotherapy and surgery throughout this year. Shirley is raising awareness of IBC by creating video content on social media. She didn’t let her cancer stop her from opening the hair salon, “Locs By Us,” which opened last month. Shirley was also perform the National Anthem ahead of tonight's Red Sox game.
Chris Devin joins Gresh and Fauria to discuss his experience battling multiple myeloma and his participation in a clinical trial at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute under the care of Dr. Paul Richardson.
Chris faced a series of relapses and faced another intensive treatment regimen lasting 12 months. In October 2023, Chris underwent CAR T-cell therapy. Despite being hospitalized multiple times due to his compromised immune system and enduring a battle with COVID-19 and pneumonia, Chris's resilience shone through and today is feeling fantastic.
Dr. Paul G. Richardson is the clinical program leader and director of clinical research in the Jerome Lipper Multiple Myeloma Center and LeBow Institute for Myeloma Therapeutics at DF/BWCC. He is also an RJ Cordman Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School. One of the world’s foremost authorities on multiple myeloma, Richardson serves as principal investigator for numerous clinical trials underway to improve patient outcome and increase long-term survivorship.
Bruins forward Pavel Zacha joins Gresh and Fauria to discuss the Jimmy Fund, Pastrnak's wedding, the Bruins offseason, and more.
Mary Cortes and Dr. Pozo-Kaderman join Gresh and Fauria to discuss Dana Farber's Young Adult Program (YAP). The aim of YAP is to
o Ease the emotional burden of living and coping with cancer
o Empower young adults to become active participants in their cancer treatment
o Provide emotional and social support in the form of educational workshops, conferences, opportunities to network with other young adults with cancer, and clinical mental health services
Mary was diagnosed with lymphoma in May 2023. Mary sought consultation at two other hospitals before deciding to proceed with her care at Dana-Farber. Mary’s treatment included a port placement for a six-month course of chemotherapy. Mary is a nursing student and surgical assistant at a Cranio-Maxillofacial surgeon’s office in Medford.
Dr. Pozo-Kaderman is a senior psychologist and the Director of the Young Adult Program (YAP) and Director of Interprofessional Education in the Department of Psychosocial Oncology and Palliative Care at the Dana Farber Cancer Institute with a faculty appointment at Harvard Medical School.
Erika Lowenthal, a Neurologic Music Therapist, and Emily Kleschinsky, a Certified Child Life Specialist, join Gresh and Fauria to discuss their work with the Jimmy Fund Clinic and Dana-Farber.
Erika works alongside the Jimmy Fund Clinic’s incredible Child Life Specialists to create support plans to help patients during medical procedures, provide one-on-one sessions throughout the clinic and host a bi-weekly music therapy group online called Jimmy Jams for younger children.
Emily works with patients to developmentally-appropriately prepare them for things like port accesses and blood draws, helping them create coping plans, and accompanying them to procedures. Emily plans crafts for the kids to do while they are at the clinic, spends a lot of time doing one-on-one play, and does her best to make sure that the kids have the opportunity to express themselves and be kids while in care.
Charlie Jacobs, CEO and alternate governor for the Bruins, joins Gresh and Fauria to discuss the Jimmy Fund and the Bruins role in the Boston community.
Kadidia Dienta joins Gresh and Fauria along with Dr. Reid Merryman. Kadidia discusses her battle with lymphoma cancer that begin in July 2020. Kadidia’s treatment included chemotherapy, CAR T therapy, and after two relapses with cancer, she is currently participating in a clinical trial that shows promise.
Dr. Merryman is an attending physician in the Lymphoma Program at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute. His research focuses on the development of immune-based therapies for patients with lymphoma.
The parents of Antonie "Toni" Smith; Tracey and Ryan sit down with Gresh and Fauria to discuss their three year old daughter's acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) diagnosis in February and the treatment Toni is currently receiving treatment from Dana-Farber.
Ashley Wells, an oncology nurse in Dana-Farber’s Inpatient Hospital for 20 years, joins Gresh and Fauria. Ashley discusses her professional experience as a nurse at Dana-Farber and her personal experience with parents receiving treatment from Dana-Farber. Her mother’s breast cancer was misdiagnosed at another hospital in 2017 before being successfully treated at Dana-Farber. In 2021, her father was treated at Dana-Farber for chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) and is now in remission.
Barrett J. Rollins, MD, PhD, received his doctoral degree in 1979 and medical degree in 1980 from Case Western Reserve University and completed his internship and residency in internal medicine at Beth Israel Hospital, Boston. He then performed clinical and research fellowships in medical oncology at Dana-Farber and joined the Institute's faculty in 1986. Dr. Rollins served as Dana-Farber's Chief Scientific Officer from 2004-2019; he is currently Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School and a senior advisor to Dana-Farber's President and CEO.
Christopher Lathan, MD, MS, MPH, is the Chief Clinical Access and Equity Officer and Founding Director, Cancer Care Equity Program at Dana-Farber. He is also a clinical oncologist focused on lung cancer.
- His research interests focus on leading system wide efforts to broaden access to cancer care for historically marginalized groups to reduce disparities and improved health outcomes.
- The Cancer Care Equity Program is a clinical outreach program that aids in the diagnosis and treatment of cancer patients at Federally Qualified Health Centers. Dr. Lathan’s work addresses the health disparities he’s witnessed first-hand, including interactions his family members have had with inequitable health practices.
- His primary interests are centered on the effects of race, class, and access to care in cancer outcomes, and racial disparities in lung cancer treatment, differences in access to precision medicine by race and social class and equitable distribution of new treatment across historically marginalized populations. Dr. Lathan works to bridge the gap between disparities research and the realities of patient care by developing interventions to increase access to high quality care, developed in part through community engagement.
Brandon Milton, RN, BSN, OCN, Nursing and Patient Care Services, Dana-Farber
- Brandon had wanted to be an oncology nurse since age 8, when his father was diagnosed with lung cancer. His father, a Vietnam veteran went into remission following surgery and chemotherapy treatments in 2004 but relapsed when Brandon was a high school senior.
- An oncology nurse for five years, Brandon has worked at Dana-Farber—Merrimack Valley for a year and a half. Brandon, the only male infusion nurse at that campus, takes great pride in responses on numerous patient satisfaction surveys praising his caring nature and efforts to advocate for his patients while comforting and supporting them throughout treatment.
Robert Hale, Donor
- Rob currently serves on Copley’s investment committee and as an entrepreneur in residence assisting the development of Copley’s portfolio companies. Rob founded Granite Telecommunications in 2002 and has grown the company into one of the largest privately held telecommunications services companies in the U.S., with revenues exceeding $1.5 billion.
- Rob is the founder and board chair of Fox Rock Capital, a single-family office based in Boston, founding owner of FoxRock Properties, a commercial real estate firm, and is co-owner of the NBA’s Boston Celtics and Boston Cannons of the Premier Lacrosse League.
- Rob lives in the Boston area with his wife and three children. He serves on the Board of Trustees for Boston Children’s Hospital, Brigham & Women’s Hospital, the South Shore YMCA, and the Massachusetts Soldiers Legacy Fund.
- Robert Hale Sr., Rob Jr.'s father, was a patient at Dana-Farber and died in 2008 from pancreatic cancer.
- Rob and his family are philanthropic leaders in the Boston area. Rob’s mother, Judy Hale, is a Dana-Farber Trustee. In November 2023, the Hale Family were awarded the Sidney Farber Medical Research Award in recognition of the Hale Family’s outstanding contributions and service to the Insititute for many decades.
TWO-HUNDRED-FIFTY-THOUSAND DOLLARS. Bob Eddy, CEO & Chairman of BJ's, joined Joe & Will in the booth to announce an incredibly generous $250,000 donation to the Jimmy Fund during night two of our telethon!
Keith Salome joins Joe & Will from the WEEI Sox booth to share his story about his battle with kidney cancer.
Tom McManus, President of Cape Cod Lumber, joins Joe & Will from the booth to announce a generous $5,000 donation by the company!
1-year old Ava Morawski and mom Katie join Joe & Will in the booth! Ava was diagnosed with a brain tumor (typical teratoid/rhabdoid tumor) She had started vomiting and exhibiting developmental delays as well as a rapidly enlarging head circumference. They got a CT scan which revealed the tumor. Ava was
transported to Boston Children's for surgery and then six months of in-patient treatment, including chemotherapy and a stem cell transplant, followed by three months of outpatient treatment of chemo, infusions, and radiation. Ava is likely going to start a study given suspected recurrence.
Ava enjoys a game of peekaboo with Will Flemming!
Deborah B. Goldberg is the Massachusetts State Treasurer and Receiver General. In that role she is responsible for the state’s cash and debt management, unclaimed property, and chairs state boards and commissions, including the Massachusetts School Building Authority, the Pension Reserves Investment Management Board, the State Board of Retirement, Massachusetts State Lottery Commission, and the
Massachusetts Clean Water Trust. In 2015, she established the new Office of Economic Empowerment, the first of its kind in the country, and chairs its Economic Empowerment Trust Fund. Treasurer Goldberg is the former President of the National Association of State Treasurers and is the Co-Chair of the National Institute of Public Finance.
Bruins' Trent Frederic and Jeremy Swayman joins the Jimmy Fund to preview the upcoming season and how the team will adapt to life without Patrice Bergeron and David Krejci.
July of 2017, Laurie noticed a lump on the right side of her stomach but didn’t think much of it until her husband noticed it too. He advised her to see her primary care physician and she ended up going the next day. After the initial visit, she was then sent in for CT scan because her blood work results raised concern. The scan revealed a tumor on her colon that had spread to her liver.
Laurie recalls feeling disbelief because of how well things were going for her in May of 2017 – she had just obtained her naturalization certificate and had started to lose weight with less effort. She says it was difficult to accept, but she knew everything would be okay because of her faith. Her treatment, chemotherapy and 5 sessions of radiation, began a few months later in August of 2017. Overall, she’s had no major issues and has been able to take some breaks from treatment, the longest being 12 months last year.
Colorectal cancer is the third most commonly diagnosed cancer in both men and women, excluding skin cancers. According to the American Cancer Society, there will be an estimated 106,970 new cases of colon cancer in the United States for 2023 and 46,050 new cases of rectal cancer.
Marios Gianakis, MD, PhD is a medical oncologist and clinical investigator at the Dana-Farber Gastrointestinal Cancer Center and Assistant Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School. Dr. Gianakis conducts his own clinical research at Dana-Farber and the Broad Institute of MIT and
Harvard to better understand the formation of colorectal cancer on a molecular level and works on developing immune-based treatments for various types of gastrointestinal cancers. He has also researched the association between colorectal cancer and certain dietary habits, including red meat consumption.
After blood work results revealed a low white blood cell count, Deidre was referred to a hematologist/oncologist. They ruled out an autoimmune disorder as the potential cause, but discovered SMM, a pre-blood cancer. From there, she met with Dr. Ghobrial at the Center for Prevention of Progression at Dana-Farber in July of 2022 and learned about an immunotherapy clinical trial. The drug works to fight myeloma cells before they become too prevalent in the body.
Deidre started treatment in August of 2022, stayed in the hospital for 5 days, and has
since had weekly treatments, then every other week, to now monthly. She receives a
subcutaneous injection in the abdomen and will complete the clinical trial in one more year. She describes Dr. Ghobrial as a trailblazer, treating patients early when they have a precursor disorder to try to prevent disease progression into multiple myeloma.
Multiple myeloma is a relatively uncommon cancer. In the United States, the lifetime risk of getting multiple myeloma is 1 in 132, or less than 1%. According to the American Cancer Society, there will be an estimated 35,730 new cases of
multiple myeloma diagnosed in the United States for 2023 (19,860 in men and 15,870 in women).
Dr. Ghobrial completed her M.D. at Cairo University and a residency in Internal Medicine at Wayne State University in Detroit, Michigan, then trained as a Hematology/Oncology Fellow at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota. She is currently a Professor of Medicine and the Lavine Family Chair for Preventative Cancer Therapies at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Harvard
Medical School. She is the Director of Translational Research in the Department of Multiple Myeloma, Director of the Center for Prevention of Progression diseases (CPOP), and co-leader of the Lymphoma and Myeloma Program at Dana-Farber. She is the co-leader of the Stand Up to Cancer Myeloma Dream Team—the first Dream Team award for blood cancer, the recipient of the Claire W. and Richard P. Morse Research Award, and the William Dameshek Prize given annually by The American Society of Hematology (ASH) to an individual, younger than 50 who has made outstanding contributions in hematology.
Red Sox Chief Baseball Officer Chaim Bloom looks at the final push towards the playoffs and what he's looking for in terms of improvements for the final month of the regular season.
Red Sox relievers Chris Martin and Kenley Jansen talk about their experience being a part of the Jimmy Fund in their first season in Boston and how technology will start to take over baseball.
Grace was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) in October 2022. She had always been full of spunk and energy, ready to perform a song and dance at the drop of a hat. Her parents noticed that she had been particularly tired and lethargic, which wasn't her usual self. They thought she might have mono or Lyme disease, so they took her to the doctor, but tests revealed she had ALL. She is on a two-year chemotherapy treatment plan, of which she is in the middle.
ALL is the most common type of childhood cancer. It most often occurs in children ages 3 to 5 and affects slightly more boys than girls. About 3,000 people younger than age 20 are found to have ALL each year in the United States.
After difficulty breathing, Megan subsequently tested positive for COVID, which doctors initially thought was the cause of her symptoms. But her oxygen saturation, or the balance of oxygen in her blood, remained low, so she underwent additional testing. Then, a chest x-ray revealed two liters of fluid in her lungs. After a fusion biopsy, she was officially diagnosed with Stage 4 breast cancer in June of 2022.
Since then, Megan has been treated with hormonal therapy and continues to receive
treatment today. She also has tremendous support from her family members, both of whom also work in the medical professions. Her mother is a nurse and her father is a thoracic oncologist. A collaegue of Megan’s father reccomended Dr. Ann Partridge at Dana-Farber because she founded and directs Young and Strong, a program specifically for young women with breast cancer. Dr. Partridge is part of Megan’s care team today as her oncologist.
Ann Partridge is a medical oncologist and clinical researcher focused on improving the care and outcomes of patients with cancer, with a focus on treatment, survivorship, and psychosocial issues facing women with breast cancer. She founded and directs the Program for Young Women with Breast Cancer, and serves as the Director of the Adult Survivorship Program at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute (DFCI) and Brigham and Women’s Hospital.
Pat is the general manager of Applebee’s in Cranston, RI and has worked for the brand for 11 years. Applebee’s raised over $60,000 for the Jimmy Fund during our in-store campaign in May and golf tournament. He has personally lost his mother, father, and brother to cancer.
Marline was diagnosed with invasive ductal carcinoma, a type of breast cancer. Marline always had regular mammographs. But after the birth of son, she continued to lactate, she shared with the doctors, and they continued to monitor and noted that she had dense breasts. After Marline's nephew jumped on her and landed on her right breast, she said she was in indescribable pain, worst pain she has ever had. She went to see her doctor and a September 2022 mammogram showed some type of abnormality and a biopsy on October 5 confirmed the cancer. Selected Dana-Farber because they are the best. From the minute she hit Dana-Farber’s door – wonderful people have been the greatest advocates for her.
According to BreastCancer.org, one in eight women in the United States will be diagnosed with breast cancer in her lifetime. Breast cancer is the most common cancer in women in the United States, except for skin cancers. It is about 30% (or 1 in 3) of all new female cancers each year. On average, every 2 minutes a woman is diagnosed with breast cancer and 1 woman will die of breast cancer every 13 minutes. At this time, there are more than 3.8 million breast cancer survivors in the United States.
In 2012, Barry noticed some swelling on his neck, so he made an appointment to see his primary care physician. An x-ray and CT scan lead to follow-up appointments with various specialists until he was diagnosed with Stage 3B non-small cell lung cancer. Barry was initially going to get treatment at another institution but stopped at Dana-Farber to get a second opinion from Dr. Lathan. He recalls Dr. Lathan telling him they’d use all the tools in the toolbox and fight as hard as he could. From there, Barry knew he was in the right place.
The treatment caused his tumors to shrink significantly and gave him his life back. Today, he’s no longer in active treatment, but returns to Dana-Farber for a follow-up every 6 months. Barry also volunteers as a patient advocate at Dana-Farber and Brigham & Women’s Hospital. He echoes that everything done at Dana-Farber is done with love and integrity, and he’s honored to be a part of that too.
Lung cancer is the second most common cancer (not counting skin cancer) in both men and women. According to the American Cancer Society, there will be an estimated 238,340 new cases of lung cancer in the United States for 2023.
Dr. Lathan has been a member of the Thoracic Oncology Program at Dana-Farber since 2005 and was appointed as the first Faculty Director of Cancer Care Equity at Dana-Farber in 2010. He directs a successful Dana-Farber clinical service at Whittier Street Health Center in Boston where he developed a lung cancer screening pilot program with the support of a CVS pharmacy foundation grant. He is also a leading researcher in Dana-Farber’s Population Science. Center on issues of race and class disparities in cancer care and has published and lectured
extensively on this topic.
Mary Lee went to her PCP following leg and back pain she was experiencing in June
2017. It was initially chalked up as possibly sciatica, but when the pain persisted, she went to an orthopedic surgeon, and a subsequent MRI revealed cancer. Her doctors said her cancer was stage 4 and recommended she come to Dana-Farber.
Types and length of treatments: She started treatment in 2017, went for chemo every
week until 2019. Her cancer went into remission and then is often the case with her type of disease it returned and had spread. She went on a couple of different clinical trials which have helped keep her cancer at bay. She is feeling great today. She is very happy she ended up at Dana-Farber and is simply “glad to still be here.”
Ovarian cancer isn’t diagnosed until it has progressed to an advanced stage. This is because ovarian cancer symptoms either aren’t apparent in the early stages of the disease or they mimic common stomach and digestive issues that are often mistaken for minor ailments.
Ursula A. Matulonis, MD, is Chief of the Division of Gynecologic Oncology at the
Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School. She co-leads the Gynecologic Cancer Program within the Dana-Farber/Harvard Cancer Center and the Ovarian Cancer Specialized Program in Research Excellence (SPORE) grant from the National Cancer Institute. Her research focuses on developing new targeted therapies for gynecologic
malignancies, with a specific interest in ovarian cancer and endometrial cancer.
Head coach of the BC Eagles Jeff Hafley discusses his connection to the Jimmy Fund regarding his family and the upcoming football season and what he likes the most about his group.
Red Sox pitcher Nick Pivetta joins to talk about how he ingrained himself to the Jimmy Fund when he came to Boston and gives his insights from the clubhouse as the team's chase for the playoffs gets a little tougher.
Following some discomfort, Natalia underwent a colonoscopy in February of 2022. She was officially diagnosed with colon cancer after the procedure. Her doctors also believed that the cancer may be hereditary in nature because Natalia’s mother had uterine cancer. Additional genetic testing also confirmed that she had Lynch Syndrome, a genetic condition that greatly increases a person’s chance of developing cancer, including colon cancer.
After the diagnosis, she underwent tumor removal surgery at Dana-Farber, and then started on a chemotherapy and immunotherapy combination treatment. Immunotherapy is a newer type of cancer treatment that allows the body’s own immune system to recognize and destroy cancer cells. She had been traveling back and forth from Seattle to Boston for treatment, which she completed in June. Today,
she is cancer-free. In her free time, Natalia enjoys going to museums and shops, like Newbury Street when she’s in Boston. This visit is her daughter’s first time coming to see Boston! Natalie also has a master’s degree in fashion and is in the process of opening her own fashion business in Seattle.
Dr. Yurgelun is a gastrointestinal medical oncologist at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute affiliated with both the Gastrointestinal Cancer Center and the Cancer Genetics and Prevention Program. He has a longstanding special interest in studying the diagnosis, phenotypes, and management of patients with Lynch syndrome and other hereditary gastrointestinal cancer syndromes. His current research includes studying the benefits and limitations of using
widespread multi-gene panel testing – rather than criteria-based targeted genetic testing – in the evaluation of patients at risk for hereditary cancer syndromes.
Red Sox manager Alex Cora joins to talk about what the Jimmy Fund means to him and how he is approaching the last month of the regular season as the playoff chase gets more and more tighter.
Joe Andruzzi reflects on his fight that forced him to retire from football and the continued work from his foundation "The Joe Andruzzi Foundation."
Magnolia joined Dana-Farber in 2007 and currently serves as the Vice President of Community Health. In this role, she is charged with helping the Institute carry out its community benefits mission through the delivery of evidence-based cancer prevention, screening, and early detection programs. Magnolia and her team work with city and state health departments, community partners, and Boston-based coalitions to assess and monitor the needs of local residents with respect to cancer
control. They are on the front lines of supporting and collaborating on programs designed to eliminate disparities in breast, colon, and skin cancer; educate diverse populations about tobacco cessation, human papillomavirus (HPV) prevention and screening.
Elevated PSA (prostate specific antigen levels) lead to Henry undergoing a biopsy, which revealed stage IV prostate cancer. He was officially diagnosed on August 13, 2021. He went to the doctor after getting a hemorrhoid while offshore fishing. His primary care doctor was the one who suggested also checking his PSA levels as a routine matter of care. A month after diagnosis, Henry underwent surgery to
remove his prostate, seminal vesicles, and 27 pelvic lymph nodes, 8 of which were metastatic. After the surgery, surgical margins were deemed positive, meaning cancer cells were still present on the edges of the tissue. In response, Henry started systemic drug therapy in November and later, 40 sessions of radiation from January through March 2022. He is still in treatment and continuing the systemic drug therapy. Henry points out that he feels like more than a number at Dana-Farber because of the continued care and compassion that he receives: ranging from the nurses to radiation therapy technicians.
Traveling in from Alabama, he also notes that Boston is not only “awesome,” but the “best city.” Some of his favorite local restaurants are Tasty Burger, Select Oyster Bar, Little Whale, and Toro. In his free time, he also loves watching the Red Sox, hiking, walking, and reading. He’s joined and supported by his wife Staci, whom he’s been married to for 21 years. Together they have an 11-year-old daughter. He works as a prosecutor in Alabama.
Dr. Pomerantz is a senior medical oncologist at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and the Clinical Director of the Lank Center for Genitourinary Oncology. Dr. Pomerantz's research focuses on the inherited risk factors associated with cancer, with an emphasis on prostate cancer. He is working together with clinicians, biostatisticians, and epidemiologists at Dana-Farber and the Broad Institute in an attempt to actively decipher and define the genetic underpinnings of the disease.
In early March of 2018, at age 58, Roger Miller went to a local doctor’s office in Maine for outpatient surgery. He’d been putting off getting what he’d thought was a cyst removed from the back of his head. Miller, who at the time was working as a maritime consultant, wasn’t all that worried. He and his wife, Lisa, had just returned from backcountry skiing in British Columbia. He felt fine. The pathology report that came a few days later suggested otherwise. Miller had stage IV melanoma. A call to a family friend pointed them to Dana-Farber. After a series of evaluations in late March, Miller’s oncologist, Elizabeth Buchbinder, MD, delivered round two of unfathomable news: The melanoma had spread to his pelvis, lungs, and brain.
Today, he is cancer-free. He’s not taking any medication and he goes in for scans twice a year. “There’s no evidence of the cancer. There are no side effects. There’s no anything,” he says. “It worked.”
Elizabeth Buchbinder is a clinical oncologist at Dana Farber Cancer Institute specializing in the treatment of melanoma. In addition to treating patients she performs clinical and translational research to help further melanoma treatment. Her primary areas of research are in immunotherapy and novel targeted therapy approaches. She has particular interest in rare forms of melanoma including mucosal melanoma and uveal melanoma.
Robert Haddad, Chief, Division of Head and Neck Oncology, Dana-Farber
Dr. Haddad received his MD Degree from St. Joseph University French School of
Medicine in Beirut. He completed his residency in internal medicine at St Luke's Roosevelt
Medical Center in New York City, and completed a fellowship in hematology oncology at the
University of Maryland Cancer Center in Baltimore.
Jigar Raythatha (Ray-tha-tha), 46, glioma, Lexington, with Kinnary (wife) and Patrick Wen, MD, Director, Center for Neuro-Oncology, Dana-Farber
After two weeks of an unresolved headache, Jigar’s doctor ordered an urgent brain MRI,
which revealed some abnormal findings. To get a definitive diagnosis, doctors would need to
access his brain, so Jigar opted for a biopsy over a craniotomy. The results found he had
IDH-mutant astrocytoma, a biomarker for patients with glioma; these findings would guide the
approach to his brain surgery.
· For treatment post-surgery, he takes one pill daily as an IDH inhibitor. Jigar will take this
while waiting for a new targeted therapy to be approved and finalized: it’s designed specifically
to target the mutation that is causing his type of cancer. At Dana-Farber, he appreciates how
everyone recognizes that you’re going through something very hard and always meets you
where you are in your emotional journey.
· For work, Jigar is the former CEO of a pharmaceutical company that focused on developing
new cancer treatments. Since selling the company two years ago, he now works in venture
capital to start and fund new companies that develop drugs to treat cancer and other diseases.
The company that initially developed his current treatment, Third Rock Ventures, was started
and funded through his firm. Outside of work, Jigar loves watching sports and playing most
sports. He’s a big baseball fan, but unfortunately roots for the Mets because he grew up in New
Jersey.
Glioma facts
· The American Cancer Society’s estimates for brain and spinal cord tumors in the United
States for 2023 include both adults and children about 24,810 malignant tumors of the brain or
spinal cord (14,280 in males and 10,530 in females) will be diagnosed. These numbers would be
much higher if benign (non-cancer) tumors were also included.
· Overall, the chance that a person will develop a malignant tumor of the brain or spinal
cord in their lifetime is less than 1%. The risk of developing any type of brain or spinal cord
tumor is slightly higher among women than among men, although the risk of developing a
malignant tumor is slightly higher for men than for women. This is largely because certain types
of tumors are more common in one sex or the other (for example, meningiomas are more
common in women).
· Survival rates for brain and spinal cord tumors vary widely, depending on the type of tumor
(and other factors).
Patrick Wen, MD
· Dr. Wen graduated from the Medical College of St. Bartholomew's Hospital, University of
London, in 1981. He completed his internal medicine training at the University of London
postgraduate hospitals and his neurology residency in the Harvard-Longwood Neurology
Training Program. His research is focused on novel treatments of brain tumors, especially
targeted molecular agents. His other clinical interests include neurologic complications of
cancer.
Governor Healy joins, talks about trying to bring down the cost of living in Massachusetts
Michael Casey, APRN-BC, FN, Nurse Practitioner, Gastrointestinal Oncology, Dana-Farber
Michael Casey, APRN-BC, FNP is a nurse practitioner in Gastrointestinal Oncology at
Dana-Farber Cancer Institute. He is also the director of the Advanced Practice Nursing
department and co-chair of Dana-Farber’s Ethics Committee, as well as a member of the
American Association of Nurse Practitioners.
· He earned his bachelor’s degree in biological sciences from the University of Rochester
in 1998 and his master’s degree in nursing science from Boston College in 2002. He came to
Dana-Farber in 2009 and has worked here ever since.
· Michael’s favorite part of working at Dana-Farber is the privilege and intimacy of
contributing to individuals’ and their families’ well-being during what is in many cases the
biggest challenge of their lives. He also appreciates the strong sense of community within the
institution and is “humbled to share a workplace with so many colleagues who demonstrate the
commitment and impulse to care for other human beings with the degree of moral clarity
necessary in this job.”
· Michael felt an immediate bond with JR and describes him as “striking all who meet him
with an energy, enthusiasm, and positivity that is notable.” He admires his ability to be a caring
father, husband, business owner, and friend despite his disease and his commitment to living
life to the fullest.
· In his free time, Michael enjoys spending time with his wife Denise and their three
children Rory, Maeve and Declan. He is also an avid skier and biker, having completed the
PanMass challenge several times. He says that he enjoys long and arduous rides during which
he can think about the challenges his patients face every day and how fortunate he is to know
them.
Christine Duncan, MD, Medical Director of Clinical Research and Clinical Development, Gene Therapy Program, Boston Children's Hospital
Med school in Chicago; Internship and Residency at Boston Children's Hospital; Pediatric
Hematology/Oncology Fellowship at DFCI; just celebrated being at the Farber for 20 years.
· Director of Clinical Research and Development, Dana-Farber/Boston Children's Cancer
and Blood Disorders Center.
· Research and clinical focus on cellular therapies for rare pediatric diseases- especially
neuro-metabolic disease and brain tumors.
· Clinical leader in partnership with local biotech company (bluebird bio) and MGH in the
research that lead to the first FDA approved therapy for children with cerebral
adrenoleukodystrophy (ALD) in the world. Cerebral ALD is a progressive neurologically
devastating disease that affects boys and ultimately leads to their deaths if not treated early.
· Leader in multiple international pediatric stem cell transplant groups.
· On the personal side: mom of three young boys, advocate for Foster Care and Adoption
from Foster Care; from Wisconsin - Green Bay Packers Fan, but love the Red Sox.
· Associate Professor of Pediatrics at Harvard Medical School; Senior Physician at DFCI.
Dana Mohrlein, 35, astrocytoma, Niantic CT, with David Reardon, MD Clinical Director, Center of Neuro-Oncology, Dana-Farber
In college, Dana thought she may have vertigo because of all her headaches, but after a
seizure at her first security job, she learned she needed emergency brain surgery. After surgery
at her local hospital, she pursued a second opinion at Dana-Farber and has continued her
journey from there since. She had two additional brain surgeries that same summer at
Brigham-Women's Hospital. Shortly after, she started high dose radiation locally, in partnership
with Dana-Farber, and did 11 months of oral chemotherapy.
· After treatment, 11 years passed until Dana had a recurrence last spring and underwent
a fourth brain surgery. She now takes an inhibitor drug called Tibsovo, a medication specific to
her mutation, that requires her to take two pills every day. The drug was released around the
time of Dana’s most recent recurrence, and she expresses it will hopefully be her “miracle
medicine” for the rest of her life.
· At Dana-Farber, she recalls always being “pumped” to see her oncologist, Dr. Reardon,
because of their close relationship. Dr. Reardon always greets Dana with a huge smile and a hug
at every appointment. Dana is also part of the new Peer to Peer mentoring program with brings
new brain cancer patients together with older ones. She echoes that you're not just a patient at
Dana-Farber, but part of something much greater. Dana would also like to shout out her friend
Dan Gruener, who passed away from cancer in 2013. The two made a cancer pact and Dana
continues to honor that each day by doing everything in his honor.
Astrocytoma facts
· Astrocytomas and gliomas are tumors that grow from brain cells called astrocytes.
· These tumors can often develop in the cerebellum, the cerebrum, the brainstem, the
hypothalamus, or the visual pathway.
· These brain tumors are either classified as low-grade (grades I and II) or high-grade
(grades III and IV) tumors. Children with low-grade tumors have a relatively favorable prognosis,
especially when the tumors can be completely resected.
· According to St. Jude’s Children’s Research Hospital, these tumors account for almost
half of all childhood tumors starting in the brain or spinal cord. Astrocytoma is the most
common type of glioma diagnosed in children.
· Survival rates depend on the child’s specific type, location and grade of tumor; whether
the tumor is localized; the child’s age when diagnosed; and whether the astrocytoma is newly
diagnosed or recurring.
David Reardon, MD
· Besides a skilled clinician, Dr. Reardon is an active researcher with special interests in the
design and implementation of clinical trials for neuro-oncology and the pre-clinical evaluation of
promising therapeutics for central nervous system tumor patients.
· His work includes using innovative clinical therapeutic agents to improve the cure rates
in patients with brain and spinal tumors, with particular focus on the use of novel
“tumor-targeting” therapeutics.
· He also is working on Immunotherapy drugs or ""vaccines"" to help in the treatment of
Brain tumors"
Martha Young, Program Manager, Pediatric Patient and Family Education, Dana-Farber
Martha Young is the Program Manager for Patient and Family Education in the Jimmy Fund
Clinic. As part of this role, she often works with the nursing team to create educational
materials for newly diagnosed families. She also oversees the Blum Pediatric Resource Room, a
space that integrates patient education into the everyday family experience in the Jimmy Fund
Clinic. Throughout her 17 years in the clinic, she has worked with the team to create programs
and resources aimed to help support patients and their families throughout treatment. Some of
those programs include Music Therapy, BEADS and BEADS for Sibs, caregiver corner, art
programming, FACES and FLASHES – groups for teen and “tween” patients to meet outside of
Shelby Young, 49, breast cancer, Orrington ME, with Kristina Worcester, RN, Breast Oncology Nurse Navigator
Shelby has been having mammograms every 6 months for the past 2 years because of
dense breast tissue. In March 2022, the mammogram looked suspicious, so she had an
ultrasound later that day. A biopsy two weeks later confirmed that she had triple negative right
breast cancer. She started treatment at Dana-Farber, once a week for 8 weeks, then once every
3 weeks until April of 2023. Throughout that process, Shelby had a lumpectomy in September of
2022 and a month of radiation in December.
· Before the lumpectomy, Shelby’s surgeon placed a bead where the tumor had been, and
after removing the tissue around the bead area, the area came back negative for breast cancer.
She is no longer in treatment. Shelby has had immense support from family and friends; as the
Team Mom for her daughter’s travel softball team, the support from all the girls has given her
so much encouragement.
· She works as a Registered Nurse in the Emergency Department and many call her
“Mumma Shelbs” too. Every step of the way, she has felt thankful for her care team and the
entire nurse IV team – especially Kristina Worcester.! For Shelby, her treatment and support
from Dana-Farber has been “outstanding!”
Breast cancer facts
· According to BreastCancer.org, one in eight women in the United States will
be diagnosed with breast cancer in her lifetime.
· Breast cancer is the most common cancer in women in the United States, except for skin
cancers. It is about 30% (or 1 in 3) of all new female cancers each year.
· Breast cancer occurs when some breast cells begin to grow abnormally. These cells
divide more rapidly than healthy cells do and continue to accumulate, forming a lump or mass.
· According to the American Cancer Society, 297,790 new cases of invasive breast cancer
will be diagnosed in women in the United States for 2023, and about 43,700 women will die
from breast cancer.
· Although breast cancer in men is rare, an estimated 2,800 men will be diagnosed with
breast cancer in 2023 and approximately 530 will die each year. For men, the lifetime risk of
getting breast cancer is about 1 in 833.
· On average, every 2 minutes a woman is diagnosed with breast cancer and woman will
die of breast cancer every 13 minutes.
· At this time, there are more than 3.8 million breast cancer survivors in the United States.
Kristina Worcester, RN
· After her younger brother was treated at Dana-Farber years ago, Kristina knew that this
was the place she wanted to be for her nursing career. Now, she’s a Breast Oncology Nurse
Navigator, creating strong relationships and working as a “lifeline” for her patients, alongside
the doctors and advanced practice providers. She notes that her brother’s oncology team years
ago showed deep commitment and care and Kristina carries that same drive in her own role.
· One of Kristina’s first patients was Shelby Young, also a nurse, who worked in her local
hospital’s emergency room. Inspired by Shelby’s positivity and resilience, the two quickly
formed an easy-going relationship. Kristina explains that once they worked through symptoms
and care needs, their visits simply became more conversational. Today, Shelby is doing better,
meaning less trips to Dana-Farber, but the team will always miss her bubbly and delightful
personality.
· Outside of her role, Kristina has spent all her extra time taking care of her puppy, Sully,
and spending quality time with friends and family.
Joe Castiglione and Will Fleming were joined by MLB Umpire Phil Cuzzi to discuss his journey to becoming an umpire, the pitch clock, being diagnosed with prostate cancer and quickly returning to baseball.
Jon Goff, Sales Operation Manager for Volkswagen joins the guys from the booth to discuss his company's work with the Jimmy Fund.
Jason Hayes, District Manager of the Sherwin Williams Company, announces the company is donating $10,000 to this year's Jimmy Fund Radio Telethon live from the WEEI Sox booth!
Sarah Shields, Marketing Manager of the Prudential Center, joins Joe and Will to explain what you can expect to find at the Pru live from the WEEI Sox booth!
As a cast member/chef on the television series “America’s Test Kitchen,” and host of its companion podcast “The Walk-In,” Elle Simone Scott delights in sharing her expertise and recipes. The Boston-based celebrity chef and food stylist is also a role model, as founder and president of SheChef, Inc., a professional networking organization for fellow women chefs of color seeking success in the food and beverage, media, and hospitality industries.
Elle found a new doctor once she arrived in Boston, got another ultrasound, and learned she had a cyst with cancerous concerns on her right ovary. Her doctor referred her to Dr. Michael Muto at Dana-Farber Brigham Cancer Center and was diagnosed with stage I ovarian cancer. She had surgery to remove the right ovary and fallopian tubes, alongside chemotherapy. Elle went into remission for about 5 years until it came back in 2020 as recurrent ovarian cancer in her bowel and lower bladder. She went through more surgery and chemotherapy, and is now on an immunotherapy clinical trial, which has slowed her cancer’s progression.
She tells her story from the WEEI Red Sox booth with Joe Castiglione and Will Flemming.
Astros' Manager Dusty Baker sits down with Joe Castiglione to discuss his battle with cancer.
An emotional Alex Cora joins Joe Castiglione to discuss the importance of the Jimmy Fund
John F. Donohue is Chief Executive Officer of the Arbella Insurance Group and
Chairman of the Arbella Insurance Foundation. He is one of the founders of Arbella and has been Chairman of the Board of Directors since the company’s creation in 1988 and chairs the boards of each of the subsidiary companies. He is responsible for the strategic planning and corporate policy for all of the companies of the Arbella Insurance Group – a leader in the New England property/casualty insurance industry - as well as the strategic planning and giving initiatives for the Arbella Insurance Foundation. Since its inception in 2005, the Foundation has donated more than $40 million to charities across New England.
The Arbella Insurance Group is proud to be the presenting sponsor of the WEEI/NESN Jimmy Fund Radio-Telethon again. This year marks the 15th year that Arbella has been the Presenting sponsor of the radio telethon. We are proud to support all the work Dana-Farber does to fight Cancer.
Red Sox legend and Hall of Famer David Ortiz talks about the impact being part of the Jimmy Fund has meant to him, being a mentor to any current Red Sox players, and the recent return of Mookie Betts.
Part-owner of the Celtics Steve Pagluica joins via the Harbor One Hotline to talk about the Shamrock Foundation's contributions to the Jimmy Fund and the looming extension for Jayson Tatum on top of Jaylen Brown's.
Bryan was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) in April 2022. He was
complaining about back pain and his skin was pale. He also suffered from chronic nose bleeds. His parents took him to the emergency room when he was having bad pain. Blood work and x-rays came back clean, but he was sent to Children's Hospital for further evaluation. MRI and further blood work revealed that he had leukemia. His treatment includes chemotherapy and he is slated to be done with active treatment in
May 2024.
ALL is the most common type of childhood cancer. It most often occurs in children ages 3 to 5 and affects slightly more boys than girls. About 3,000 people younger than age 20 are found to have ALL each year in the United States.
Catherine is the program coordinator of patient and family resources at Dana-Farber's Jimmy Fund Clinic.
After feeling a lump in her breast, Yesenia made an appointment to get checked by her primary care physician. She was diagnosed with triple negative breast cancer (TNBC) in January of this year. This type of breast cancer accounts for 10-15% of all breast cancer diagnoses and can be somewhat more difficult to treat. Her treatment plan has consisted of 5 months of chemotherapy starting in February, and more recently, a double mastectomy in early August. In October, she is scheduled to receive radiation treatment as well.
Before coming to Dana-Farber, she met with a different doctor who gave her Dana-Farber doctor, Dr. Burstein, a great review. Yesenia checked Dr. Burstien’s reviews in the breast cancer community via Facebook groups and found that other patients thought very highly of him. She’s been pleased to be his patient and and finds it convenient to go to both the Longwood and Chestnut Hill locations.
Neuroblastoma is a cancer often found in the small glands on top of the kidneys (adrenal glands), but neuroblastoma can also begin in or spread to other areas including the chest, the spine or spinal cord regions and the abdomen. In this rare disease, a solid tumor (a lump or mass caused by uncontrolled or abnormal cell
growth) is formed by special nerve cells called neuroblasts.
Dr. Burstein is one of the world’s leading experts in the multi-disciplinary and medical management of early- and late-stage breast cancer. Dr. Burstein has led or participated in innumerable clinical trials for breast cancer, including Phase 1, 2 and 3 studies of novel agents, biological treatments, chemotherapy, hormonal therapy, multi-disciplinary care, and quality of life. He writes widely on management of breast cancer, and his publications can be found in the
New England Journal of Medicine, the Journal of Clinical Oncology, JAMA, and other leading medical journals."
Larry Lucchino is Chairman/Principal Owner of the Worcester Red Sox and Boston Red Sox President/CEO Emeritus, and Chairman of the Jimmy Fund. Just before his 40th birthday, Larry was diagnosed with non-Hodgkin lymphoma. Dana-Farber has helped save his life 3 times; first from non-Hodgkin lymphoma in 1985, second from prostate cancer in 2000, and third from cancer in the kidney area starting in 2019.
Melany N. Duval has served as Senior VP and Chief Philanthropy Officer at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and the Jimmy Fund since 2019. In that period of time, Dana-Farber has embarked on its most ambitious, multi-year fundraising effort to change the future of cancer research and care – the largest in its history and the largest ever focused solely on cancer. The Dana-Farber Campaign, aims to raise upwards of $2B for the Institute’s priorities: Revolutionary Science, Extraordinary Care, Exceptional Expertise and Essential Opportunities.
When Austin switched to a new primary care doctor, his wife, Lindsay, told him to ask for everything at his first appointment, including a PSA levels check. Even though nurse practitioners don’t typically check for this at age 45, Austin requested and got it done anyway. That night, the doctor’s office called back and informed him that his PSA was off the charts. They originally thought it was high because he exercised, but after rerunning it, the results were the same. A biopsy confirmed that Austin had a rare type of prostate cancer called small-cell prostate cancer and he began to see Dr. Alicia Morgans at Dana-Farber for treatment. Small-cell prostate cancer is considered a mixed tumor, meaning surgery would not be an effective option for him. It’s like having 2 different types of cancer inside the same tumor. The small cell portion was confined to the prostate, but the other portion was starting to spread.
Alicia Morgans is a Genitourinary Medical Oncologist and the Medical Director of the Survivorship Program at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute. Additionally, in October, Morgans began working as an Associate Professor at Harvard Medical School. A clinician and investigator, she has expertise in clinical trials and patient-reported outcome measures, as well as incorporating patient preferences and beliefs into clinical decision making. Her research has investigated complications of systemic therapy for prostate cancer survivors, including the study of skeletal,
cardiovascular, diabetic, and cognitive complications. Her work has been funded by grants from the Prostate Cancer Foundation and the Department of Defense. She is a member of the advanced and localized prostate cancer treatment guidelines committee of the American Urologic Association and is a member of the cardio-oncology committee of the American Heart Association. Since 2016, she has been Chair of the Medical Advisory Board for ZERO, a non-profit organization dedicated to supporting education and research funding for prostate cancer research.
After initially experiencing mild symptoms such as intolerance for spicy and acidic foods and abdomen soreness, Keith Johnson, a neurologist at Mass General Brigham, went to see his primary care physician when he noticed that these symptoms had worsened after a few months. He was diagnosed with stomach adenocarcinoma or stomach cancer in March 2021 and was started on a combination of chemotherapy and immunotherapy at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute under the care of his oncologist Dr. Ben Schlechter.
Most cancers of the stomach (about 90% to 95%) are adenocarcinomas. These cancers develop from the gland cells in the innermost lining of the stomach (the mucosa). The American Cancer Society’s estimates for stomach cancer in the United States for 2023 are about 26,500 new cases of stomach cancer and about 11,130 deaths. Stomach cancer accounts for about 1.5% of all new cancers diagnosed in the US each year and the average age of people when they are diagnosed is 68, as the cancer mostly affects older people.
Dr. Schlechter is a medical oncologist who specializes in gastrointestinal cancers including colorectal cancer, anal cancer, pancreatic cancer, and neuroendocrine cancers, among others. He is a former intern, resident, chief resident and fellow at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center as well as a member of the faculty at Harvard Medical School. His work at Dana-Farber
focuses on providing excellent patient care while trying to advance the treatment of gastrointestinal cancer patients. He is leading research involved in next-generation immunotherapy combinations in colorectal cancer as well as using CAR-T treatments in solid tumors.
Karen Cummings, who is retired and living in Maine, worked in Communications at
Dana-Farber Cancer Institute from late 1995 to early 2007. She was mainly in charge of publicity for fundraising events, mostly for the Jimmy Fund,
but also for special Dana-Farber events. She knew she was in for some exciting times when her very first event to publicize was a black-tie affair with Ted Williams when he returned to Boston for the opening of the Ted Williams Tunnel.
The 50th anniversary of Dana-Farber was one year before that of the Jimmy Fund, so to get up to speed, Karen spent a lot of time going through files and reading old clippings about the founding of both. This work gave her extensive background to the early times of the Jimmy Fund and a giant clue that the original Jimmy might still be alive.
Karen brought the original “Jimmy” back to Dana-Farber. Karen’s son is now a patient at Dana-Farber.
Chris Sale and the Red Sox are coming off a bad-looking loss against the Astros, but Sale is thrilled to have a new day come and once again be a part of the Jimmy Fund.
Blood in her urine lead Mary to get a kidney stone scan, but incidentally revealed that she had lymphoma. She immediately called Dana-Farber and was connected with the Cancer Diagnostic Service at Dana-Farber Brigham Cancer Center, which was new at the time of her lymphoma finding in 2018. The staff there cared for and led her through an expedited process to an official diagnosis of follicular lymphoma. At the same time, Mary had been training for the 2018 Pan Mass Challenge.
She started chemotherapy in the in the fall of 2018, every 3 weeks for 6 cycles, because the cancer had become more aggressive. Six weeks after the last treatment, Mary rode the 2-day Pan Mass Challenge to Provincetown and went into remission. After 3 years in remission, the cancer relapsed, and she is back in treatment as of June 2022. Now, she’s on a clinical trial and is awaiting FDA approval for the 3rd line treatment of her specific lymphoma. She feels honored to be on the trial, for herself, but also for all of the future patients that will benefit. Mary is currently in remission again and will finish treatment in March 2024.
Ann LaCasce, MD, MMSc, Associate Professor of Medicine, is a lymphoma specialist and is the Director of the Dana-Farber/Mass General Brigham Fellowship in Hematology/Oncology. She serves on the Alliance Lymphoma Committee, the National Cancer Comprehensive Lymphoma Guidelines Panel and the Lymphoma Research Foundation’s Scientific Advisory Committee.
Nicole Sawyer serves as the Partnership & Licensing Manager of Mass. Bay Brewing Company, aka, the Harpoon Brewery or MBBC. Nicole graduated from James Madison University in 2012 with a degree in Communication. After graduating she worked in healthcare for 5 years. Realizing she needed a switch; she started in 2017 as a Beer Captain in the Boston Harpoon Beer Hall. Since 2017 she has had multiple roles in the company. Currently she manages
partnerships, sponsorships, licensing opportunities and Harpoon Helps for the company. Harpoon Helps is Harpoon’s charitable arm of the company which has two annual events, the Harpoon 5-Miler, a run every May with 5,000 where proceeds go to the Angel Fund for ALS research, and Harpoon Dogtoberfest. Harpoon Dogtoberfest has proceeds split between the Kenary Brain Tumor Research Fund at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute as well as the MSPCA. Nicole has served for four years as the company representative for the Massachusetts Brewer’s Guild,
and as a member of MBBC’s Diversity Inclusion and Unity Committee.
Brad Stevens joins Jones and Mego to talk about the Celtics' offseason that saw Marcus Smart traded and Kristaps Porzingis acquired and how the locker room will be different with these moves.
Many know Joshua Kraft as president of the New England Patriots Charitable Foundation, but he’s also a survivor of prostate cancer. Kraft points to regular PSA (prostate-specific antigen) testing for detecting his cancer early, at age 51; most advisory organizations recommend men receive their first PSA test around age 50. Once his primary care physician alerted Kraft to high PSA levels, he was referred to Dana-Farber.
Now, he is cancer-free, with a PSA level of 0, and remains a strong advocate of prostate cancer screening to other men. He advises that early detection and removal is more important than fears of testing, digital exams, or biopsies. Today, prostate cancer is the second leading cause of cancer-related deaths in men, but a screening can be done at your routine physical exam.
Zachary was diagnosed with Burkitt's lymphoma in November 2022. He was congested, but not sneezing or coughing. His adenoids were enlarged and blocking his airways. His parents took him to see an ear, nose, and throat doctor, where they found a mass that turned out to be cancerous. His treatment included 5 months of chemotherapy. He is done with active treatment now and there is no evidence of disease.
Burkitt lymphoma is a type of non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL). Non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL) is one of the most common cancers in the United States,
accounting for about 4% of all cancers. American Cancer Society estimates about 80,550 people (44,880 males and 35,670 females) will be diagnosed with NHL in 2023 This includes both adults and children. NHL can occur at any age. In fact, it is one of the more common cancers among children, teens, and young adults. Still, the risk of developing NHL increases throughout life, and more than half of patients are 65 or older when they are first diagnosed.
Curt arrived in mid-2019 along with Bruce Arena as the Revolution’s Technical Director. For the last 4+ years, Onalfo has led the club’s scouting and roster management, and the club’s Pro Player Pathway – which includes the Academy and Revolution II. While Arena has been on administrative leave during the month of August, Onalfo has temporarily taken on his sporting director duties, serving as what is essentially the club’s GM through the end of this busy summer transfer window, which included the largest ever outgoing sale of an MLS goalkeeper (Djordje Petrovic to Chelsea).
In 1993, at the age of 23, Onalfo was already an NCAA National Champion, was captain of a US Olympic team. Then, he found a lump in his neck. On his 24th birthday, a doctor informed him it was cancer. 6-month chemotherapy, which worked and helped eliminate his cancer, but still took a real toll on him and of course, almost ended his career.
Celeste was diagnosed with Hodgkin lymphoma in January 2023. She had a cough that her parents thought was seasonal asthma coming back. The cough never went away and it sounded different than other illnesses she had in the past. Her parents took her to an asthma specialist, where they performed an x-ray and discovered a mass in her chest. Further testing revealed Hodgkin lymphoma. Her treatment has included 6 rounds of chemotherapy and she is also in the middle of 17 rounds of radiation. She is slated to be done with treatment this summer.
According to the American Cancer Society, there will be an estimated 8,830 new cases of Hodgkin lymphoma in the United States for 2023. Both children and adults can develop Hodgkin lymphoma, but it's most common in early adulthood (especially in a person’s 20s). The risk of Hodgkin lymphoma rises again in late adulthood (after age 55). Hodgkin lymphoma is rare in children younger than 5 years old. But
it's the most common cancer diagnosed in adolescents ages 15 to 19 years.
Bruins' Charlie Coyle talks about his appreciation for the Jimmy Fund growing up in the area and looks back at the team's elimination in the playoffs and if that will serve as a motivator for this upcoming season.
The team from Howes Lubricants talks about their involvement in the Jimmy Fund and share how much they have donated.
Red Sox analyst Lou Merloni expresses his favorite parts about being a part of the Jimmy Fund, but also looks at yesterday's loss from the Red Sox and if it might have broken some spirits in the clubhouse.
It was a routine life insurance exam that led to Richard Marriott’s cancer diagnosis. Tests found excess protein in his blood, and further testing revealed Mr. Marriott had IGG Kappa Myeloma. The cancer was caught very early, and he was asymptomatic. The standard of care for patients in his position at that time was watchful waiting, basically waiting to see if the cancer got worse. Fortunately, his hematologist-oncologist in Connecticut told him to ignore the standard of care and to go see Dr. Paul Richardson at Dana-Farber.
Astrocytomas and gliomas are tumors that grow from brain cells called astrocytes. These tumors can often develop in the cerebellum, the cerebrum, the brainstem, the hypothalamus, or the visual pathway. These brain tumors are either classified as low-grade (grades I and II) or high-grade (grades III and IV) tumors. Children with low-grade tumors have a relatively favorable prognosis, especially when the tumors can be completely resected.
Dr. Richardson is the clinical program leader and director of clinical research in the
Jerome Lipper Multiple Myeloma Center and LeBow Institute for Myeloma Therapeutics at DF/BWCC. One of the world’s foremost authorities on multiple myeloma, Richardson serves as principal investigator for numerous clinical trials underway to improve patient outcome and increase long-term survivorship.
Chastity’s primary care doctor originally thought the abdominal pain may be a
gallbladder issue, but blood work confirmed that this would be the beginning of her journey as she was diagnosed with stage 4 colorectal cancer. She started treatment with 13 rounds of chemotherapy, but the cancer was continuously deemed inoperable, and that she’d have to continue this treatment for life. She realized that she wouldn’t be able to see her boys, Brady and Connor, grow up, so she sought out a second opinion from two other doctors. They informed Chastity that she’d be a great candidate for ALPPS, an advanced surgery that could remove her liver tumors.
After completing both parts of the surgery, she needed to deal with complications
before receiving further chemotherapy. She was declared NED, or “no evidence of disease,” until a nodule was spotted on her lung that was a potential cause for concern. , The tumor was eventually removed and declared as metastatic colon cancer. Chastity is now NED once again and is approaching 1 year of being disease free. Realizing this classification can change at any moment, Chastity feels confident in her oncologist, Dr. Rubinson, and her care team to catch anything new right away and take care of it.
Douglas Rubinson, MD, PhD, is a medical oncologist and Assistant Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School. His clinical interests are gastrointestinal (GI cancers). Dr. Rubinson and his team study patient blood and tumor samples to examine molecular and genetic alterations that may signal a “driver” event for their cancer. This research helps them understand how normal cells transform into cancer cells and how to develop better drugs to treat them.
Head coach from the reigning Stanley Cup champion Vegas Golden Knights and former Bruins' coach Bruce Cassidy talks about how he is still celebrating his Stanley Cup win and how Boston will always remain a big part of his life including the Jimmy Fund.
Lisa has worked in the Jimmy Fund Clinic for more than 30 years.
Lisa and her team are responsible for the programs that help take the patients and their families' minds off of the treatment. In the past, they have hosted a Summer Festival, Winterfest and Teen Red Sox Spring Training Trips and Girls Weekend.
They also plan programs for parents whose children are being treated at the Jimmy Fund Clinic and for siblings of patients in treatment.
Izzy was diagnosed with b-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia in January 2022. She had a fever and some bruises on her skin which looked pronounced because she was especially pale. She went to the doctor for bloodwork, where it she was diagnosed with leukemia. Her treatment plan has included chemotherapy and she is slated to complete active treatment in Spring 2024.
ALL is the most common type of childhood cancer. It most often occurs in children ages 3 to 5 and affects slightly more boys than girls. About 3,000 people younger than age 20 are found to have ALL each year in the United States.
Emily is a certified child life specialist in the Jimmy Fund Clinic at Dana-Farber.
Norma was diagnosed with blastoma in February 2019. She had headaches, nausea, and vomiting that kept getting worse. She was sent to a neurologist, where testing revealed that she had a tumor in her head. Her treatment has included many surgeries on her head, radiation, and chemotherapy. She was in remission until 2021, but then her cancer returned in her head and her spine. She is still in active treatment. Norma loves mini golf, bowling, board games, Uno, Bingo, and Go Fish.
Neuroblastoma is by far the most common cancer in infants (younger than 1 year old). There are about 700 to 800 new cases of neuroblastoma each year in the United States. This number has remained about the same for many years.
Amanda (Andie) Cunningham is a certified child life specialist in the Jimmy Fund Clinic at Dana-Farber.
Gresh and Fauria are joined by UMass basketball and football coach Frank Martin on the Harbor One Hotline to talk about his fight and how it has inspired him as a coach.
Alan had already been living with a rare auto-immune disease for years, so when he discovered blood in his urine while in California for a WHO concert, he knew something else was wrong. He returned home earlier than planned and through an ultrasound, a urologist confirmed that he had a mass on his right kidney. Alan had the kidney removed but desired a more aggressive follow-up. He came to Dana-Farber and at the time was seeing Dr. David Braun. It was decided that Alan would come in every 3 months to monitor any growth.
Through ongoing scans, some nodules were identified on his left lung and after a biopsy, were identified as cancer in June 2021. At that point Dr. Braun left Dana-Farber for a new position out of Boston, so Alan began working with Dr. Xu on his care plan. Alan had lung surgery a month later and started a clinical trial shortly after. During this time, he began walking more in his free time and after learning about Dana-Farber's Marathon Walk, he signed up to participate in May of 2022. Alan eventually walked the race with Dr. Xu and his team, and others on the team were waiting at the finish line to cheer him on.
Today, Alan is still on the clinical trial and is in complete response status as of March. He’s had some side effects on the trial including weight loss, fatigue, brain fog, loss of taste, loss of smell, and decreased interest in food he used to like. He still walks nearly 5,000 steps a day around the neighborhood or on trails and is planning to get back to 10,000 soon.
Vincent Xu, MD, is a Genitourinary oncologist at Dana-Farber who joined the Lank
Center in 2020. In addition to caring for patients, Dr. Xu also conducts clinical research seeking to improve the treatment and outcomes of patients with genitourinary cancers like prostate cancer, bladder cancer and kidney cancer, among others. He is also an Instructor in Medicine at Harvard Medical School. Dr. Xu received his MD from Harvard Medical School in 2014. He completed residency training in internal medicine at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center,
followed by fellowship training in hematology and medical oncology also at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center.
Beth woke up on December 1, 2021, with what appeared to be hives, which led to two weeks of doctor visits. She then felt symptoms such as fatigue, nausea, vomiting and migraines. On the December 24, 2021, she was diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia and began her first round of treatment.
Her treatment has included induction, consolidation, and conditioning chemotherapy.
She also received a bone marrow transplant in May 2022. During this time, the nurses made her treatment go by smoothly. She is currently on maintenance treatment and has been considered in remission since December 2022.
Dr. Soiffer is chairman of the Center for International Blood and Marrow Transplant
Research advisory committee and has served as vice president (2006), president (2007), and immediate past president (2008) of the American Society of Blood and Marrow Transplantation.
Former Boston Mayor and current President of the NHLPA Marty Walsh joins the show to share his experience with the Jimmy Fund and Dana Farber
Sriram "Sri" Srikant (SHREE-ram "SHREE" SHREE-cant), 33, bile duct cancer, Cambridge, with
Thomas A. Abrams, MD, Institute Physician of Gastrointestinal Cancers, Dana-Farber
· For a few months in early 2022, Shree was experiencing abdominal distress that
progressively worsened. Eventually, he was unable to eat solid foods. He visited his primary care
physician who informed him that it looked like he had a large growth duct on his liver/pancreas
leading to the digestive system. He initially hoped for surgery, but additional scans confirmed
that the cancer was metastatic.
· For treatment, Shree started chemotherapy, radiation, and immunotherapy; since then
he’s almost continuously been receiving immunotherapy and just restarted chemotherapy. Side
effects have been minimal because of Shree’s young age and good health, according to his
doctor, Dr. Abrams.
· As a post-doctoral scientist at MIT, Shree has been able to understand and appreciate
the details of his journey, but it’s also been more difficult to accept what the future may hold.
He also notes that Dr. Abrams treats him as a partner in the process: always helping him to
understand what’s going on. Their goal is not to just keep him alive, but to continue living. Shree
says at times it’s hard for others to understand how he was diagnosed with cholangiocarcinoma
(or bile duct cancer) at such a young age. The average age of diagnosis for the disease is around
70 years old.
· Shree grew up in India and moved to Cambridge to pursue graduate school studies. His
younger brother and parents are now with him as he navigates his treatment.
Bile duct cancer facts
· Bile duct cancer arises from the cells that line the bile ducts, the drainage system for bile
that is produced by the liver. Bile ducts collect this bile, draining it into the gallbladder and
finally into the small intestine where it aids in the digestion process.
· According to the American Cancer Society, bile duct cancer is rare with about 8,000
people in the United States are diagnosed with Bile Duct Cancer each year. This includes both
intrahepatic (inside the liver) and extrahepatic (outside the liver) bile duct cancers.
· Bile duct cancer is more common in Southeast Asia, mostly because a parasitic infection
that can cause bile duct cancer is much more common there.
· Bile duct cancer can occur at young ages, but it is seen mainly in older people. The
average age of people diagnosed in the US with bile duct cancer is about 70.
Thomas A. Abrams, MD
· Thomas A. Abrams, MD, is an assistant professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School
and a senior physician at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute. His clinical interests are gastrointestinal
cancers, and he is a board-certified medical oncologist.
· Dr. Abrams received his medical degree from Jefferson Medical College in 2000. He
received his undergraduate degree in biology from Brown University and his medical degree
from the Sidney Kimmel Medical College of Thomas Jefferson University in Philadelphia. He
subsequently completed his residency in internal medicine and his fellowship in medical
oncology at University of Michigan Hospital before coming to Dana-Farber in 2006.
· Dr. Abrams is a national leader in patterns-of-care research in gastrointestinal
malignancies. His investigations into colorectal and pancreatic cancer chemotherapy treatment
patterns have shown how factors such as oncologist experience and practice setting impact
treatment decisions made by physicians. He also has a strong interest in telemedicine and its
impact on cancer care delivery.
Lisa Blanchard, Chief Clinical Officer (COO)
and Marybeth Adams, Executive Director of Inpatient Services at New England Recovery Center in Westboro
Ramie Darling (RAY-ME), 10, hepatoblastoma (heh-puh-tow-bla-stow-muh), Boston, with
Katie (mom), Raymond “Ramie” Sr., and Allison O'Neill, MD, pediatric oncologist, Jimmy Fund
Clinic, Dana-Farber
· Ramie is from Vero Beach, FL and came to Dana-Farber specifically to see Dr. Allison
O’Neill, who leads the pediatric liver tumor center in the Jimmy Fund Clinic. He was diagnosed
in December 2022 with Stage IV Hepatoblastoma, a liver cancer. Ramie’s treatment has included
8 months of chemotherapy, liver surgery, and he also had a full liver transplant. He is slated to
be done with active treatment after about 2 more months of chemotherapy.
· He is a huge Boston sports fan and recently got the amazing opportunity to meet
Patriots quarterback Mac Jones. He attended a training camp practice as well as a game, where
he spent time with Mac and played catch on the field. It was an incredible experience. He says
that he is a Boston sports fan because Florida gave him cancer, but Boston cured his cancer.
Hepatoblastoma facts
· Hepatoblastoma is a type of liver cancer that is usually found in babies and children up to
age 3.
· Hepatoblastoma is rare, diagnosed in fewer than one in a million children.
· Children have a higher risk for developing hepatoblastoma if they have one of more of
the following factors: were born prematurely with very low birth weights; have hemi
hyperplasia—one side of the body growing faster than the other; have an inherited condition
called familial adenomatous polyposis.
· Affected family members develop multiple, initially noncancerous polyps in the colon
that become cancerous if not removed; have Beckwith-Wiedemann syndrome.
· Babies with this disorder are large at birth; develop low blood sugar; and often have
large tongues, large internal organs and problems in the area near their “belly buttons.”
· The survival rate is more than 80% if the tumor is only in the liver and can be completely
removed with surgery after chemotherapy.
Allison O'Neill, MD
· Dr. O’Neill is a clinician and scientist who spends 50% of her time treating patients with
solid tumors, with a special focus on treating patients with liver tumors, and 50% of her time
performing clinical and preclinical research.
· She is director of the Pediatric Liver Tumor Program therefore much of her research
focuses on improving outcomes for patients with rare liver tumors.
Anne Gross, PhD, RN, NEA-BC, FAAN. Senior Vice President, Patient Care Services and Chief Nursing Officer, Dana-Farber
· Anne Gross, PhD, RN, is senior vice president for patient care services and chief nursing officer. There are more than 700 registered nurses, nurse practitioners, clinical specialists, and nurse scientists working at all Dana-Farber locations.
· Anne can give insight into the growth of Dana-Farber's regional campuses that make receiving care easier and more convenient. For example, care is available now in Merrimack Valley, Foxborough and Chestnut Hill and the team reconfigured the Yawkey Center to accommodate current and future growth. This work is grounded in our commitment to safe,
high-quality patient care, interdisciplinary teamwork, and relationship-based care – a model
that has long distinguished us as leaders amongst our peers.
· This year Dana-Farber was the recipient of the Oncology Nursing Society Outstanding
Employer Award – recognizing one organization annually for the investment it makes in the
advancement of oncology nursing practice through research and evidence-based practice.
· Anne is also proud of the patient care services team which supports our patients with
both financial assistance and outreach programs and expanded services for patients who
English is not their first language. Volunteer services have now had a full year back with a full
volunteer ambassador program after being impacted by the COVID pandemic.
· Anne is touched by the stories she hears every day of the amazing work of our nurses
who often go over and beyond. Some examples include:
· An interdisciplinary team of staff at Merrimack Valley heard about a patient’s significant
milestone birthday and joined together to host a party complete with cake and balloons
· Dana-Farber’s Inpatient Hospital staff hosted a wedding for a patient and their
significant other complete with cake, decorations, and a service delivered by a DFCI chaplain
· Dana-Farber’s Inpatient Hospital celebrated a graduation for a patient’s child. The staff
decorated the room/door and the principal of the school came to the unit and presented the
graduate with a diploma so the patient could participate.
Kate Nixon, Adolescent Specialist, Jimmy Fund Clinic, Dana-Farber
· Some of Kate’s earliest memories are from Jimmy Fund Clinic events, as her mom is a
pediatric oncology Clinical Educator at Boston Children’s. Every year she brought Kate and her
siblings to the Jimmy Fund Summer Festival.
· What Kate remembers is how families reacted to her mom, embracing her like a
long-lost relative, sharing updates on their families since the last time they saw her, and exuding
so much gratitude for the care their child received at the Jimmy Fund Clinic. It was during these
interactions that Kate realized what an amazing place the Jimmy Fund was and hoped to work
there one day herself.
· Twenty-something years later, Kate is proud to be part of the team that makes the Jimmy
Fund Clinic such an amazing place. As an adolescent specialist, Kate works with patients ages
13+, providing activities to pass the time in Clinic, help facilitate 3 activity-based support groups,
and helping plan the Clinic trips.
· She says: “Everyone of us on the patient and family’s activities team wears many
different hats and can rarely expect what any given day will look like. But we show up each day
to help patients, families, staff and beyond to feel successful throughout treatment.”
· The Jimmy Fund Clinic has hosts countless events for patients including a Boston Harbor
boat cruise, a holiday wonderland with a special visit from Santa Clause, and shopping trips to
Dana-Farber’s Friend’s Place
Robert Hale, President and CEO of Granite Telecommunications issues a $750,000 donation match challenge!
Rob currently serves on Copley’s investment committee and as an entrepreneur in
residence to assist the development of Copley’s portfolio companies. Rob founded Granite
Telecommunications in 2002 and has grown the company into one of the largest privately held
telecommunications services companies in the U.S., with revenues exceeding $1.5 billion.
· Rob is the founder and board chair of Fox Rock Capital, a single-family office based in
Boston, founding owner of FoxRock Properties, a commercial real estate firm, and is co-owner
of the NBA’s Boston Celtics.
· Rob lives in the Boston area with his wife and three children. He serves on the Board of
Trustees for Boston Children’s Hospital, Brigham & Women’s Hospital, the South Shore YMCA,
and the Massachusetts Soldiers Legacy Fund.
· Robert Hale Sr. Rob Jr.'s father was a patient at the Dana-Farber and died in 2008 from
pancreatic cancer.
· Rob and his family are philanthropic leaders in the Boston area.
Former Red Sox CY Young pitcher, Jim Lonborg, and his wife, Rosie, join Joe Castiglione and Will Flemming in the booth to discuss the importance of the Jimmy Fund.
Red Sox President Sam Kennedy and Laurie H. Glimcher, CEO of Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, join Joe & Will to kick off this year’s WEEI/NESN Jimmy Fund Radio-Telethon presented by Arbella Insurance!
Mike Thomas, Market Manager and Senior Vice President of Audacy Boston joins the show following his first WEEI/ NESN Jimmy Fund Radio-Telethon!
11 year old Teddy Cahalane joins the show along with his parents Caroline and Tim
Teddy was diagnosed with B-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia in 2021 after experiencing fatigue, lack of energy, and weight loss. After his diagnosis, he had two years of treatment that included chemotherapy infusions, lumbar punctures and intrathecal chemo, and oral chemotherapy. He went into remission about five weeks after his diagnosis and inpatient treatment.
The thing that makes Dana-Farber special for Teddy and his family are the people, nurses, other children and families. They are especially grateful for Robin Griffey, a Jimmy Fund nurse who retired this fall after 30 years.
Teddy will be entering sixth grade this fall. He spends lots of time with his brothers and cousins. He also loves sports, especially golf, lacrosse, and ice hockey (Boston Bruins).
Director of Patient and Family Programs at The Jimmy Fund Clinic, Dana-Farber Lisa Scherber joins the show
- Lisa has worked in the Jimmy Fund Clinic for over 30 years.
- Lisa and her team are responsible for the programs that help the patients and their families take minds off the treatment.
- Events that Lisa and her team plan include Red Sox teen event (coming up next week) Summer Fest and Bereavement Cruise in October
- Due to COVID, they had to pivot the programming and create new programs - ask her about their Zoom events.
- They also plan programs for parents whose children are being treated at the Jimmy Fund Clinic as well as for siblings of patients in treatment.
Mike Mottola, and his sister Jenn join the show to discuss their experience with Dana Farber as well as their Lou Merloni fandom
- Mike is a Lou Merloni fan and appeared on air with him in 2016 and 2017.
- Mike was diagnosed in October 2014 after having severe back pain during a golf tournament. He began treatment at another hospital until February 2015. He was in remission but before long it was clear he was having some complications.
- By July his cancer was back and he started treatment at Dana-Farber, with a new chemotherapy regimen. By July 12 he was in a coma because of a bad reaction to the chemotherapy and when he woke up he could not move his right arm or left leg and as a result he couldn't walk.
- Mike rehabbed and by the end of August was finally able to head home. He spent every couple weeks in the hospital for more chemotherapy and spent the time in between doing more physical therapy.
- Early December, Mike was moving around and he began the stem cell transplant process and by early January was allowed to go home and spend the next few months recovering under his parents' watchful eye.
- Mike loves to golf and played in the with longtime friend Daniel Koerner in the USGA's seventh U.S. Amateur Four-Ball Championship. He also partakes in meditation and yoga as part of his holistic therapy.
- His family includes his mom, Rosemary, his dad, Joe and sister Jenn. He is getting married in September to his fiancée, Kelsey Rose-Sinclair.
Mike Ellis from Deep River Snacks will be their interview representative. He sent the following bio information…
I met with the CEO of Deep River when the company I worked for closed. I was deeply intrigued on the passion of Deep River and their commitment to support various charities.
Deep River has created unique flavors such as Sweet Maui Onion, Rosemary Olive Oil, Spicy Dill Pickle
Deep River is a proud supporter with the Doug Flutie foundation for autism, Feed the children, the American liver foundation, Chris Reeves foundation, Curable foundation
Deep River has grown sales over 35% in New England by developing untapped markets and accounts such as Shaw’s & Big Y
Deep River’s motto “Because we give a chip” is the driving force of our brand and giving back to our communities and neighbors.
I’m proud to still be involved in the continued growth and charitable aspects of our company. And were proud to be a sponsor of the Jimmy Fund.
During the month of August, Deep River Snacks is donating $125 for every Red Sox home run. Every time the Sox ‘Go Deep’ in August, Deep River will donate $125 to the WEEI/NESN Jimmy Fund Radio Telethon
Celtics Owner Steve Pagliuca joins the show to discuss the off season, Brad Stevens stepping into the front office, Ime Udoka, the KD rumors, and more!
2 year old Quinn Flanagan joins the show with her parents Kerin and Dan, and brothers Seb and Charlie
- Quinn was diagnosed with a Wilms tumor in December 2021. Her dad, Dan, was putting on her diaper after a bath and noticed her belly button and abdomen were shifted to the left and harder to the touch.
- Kerin is a nurse practitioner and instantly knew something was wrong. By the end of the week, following a CT scan, Quinn was diagnosed with cancer and scheduled for surgery to remove the tumor and her left kidney. She began chemotherapy immediately afterward, that ended in June.
- Quinn's tumor had a genetic mutation, and they were able to enroll her in a research protocol that increased the intensity of treatment and countered the mutation's increased risk of relapse.
- Quinn's doctors are Dr. Lindsay Frazier and Dr. Helen Reed.
- Quinn loves to paint and draw, something she looked forward to doing with Jenny and Amanda from Child Life every time she visited the Jimmy Fund Clinic.
- She also loves putting on her tutu and going to gymnastics every Saturday morning. Her favorites are “jump jump” on the trampoline and doing summersaults on any flat surface she can find.
- Quinn’s big brother plays a lot of soccer and Quinn is following in his footsteps, always kicking the ball around the yard and often times trying to interrupt his soccer practice to join the team.
- Quinn's parents are grateful for the compassion of the Jimmy Fund Clinic staff, who helped get them through the last six months. The staff makes the environment in the clinic a happy place for kids to be, remembering her name when she walks through the halls.
14 year old Jarred Eagan joins the show along with his with parents, Charyn and Angelo, and sister, Gabrielle
Jarred was diagnosed in October 2021 with ALL. Jarred presented signs of exhaustion and petechiae on his leg. He started out with a lot of cancer to treat, including a mediastinal tumor in his chest. He was reclassified from High Risk to Very High Risk only a few months after his diagnosis.
- He is responding really well to the treatments and is expected to receive his last chemotherapy treatment at the end of November.
- Jarred is going into his freshman year at Whitman Hanson High School. He is a very active kid who loves to fish and plays baseball, basketball, and football.
- Over the last few months at Dana-Farber, his family has met many people and appreciate how it always feels like a family.
Jamie Erdahl, Host of Good Morning Football on NFL Network joins the show to discuss The Jimmy Fund, Good Morning Football, and her best Nick Saban interview.
Tonight's Anthem performer, 16 year old Kaylee Chambers joins the show along with her parents Kristina and Tim
- During the COVID lockdown in 2020, Kaylee started to get headaches and noticed weight loss. After many Zoom calls with doctors about the symptoms, she was brought in for a CT scan and a colonoscopy. It was confirmed it was adenocarcinoma of the colon that had metastasized to the liver, which is an adult cancer and rare in adolescents.
- Kaylee's doctors at Dana-Farber are Dr. Jenny Mack and Dr. Nina Weichert-Leahey. Her treatment has included several different immunotherapies, two colon resection surgeries, chemotherapy, radiation, and ablations. She is currently in
immunotherapy treatment
- Kaylee enjoys all things creative, such as singing, songwriting, making jewelry and stickers, keychains, drawing, and painting. She also spends her time baking and cooking, and with her best friend, Abby.
- Her family feels fortunate to be going to Dana-Farber, especially as the Jimmy Fund Clinic team often make going there feel fun. Kaylee enjoys child life specialist, Kate Nixon. Kate helps get Kaylee right into a craft while waiting for appointments.
- She is often then escorted to the treatment by the bubbly Philomena, with her awesome Irish accent. Kaylee's doctors are there for the family 24/7, even on weekends and vacations. And they are grateful to all the wonderful nurses, like Margarite, who really try to get to know the kids and make them feel comfortable.
- The Jimmy Fund Clinic also plans activities and events outside of the hospital that give the kids something fun to look forward to. Kaylee and her family have been to Franklin Park Zoo and had family pictures taken at Fenway Park. Kaylee enjoys the zoom teen group FACES and has been invited to sing at events like the Make-A-Wish annual Evening of Wishes Gala, the Newport Gulls home opener, and a Woo Sox game.
- Kaylee is singing the National Anthem before this evening’s game.
Sarah Montgomery (@Montysunflower on TikTok) joins the show along with her Doctor, Andy Lane join the show and get a tik tok dance with Christian!
- After feeling flu-like symptoms and not herself, Sarah went to a hematologist for blood work.
- A bone marrow biopsy revealed BPDCN, which is a rare cancer. Sarah's father researched specialists and found Dr. Andrew Lane at Dana-Farber and scheduled an appointment within a week. Soon thereafter she began drug treatment, followed by chemotherapy and a transplant.
- Sarah donated her bone marrow to her brother when he had aplastic anemia.
- Sarah documented her cancer journey through TikTok, doing dances to keep her spirits up and connect with other people going through their cancer journeys.
- Sarah is thankful for her family, Dana-Farber staff, and her donor all of whom have supported her and given her a second chance at life. She's amazed at the Dana-Farber staff, who treat patients amazingly and are passionate about what they do. She is awed by how they go above and beyond, and also provide great resources to her parents and family.
- Sarah loves to workout, especially going on hikes, and thrift shopping.
- She works as a behavior technician, working with children with special needs. She is currently working on getting her Masters in ABA therapy.
Dr. Andy Lane
- Dr. Lane is an oncologist in the Leukemia Program and he also leads a research laboratory in the Department of Medical Oncology at Dana-Farber. He is an associate professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School.
- His research focuses on finding new ways to treat blood cancers, and his work led to the first FDA approved therapy for a rare leukemia called BPDCN, in 2019.
Alex Cora joins the show to discuss The Jimmy Fund, the team's struggles this season, and why the team is hesitant to bring Triston Casas to the big leagues.
4 year old King Gaylor joins the show along with his parents Nasharis and Tim, and younger brother Kyro.
- King was diagnosed with ALL in January 2021. He had been sick in December, and was prescribed antibiotics. His mother insisted they weren't working and the doctor ordered a blood test. King was admitted to the hospital where he remained for 48 day, beginning his treatment journey.
- King had to overcome challenges, including needing physical therapy to strengthen his legs after a medication made it difficult for him to walk, sometimes slip a bit and giving him high anxiety, but he came out of the experience stronger.
- He currently goes to the Jimmy Fund Clinic once a week and will continue treatment through February 2023.
- King loves to play instruments, sing, and dance. He likes soccer, but says baseball is the best sport. He also loves Sonic the Hedgehog.
- Dana-Farber is special to King and his family because every staff member, nurse, and doctor has always made sure to take the best care of King.
Cindy Smith joins the show along with her sister Susan, and Doctor James Cleary
- Cindy is with her twin sister Susan and they are both tremendous Red Sox fans.
- Cindy was diagnosed in May 2015. She wasn't feeling well and was having stomach issues. Initially she was misdiagnosed with having food allergies. Further tests showed spots on her liver and neuroendocrine cancer was discovered.
- The cancer was also causing heart issues.
- Cindy chose to come to Dana-Farber at the urging of her twin sister who pointed out that her cancer is rare and she should go to a hospital that has a lot of experience treating something rare.
- She had undergone three chemoembolizations, which is when three chemotherapy drugs are injected into the artery that supplies blood to the tumor in the liver.
- This past year as her cancer advanced she started a new treatment that was not available when she was first diagnosed. She says it’s a perfect example of what research can do and why going to a hospital like Dana-Farber can make all the difference.
- Cindy was supposed to appear on the Radio-Telethon last year, but her health took a turn for the worse and she had to cancel her appearance the day before. She was truly heartbroken.
- This year she is doing much better and Dr. Cleary said it is a high honor to be able to appear alongside her.
- Cindy retired from her job at Bank Home Town this past year, which has been incredibly supportive of her. Bank Home Town made a $2,500 donation last year
when she was supposed to appear on Radio-Telethon and they are making a donation again this year.
- She is also an artist with a passion for painting and she used to own an art studio. Through art she has hosted fundraisers for Dr. Cleary every year, raising more than $16,000 to date and counting! Dr. Cleary has been able to attend some of her art shows.
Dr. James Cleary
- Dr. Cleary is an oncologist who specializes in gastrointestinal cancers. In addition to treating patients with neuroendocrine cancer, he treats malignancies including pancreatic, colon, rectal, biliary, and liver.
- He was awarded a Lustgarten Foundation/Stand Up To Cancer (SU2C) grant in support of his work developing new therapies for patients with pancreatic cancer. Dr. Cleary has over 30 publications in such journals as The New England Journal of Medicine, The Lancet, The Journal of Clinical Oncology, Cancer Discovery, and The Journal of Clinical Investigation. In addition to his research activities, he has won awards for both his clinical care at Dana-Farber and his teaching at Harvard Medical School.
Sam Kennedy joins Gresh and Keefe to discuss the Jimmy Fund as well as the Red Sox plans for Bogaerts and Devers
5 year old Celia Jan joins the show with her mom, Nicole.
Celia was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia while living with her father in Pakistan in October 2020.
She came to Boston to live with her mom and get treatment at the Jimmy Fund Clinic. Her treatment has included chemotherapy and she is slated to finish active treatment in spring of 2023.
In her spare time, she loves going to the beach, swimming, art, reading, playing with toys, watching movies, bike riding, hiking, and camping
Cynthia Collin and Dr. Ben Schlechter join the show
- Cynthia was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in July 2017 when she was only 35. She had two young children at the time, her son was 8 and daughter was 6,
- Given her age, cancer was the last thing she suspected. She wasn’t feeling well, had stomach pain and was unexpectedly losing weight. She went to her doctor and kept following up with them because she knew something was off. Eventually after having some tests, she was shocked to be diagnosed with pancreatic cancer.
- She had a surgery known as a Whipple procedure and then was monitored to see if the disease came back. In November 2020 she found out the cancer came back and she underwent another surgery.
- She has been in remission for the last year. Her kids are now ages 14 and 11.
- Cynthia says that she feel lucky because early in her cancer journey she felt lucky because she had symptoms that she didn’t ignore. Many people with pancreatic cancer don’t experience symptoms at all.
- She works as a regional manager at Atrius Health.
Dr. Ben Schlechter
- He is a medical oncologist who specializes in gastrointestinal cancers including colorectal cancer, anal cancer, pancreatic cancer, and neuroendocrine cancers, among others. He is a former intern, resident, chief resident and fellow at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center as well as a member of the faculty at Harvard Medical School.
- In the past he was the Director of Inpatient Hematology and Oncology at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center as well as the Assistant Program Director of the Internal Medicine Residency Program. His work at Dana-Farber focuses on providing excellent patient care while trying to advance the treatment of gastrointestinal cancer patients.
Former Revolution Forward, and current CBS Sports Soccer Analyst Charlie Davie joins the show to discuss how cancer affected his playing career.
Magnolia Contreras, Vice President of Community Health at Dana-Farber joins the show
Magnolia joined Dana-Farber in 2007 and currently serves as the Vice President of Community Health.
- In this role, she is charged with helping the Institute carry out its community benefits mission through the delivery of evidence-based cancer prevention, screening, and early detection programs.
- She is committed to making Dana-Farber's care and research findings more accessible to everyone.
- Magnolia and her team work with city and state health departments, community partners, and Boston-based coalitions to assess and monitor the needs of local residents with respect to cancer control.
- They are on the front lines to support and collaborate on programs to eliminate disparities in breast, colon, and skin cancer; educate diverse populations about tobacco cessation, human papillomavirus (HPV) prevention and screening.
- Aside from her work at Dana-Farber, Magnolia serves on the Board of Directors of the Economic Development Industrial Corporation of Lynn, advocating for low interest loans to small business owners including minority business owners.
- Prior to joining Dana-Farber, Ms. Contreras was employed by AIDS Action Committee of Massachusetts where she served in senior executive roles as the Director of External Affairs and Director of Public Policy and Community Relations. Additionally, she had a consulting services practice in non-profit management and political coaching and research.
Ludmila Svoboda, Program Nurse, Cancer Care Equity Program at Dana-Farber joins the show.
One of Ludmila’s responsibilities is to triage the patients as they come to the program for consultations. She obtains their health history and coordinates any referrals and care they may need.
Ludmila also does a lot of educational events in the community about cancer prevention, early diagnosis and screening.
Liz Rounseville, along with her Husband Robby, Son Owen, Daughter Lilly, and Doctor Beth Buchbinder join the show
In March of 2018, Liz noticed a mole on her right leg near her knee that was itching and bothering her. Liz made an appointment with her dermatologist right away. As soon the dermatologist examined her, he told Liz that it was cancer but had to have it sent out for further testing.
- When the test came back, Liz was diagnosed with melanoma and would need to go under surgery to have the cancer removed.
- During her surgery, it was discovered that Liz’s cancer had spread to my lymph nodes.
- Not long ago, a diagnosis of malignant melanoma carried with it a very short life expectancy.
- Thanks in large part to development of new immunotherapy drugs, which enable the body’s own immune system to recognize and destroy cancer cells, many people now diagnosed with the disease are living much longer with fewer complications.
- Liz is one such patient who has benefited from immunotherapy and has also participated in clinical trials at Dana-Farber.
- Her last treatment was April 26, 2021.
- Liz works as a barista and lives in Rochester with her husband Robbie, her son Owen, 14, and daughter Lily, 12.
- Her hobbies include puzzles and diamond paintings.
Dr. Elizabeth Buchbinder
- Elizabeth Buchbinder, MD is a clinical oncologist at Dana-Farber specializing in the treatment of melanoma.
- In addition to treating patients, she performs clinical and translational research to help further melanoma treatment. Her primary areas of research are in
immunotherapy and novel targeted therapy approaches. She has particular interest in rare forms of melanoma including mucosal melanoma and uveal melanoma.
Comedian Denis Leary joins Gresh and Keefe for the 20th annual WEEI/ NESN Jimmy Fund Radio Telethon.
Inigo Vega ,10, with parents, Lyndell and Alfonso and Mary Ann Zimmerman, PNP, Pediatric Neuro Oncology Department, Dana-Farber
- Inigo was diagnosed in September 2021. He had been sick, followed by trouble with his vision, so the ophthalmologist sent the family to the emergency room where an MRI showed a brain tumor. He was kept overnight due to very high intracranial pressure. His family was in shock and kept wondering how they had missed the signs.
- The next day, Inigo had surgery to remove the tumor, but slipped into Posterior Fossa Syndrome, which happens to about 25% of patients who have surgery on a specific section of the brain and is a state of being fully conscious but unable to move your body. Inigo then had three more surgeries and began radiation therapy, followed by intensive physical and speech therapies.
- After this, Inigo began in-patient chemotherapy, which he finished this past June and will begin maintenance chemotherapy at home in August.
- Inigo enjoys riding this new three-wheeled bike, driving RC cars, drawing comics, writing stories, and making stop-motion animation videos. He is homeschooled and in the fourth grade.
- The Vega family feels privileged to have Dana-Farber managing Inigo's care. Dr. Chi and her team were the first ones to explain to them what was happening to Inigo. They feel good knowing they have one of the best and most prestigious research institutions with the very best physicians guiding them through this journey of faith, hope, and love.
- Being together as a family has made all the difference to them, as they were able to stay by each other's sides. Inigo’s parents are inspired by him and want to share his story of tenacity.
Mark Singer 58, anaplastic thyroid cancer, Barrington, RI
In the early stages of the pandemic, Mark knew something was wrong when he noticed a small lump on his neck. Soon after, he went to an ER for testing and received a diagnosis of anaplastic thyroid cancer, a very serious form of the disease which prior to 2017 had a one-year survival rate of 10% -20%.
- After Googling “Best Cancer Hospitals in New England,” Dana-Farber moved to the top of his list for care. Mark started with a year of immunotherapy treatments with Nivolumab, also known as Opdivo, and Dupixent, which he still currently takes, for
any side effects. Immunotherapy is a new cancer treatment that allows the body’s own immune system to recognize and kill cancer cells.
- Mark had a rapid and profound response and has shown no evidence of disease for over a year. In addition to immunotherapy, his care team was able to remove a cancerous tumor from his thyroid, several cancerous lymph nodes, and perform vocal-chord repaire surgery.
- Today, Marks feels mostly back to his pre-cancer self. You can find him boating around Lake Winnipesaukee or riding on his Harley-Davidson motorcycle. He’s supported by his wife, Mary, and their two children, Michael and Maggie.
David Ortiz joins the show to discuss the Jimmy Fund, Rafael Devers' contract situation, and of course, food.
Eric Ricci , 54, kidney cancer, Peabody, and Dr. Brad McGregor, Genitourinary Oncology, Dana-Farberjoin the show
What started as regular back pain, that could be explained as kidney-stones, soon evolved into extreme pain that called for medical attention. In December 2016, Eric was diagnosed with kidney cancer after a CAT scan identified a lump on his kidney and enlarged lymph nodes.
Shortly after his diagnosis, Eric endured a 9-hour long surgery and became involved with a clinical trial on the recommendation of his oncologist, Dr. Brad McGregor. From 2016 to January of this year, he received frequent immunotherapy treatments. Today, he receives treatment and scans every three weeks.
Eric is a School Resource Officer at eight schools in Peabody. He’s joined by a Black English Lab comfort dog, named Ella, whose namesake is a 4th grade girl who passed away from brain cancer at South School.
Eric also enjoys visiting Lake Ossipee, participating in charity work at the police station, and running an annual Peabody baseball game. He’s supported by his wife, Donna, and children, Erica, David, and Nicholas.
Eric describes Dana-Farber as a family-friendly environment, allowing him to feel comfortable during treatment. From doctors to employees at the front desk -- everyone knows your name. One infusion nurse, who is also an experienced makeup artist, grew close to the family and even did the make up for Eric’s daughter’s wedding.
Dr. Laurie H. Glimcher, President and CEO, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Director of the Dana-Farber/Harvard Cancer Center and the Richard and Susan Smith Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School
- Dr. Glimcher is a distinguished immunologist, widely renowned for her work in one of the most promising areas of cancer research.
- Dr. Glimcher speaks nationally and internationally on cancer, immunology, and translational medicine and has contributed more than 350 scholarly articles and papers to medical literature.
- Aside from her research efforts, Dr. Glimcher is a staunch proponent of improved access to care, health policy, and medical education, while simultaneously serving as a pioneering mentor and role model for cancer research trainees and for all women in science.
- She was the first female to be appointed as dean of Weill Cornell Medicine in New York and is the first female President and Chief Executive Officer of Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in Boston.
David Feldman joins Joe and Sean in the booth and talks about his diagnosis and what treatments he has gone through. David also talks about the research and advancements they still need to make when it comes to glioblastoma
FREDERICK "FRED" KNIGHT, 28, JOINS JOE AND SEAN IN THE BOOTH TO TALK ABOUT HIS DIAGNOIS AND HOW HE CREDITS DANA-FARBER WITH SAVING HIS LIFE.
Victoria "Tori" Rando, 33, lymphoma and Tanya Searle, 33, hodgkin's lymphoma join Joe and Sean in the booth and talk about how they met at the Jimmy Fund Clinic and the friendship that formed when they got treatment at the same time.
Chris Vaughan, Marketing and Communications Manager of Cape Cod Lumber joins Joe and Sean in the booth
Mut is joined by Red Sox Chairman Tom Werner to talk about the importance of the Jimmy Fund and the relationship between the Red Sox and the Jimmy Fund
- Anya had been complaining that her leg was sore, but her parents thought it was growing pains and it wasn't interfering with her daily life. After the family contracted COVID, the symptoms worsened and she started limping. They realized one leg looked substantially larger than the other and called Mayah's grandfather who was a pediatric cardiologist at Boston Children's Hospital. He knew it was osteosarcoma and they went to the emergency room right away, where the diagnosis was confirmed in January 2022.
- After the diagnosis, Anya had her first surgery and second surgeries to confirm the diagnosis and to place a central line in her chest. Anya and her mother, Jeni, cut their hair together in preparation for chemotherapy. Anya underwent six cycles of chemotherapy, each five weeks long.
Mr. Donohue is one of the founders of Arbella and has been Chairman of
the Board of Directors since the company’s creation in 1988 and chairs the boards of each of the subsidiary companies. He is responsible for the strategic planning and corporate policy for all of the companies of the Arbella Insurance Group – a leader in the New England property/casualty
insurance industry - as well as the strategic planning and giving initiatives for the Arbella Insurance Foundation.
Since its inception in 2005, the Foundation has donated more than $36.6 million to charities across New England.
- Amy Cheung was originally diagnosed with Stage II breast cancer in September 2015, at the age of 32. At that point, she was feeling the healthiest she had ever been and was training for a marathon. She happened to cough one day and in the process of clutching herself, felt a lump.
- Amy went to her primary doctor a few days later and from there, things moved quickly to a biopsy that confirmed cancer. She was treated then with chemotherapy, then surgery, and radiation and presumed to be cancer free. She continued with anti-hormone therapy to keep the cancer from coming back.
- In late 2019, Amy started experiencing some back pain that she chalked up to exercise. Then from Jan - April 2020, Amy started having regular, low-grade fevers. Finally, after feeling miserable for so long, she e-mailed her oncologist Dr. Hal Burstein and told him of her symptoms. Without delay, Dr. Burstein ordered scans for Amy, which unfortunately revealed extensive cancer metastases in her liver as well as metastases in her bones.
- Amy has undergone several types of treatments for her cancer including surgery, radiation, and targeted therapies.
- She is currently part of a clinical trial that involves a targeted therapy combined with an immunotherapy drug, which enables the body’s own immune system to recognize and destroy cancer cells.
- Having grown up in the Boston area, Amy felt like she had always known about DanaFarber. In high school during the summers, she used to volunteer for the Jimmy Fund at movie theaters, fundraising from movie patrons.
- Samara had been experiencing fevers and constipation for several weeks before being diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) in May 2021.
- She has overcome the most intensive part of the treatment and is in remission. She continues weekly chemotherapy, steroid therapy, and will be on antibiotics throughout the rest of her treatment. Her treatment will continue for another year.
- Her doctor is Angela Ferraco.
- She currently attends Commonwealth Children's Center for preschool. In the fall, she will be attending Park Street School for kindergarten.
- Samara loves playing with her kitchen set at home. She prepares "meals" for her family, dolls, and stuffed animals. She also enjoys building with Legos, doing arts and crafts, playing in sprinklers, and going to playgrounds.
- Hannah was diagnosed with Grade 2 Diffuse Astrocytoma in April 2017 after having a seizure while sleeping. She had her first surgery and then went back to school to finish her senior year of high school.
- She is currently in a trial for treatment that is going well. Her doctors are Dr. David Reardon and nurse practitioner Jenn Stefanik.
- Hannah likes the environment at Dana-Farber, as everyone is professional and polite, and she feels like they are always good to work with. She feels the important thing is that Dana-Farber is a great place to be treated, and even though it's always a long day when coming in, they have helped her so much.
- Hannah will be a senior at the University of Maine this year. She works part time at a hotel and works with Behavioral Health professionals in Maine, assisting in socializing and doing activities with young people. She enjoys exercising and spending time on social media.
- Rosemary was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) in 2011 when she was an Events Coordinator in the Communications department at Dana Farber Cancer Institute.
- She underwent two years of treatment with many ups and downs. Five years after her treatment began, Rosemary had to receive a stem cell transplant to give her a new immune system and the chance of long-term survival. Her 100% match was a 20-year-old woman from Poland.
- Five years later, Rosemary still faces challenges from the transplant, but has maintained her faith, optimism, and upbeat outlook on life. She feels especially grateful to her husband, Jim, for all his support over the past 11 years.
- Rosemary feels Dr. Soiffer is one of the most kindhearted doctors and has unknowingly carried her through her ordeals with his actions, words, and dedication. She would not be here today if it were not for Dr. Soiffer, his incredible team, and the treatment at Dana-Farber.
- Rosemary appeared on WEEI in 2012.
- Peter's grandfather, mother, aunt, and sister all lost their lives to multiple myeloma. Peter had tested his stem cell transplant compatibility for his sister, and it was discovered he had an abnormal protein in his blood. With checkups every three
months, Peter was diagnosed in 2014. He started on a clinical trial, and fortunately reached remission after a stem cell transplant in 2015. His wife and family were with him throughout, providing love and support. - Peter feels Dr. Ghobrial is passionate about her patients' care and ensuring they are getting the right treatment. Dana-Farber is special to him because he knows he is being treated by a doctor who is heavily engaged in research related to multiple myeloma and is on the leading edge of research.
- Peter loves playing ice hockey with his friends and reading, spending the summer at their camp fishing and kayaking.
- Peter is retired, but formerly worked in higher education fundraising.
- Olivia was diagnosed with a medulloblastoma brain tumor, the size of a small egg, in the lower back part of her brain, close to the brain stem in February 2016. Her parents had noticed she was vomiting and had some minor imbalance while walking.
- Olivia had six months of chemotherapy that started in March 2016. During her treatment, she had a Broviac port, several blood transfusions, a lumbar puncture and bone marrow scan, and a stem cell treatment plan. She had five different chemotherapy medications during her 6-month treatment. Her treatment ended
September 2016, although she does have her regular brain and spine scans every six months. - Her doctors are Dr. Susan Chi and Dr. Michelle Lee.
- She also had two surgeries in 2020 after finding a vascular lesion (small bleeding blood vessel) in the front left part of Olivia's brain.
- Olivia is going into the third grade. She plays soccer, does gymnastics, loves doing Ninja, and takes dance.
- Her family is grateful to Dana-Farber for the degree of patient and family care they provide. They feel no details are overlooked or taken for granted. They say, “Dana-Farber makes you feel as though you are the most important person there
and you become part of a group that you have a connection with forever.” - Andrea ran the Boston Marathon in 2016 during Olivia's treatment and Jason runs an "Olivia Strong" night every season at a Bristol Community College soccer game, where he is a coach, to raise money for the Jimmy Fund.
- Cael was diagnosed in 2021 with leukemia. After not feeling well, he was quickly admitted to the hospital where he was diagnosed with cancer. He has been undergoing chemotherapy treatment at the Jimmy Fund Clinic for the last year. When he grows up, he wants to be a doctor, so that he can take care of other children and families facing cancer. Cael also loves playing and watching sports, especially football, soccer, and baseball.
- Cael's baseball dreams became a reality when he participated on the field at this year's John Hancock Fenway Fantasy Day, where he had the special opportunity to play on the field at Fenway Park.
- He also loves to run and can run a whole
Pat Harrington and David Gill drop by to drop off a generous donation totaling over $60,000.
- Today, 8/23 is his daughter, Oriana's birthday!
- OK was diagnosed with glioblastoma, a tumor in his right frontal lobe on January 27, 2018, two days before his son's, Oliver's, birthday. His wife, Maria, had encouraged him to go to the emergency room after noticing some irregular behavior, such as dropping things. Maria has a friend who works at Dana-Farber, and she arranged everything for him, including an appointment with Dr. Reardon.
- His treatment includes weekly blood draws and an infusion of a study to test a drug.
- OK likes sports and bicycling.
- He works as a central office technician with Verizon.
- When Shelley was diagnosed with uterine endometrial stage 4 cancer in January 2020, she knew as soon as she heard the word cancer, she’d go to Dana-Farber.
- She began chemotherapy treatments a month after her diagnosis until the cancer began growing again in November 2020. A few months later, Shelley started on a clinical trial that she has been on for the past six months. Her scans have shown no convincing evidence of metastatic disease.
- Shelley recalls the quality of care received by friends and family for multiple myeloma at Dana-Farber and has experienced the same high level of care herself.
- Shelley has also been a chiropractor for 20 years in East Hampton, Massachusetts. She also loves being outdoors through gardening, paddle boarding, mountain biking, and hiking.
- Last October, she climbed Mount Katahdin in Maine and hiked 100 miles of the Appalachian Trail from Georgia to North Carolina in April. She maintains a positive outlook and does not let cancer stop her from living her life.
Erika Howes is a member of the fifth generation at family owned Howes Lubricator and is the V.P. of Media Marketing. The Hoews family like many others has experienced the struggles and heartbreak of having family members battle cancer. They have become great friends and allies of the Jimmy Fund and Dana Farber over the years.
● Lisa has worked in the Jimmy Fund Clinic for over 30 years.
● Lisa and her team are responsible for the programs that help take the patients and their families take minds off the treatment.
● Events that Lisa and her team plan include Red Sox teen event (coming up next week) Summer Fest and Bereavement Cruise in October
● Due to COVID, they had to pivot the programming and create new programs - ask her about their Zoom events.
● They also plan programs for parents whose children are being treated at the Jimmy Fund Clinic as well as for siblings of patients in treatment.
- Michelle started experiencing numbness and weakness in her right hand that spread to her arm, then face and leg. After a brain biopsy, she was diagnosed with primary central nervous lymphoma. She underwent inpatient chemotherapy, which was ultimately ineffective at shrinking the tumor.
- Michelle researched and found CAR-T (a drug that uses the patient's immune system to fight cancer) and a clinical trial at Dana-Farber, which she was accepted to and has since stabilized the disease.
- Michelle enjoys writing, reading, baking, and spending time with her nieces. She is now able to walk, hike, and bike again! She was previously a physical therapist specializing in outpatient orthopedics.
- Michelle feels Dana-Farber saved her life and that everyone she has encountered is unbelievably kind, compassionate, and encouraging. For her, Dana-Farber is a place of hope.
Shawn Thornton joins Gresh and Keefe to discuss his work with Dana Farber, the Florida Panthers, what he thinks of Patrice Bergeron and David Krejci returning to the Bruins, and how Kodak Black helped people learn about the Florida Panthers.
- Steve was out golfing with a few of his friends on a cold December day on the Cape. During his round, he noticed a bump on his left side that he showed to his wife when he got home. He booked an appointment with his primary care doctor shortly thereafter, just before Christmas in 2016.
- After a few tests, Steve was completely floored to discover he had stage 4 breast cancer. He underwent a mastectomy shortly thereafter. He also came to Dana-Farber and to Dr. Erica Mayer for a second opinion. The subsequent treatment plan that Dr. Mayer sketched out for Steve just felt right to him and he decided to switch his care to Dana-Farber.
- Breast cancer in men is quite rare, only 1 out of 100 cases of breast cancer in the US are found in men.
- While he is still living with a serious illness Steve is doing great today and “like a million bucks.”
- He comes to Dana-Farber from Sandwich every three weeks for treatment.
- Steve travels a lot now with his wife visiting national parks and other spots he wishes he got to sooner.
- After visits to his local doctor and urgent care, it was believed that Kheim’s rectal bleeding and extra fatigue could be attributed to hemorrhoids. Instead, learning the news through a phone call, Kheim was diagnosed with rectal cancer with metastasis to liver at age 32 after receiving additional scans and examinations. Once at Dana-Farber, with the help of his oncologist, Dr. Douglas Rubinson, Kheim began
chemotherapy infusions, but his nurses noted that he always seemed a bit “off.” After his family found Kheim at home, nearly unresponsive, it was later discovered that a genetic quirk caused Kheim to metabolize the chemotherapy. - In collaboration with Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Kheim’s care team developed a protocol to continue chemotherapy, without continued toxic metabolic products. He also had surgeries to remove cancerous parts of his liver and rectum. Kheim remained cancer-free for two years until a recurrence occurred a few months ago on the lining of his liver. Kheim has since returned to chemotherapy treatment, with four additional rounds scheduled.
- A graduate of Boston University, Kheim works as a healthcare analyst manager. He also enjoys playing jazz guitar, collecting records, cooking, gardening, and meditating. Kheim makes it a priority to focus on his personal wellness, through mental health, lifestyle, nutrition, and mindfulness changes, as much as his health care. Through working on this relationship to be a positive one, Kheim hopes to improve his quality of life with cancer.
Addison Gould, 5, optic pathways glioma, Bourne, with mom,
Jillian, and brother, Colin (7)
● Addison was born with type 1 neurofibromatosis.
Neurofibromatosis is a set of complex disorders that affects almost every organ
system, causing tumors to grow on nerves in the brain and throughout the body.
Addison's pediatrician noticed that one of Addison's eyelids were drooping in a
routine checkup, so she had an MRI to investigate further. She was diagnosed with
cancerous Optic Pathways Gliomas in 2019 and in August 2020, scans revealed that
her gliomas and grown substantially, making her left eye protrude from its socket.
● Addison is blind in one eye. Her treatment has included chemotherapy as well as
several oral medications and will likely be in treatment for the rest of her life.
● Addison loves swimming in the pool, coloring and playing with Legos. She especially
loves playing in the playroom and in the music room at the Jimmy Fund Clinic.
Addison loves to 'help' her doctors and nurses during her visits and treatments, by
checking her stuffed animal vital signs that she brings with her to the Clinic.
● The Jimmy Fund Clinic feels like their extended family and they are incredibly grateful
for their support every step of the way.
Optic pathways glioma facts
● Slow-growing brain tumor that arises in or around the optic nerve, which connects
the eye to the brain.
● As the tumor progresses, it presses on the optic nerve, causing a child's vision to
worsen.
● Blindness can occur, but only in about 5% of cases.
● While these are serious tumors, they have a high cure rate and the survival rate for
optic pathway glioma is near 90%
● These tumors can affect the body's endocrine functions, such as hormone
production, salt and water balance, appetite, and sleep.
● More than 75% of these tumors occur during the first 10 years of life and most are
diagnosed in children age 5 or younger.
● Optic pathway tumors account for up to 5% of primary central nervous system
tumors in children.
Daniel Ramos, 40, acute myeloblastic leukemia, Attleboro, with daughter, Leia Ramos (8), wife, Katharine Ramos, sister, Lidia Thomas, and Dr. Richard Stone, Chief of Staff and Director, Translational Research, Adult Leukemia Program, Dana-Farber wit his doctor, Dr. Richard Stone
● Daniel had noticed his energy and endurance levels were very low and spoke to his
doctor about it at his annual physical. Subsequent bloodwork showed very high
white blood cell counts and he was told to go to the emergency room at Brigham
and Women's as they were confident it was Leukemia. This took place at the height
of the pandemic, which meant he could not have any visitors with him, making it a
very solitary experience. Upon being admitted to the emergency room, he was
introduced to Dr. Richard Stone and Ilene Galinsky who were able to shed light on a
dark situation. In a world where the word "hero" seems to be thrown around a little
too easily, they are true heroes. The nurses on the seventh floor were also absolute
angels and treated him like extended family made the situation a bit easier.
● His treatment consisted of induction chemotherapy and a research drug called
Crenolanib that targets the mutation that he had. The treatments were successful in
getting him into full remission. Due to his mutation, Daniel also underwent a stem
cell transplant, for which his sister was a perfect match, to try to achieve a lasting
cure. He is doing very well and is still in remission so far, up for immunizations 24
months post-transplant.
● Daniel loves to work on and restore cars and motorized equipment as well as
camping and helping people.
● He is a regional maintenance director for Healthtrax Fitness & Wellness
● Daniel, born and raised in New England, is proud of Boston's Dana-Farber. He feels
the next-level care you get when walking into Dana-Farber is unmatched by any
other hospital he has ever been in. He also feels Brigham is another of the greatest
hospitals around, as they saved his mom's life with a quadruple bypass.
Acute myeloblastic leukemia facts
● AML is one of the most common types of leukemia in adults. Still, AML is fairly rare
overall, accounting for only about 1% of all cancers.
● American Cancer Society predicts there will be about 20,050 new cases of AML in
2022.
● Acute myeloid leukemia (AML) starts in the bone marrow (the soft inner part of
certain bones, where new blood cells are made), but most often it quickly moves
into the blood, as well. It can sometimes spread to other parts of the body including
the lymph nodes, liver, spleen, central nervous system (brain and spinal cord), and
testicles.
● Most often, AML develops from cells that would turn into white blood cells (other
than lymphocytes), but sometimes AML develops in other types of blood-forming
cells. The different types of AML are discussed in Acute Myeloid Leukemia (AML)
Subtypes and Prognostic Factors.
● Acute myeloid leukemia (AML) has many other names, including acute myelocytic
leukemia, acute myelogenous leukemia, acute granulocytic leukemia, and acute
non-lymphocytic leukemia.
● Dr. Stone received his MD in 1981 from Harvard Medical School, his internal
medicine residency training at Brigham and Women's Hospital, and his
hematology-oncology fellowship at Dana-Farber.
● He has performed numerous laboratory and clinical studies on acute leukemia and
related disorders, and frequently participates in grand rounds worldwide sharing his
knowledge with other professionals.
Sabine Simon, 4, acute lymphocytic leukemia, Sharon, CT, with dad, Eric Simon
● Sabine was diagnosed in July 2022 with symptoms of bruising, sensitivity to
temperatures, unusual fatigue, and petechiae (tiny round brown-purple spots due to
bleeding under the skin).
● The diagnosis was extremely scary at first. Her parents chose Dana-Farber for
treatment because her grandfather was treated there and they were aware of the
Jimmy Fund Clinic as a center of excellence.
● Sabine is currently in treatment and will finish this fall. Her doctor is Jessica Pollard,
MD, Pediatric Hematology/Oncology.
● Sabine currently attends nursery school. She loves movement -- jumping, dancing,
throwing balls. She also loves stories and dramatic play (especially toy kitchens and
food). She is interested in animals as well.
● Her family is grateful to all the staff and doctors who have been exceptional. Ricardo
in the cafeteria always greets Sabine with a friendly hello and remembers her
choices at the hot food station. They also love their team of nurses and clinicians, as
well as Dr. Pollard who has been a great guide through Sabine's cancer journey. Her
parents feel that at Dana-Farber, they are in the exact right place for excellent care
for their daughter and the family.
Acute lymphocytic leukemia facts
● A type of cancer of the blood and bone marrow.
● Rare – accounting for less than half of 1% of all cancers in the United States.
● Acute lymphocytic leukemia is the most common type of cancer in children younger
than 15, and treatments result in a good chance for a cure.
● The word "acute" in acute lymphocytic leukemia comes from the fact that the
disease progresses rapidly and creates immature blood cells, rather than mature
ones.
● The word "lymphocytic" in acute lymphocytic leukemia refers to the white blood
cells called lymphocytes, which ALL affects.
● Acute lymphocytic leukemia is also known as acute lymphoblastic leukemia.
● ALL occurs when a bone marrow cell develops errors in its DNA.
● The errors tell the cell to continue growing and dividing, when a healthy cell would
normally stop dividing and eventually die.
● When this happens, blood cell production becomes abnormal.
● Leukemic cells can travel around your body through your bloodstream and interfere
with the function of your organs.
Nick Pannoni, 62, renal cell carcinoma (kidney cancer), Forestdale, with Dr. Toni
Choueiri, Director of the Lank Center for Genitourinary Oncology, Dana-Farber
● Six years ago, Nick, a father of four, was diagnosed with prostate cancer, but it was
caught early enough where doctors only needed to remove his prostate for him to be
declared cancer-free.
● Unfortunately, three years later, cancer had returned, but this time it was a
completely different type of cancer: kidney cancer. Specifically known as renal cell
carcinoma, Nick’s left kidney was removed as it had been encased in the cancer.
● Once Nick recovered, his oncologist Dr. Steven Chang mentioned that he may want
to see Dr. Toni Choueiri, the lead author of the KEYTRUDA study.
● Nick entered the clinical trial as a double-blind participant, meaning he would not
know if he received the medication or a placebo. Though there isn’t a way to know
for sure, Nick believes he received the drug as he experienced several of the
common side effects.
● Once high-risk, there is now no evidence of disease. Nick continues to move forward
and live his everyday life. He gets blood work and scans every four months, but only
to make sure that cancer has not come back.
Kidney cancer facts
● Kidney cancer is a type of cancer that starts in the kidney. Cancer starts when cells in
the body begin to grow out of control.
● About 79,000 new cases of kidney cancer (50,290 in men and 28,710 in women) will
be diagnosed in 2022.
● Kidney cancer is about twice as common in men than in women.
● Most people with kidney cancer are older. The average age of people when they are
diagnosed is 64 with most people being diagnosed between ages 65 and 74. Kidney
cancer is very uncommon in people younger than age 45.
Dr. Toni Choueiri
● Dr. Toni Choueiri is the Director of our Genitourinary (GU) Oncology Disease Center
and the Lank Center for Genitourinary Oncology.
● Dr. Choueiri can speak about the challenges of treating kidney cancers and the
importance of clinical trials.
● He is the lead investigator of multiple national and international phase one, two and
three trials in GU cancers.
● Dr. Choueiri is interested in developing novel therapies (including immunotherapies)
and biomarkers in GU malignancies, including kidney cancer. His research also
focuses on epidemiology, diagnosis and treatment outcomes of GU cancers using
large scale approaches such as meta-analyses from available published trials or
national databases.
Anne Gross, PHD, RN, Senior Vice President and Chief Nursing Officer, Dana-Farber
● Anne Gross, PhD, RN is senior vice president for patient care services and chief
nursing officer. There are more than 700 registered nurses, nurse practitioners,
clinical specialists, and nurse scientists working at Dana-Farber.
● Anne can give insight into the challenges overcome by the amazing nursing staff
during the COVID pandemic. What they have done and achieved since 2020 inspires
her and keeps her optimistic for the future.
● She can also provide insight about the often emotionally powerful relationship
nurses form with patients and why it's a unique nursing career.
● Since 2020, along with continuing to provide cancer treatment, oncology nurses had
the added challenge of protecting patients and each other from COVID hrough strict
isolation procedures and the use of personal protective equipment (also known as
PPE).
● The nurse acquired new skills to care for immunocompromised patients in special
COVID intensive care units.
● In other settings, oncology nurse navigators transitioned their practice to be remote
so they could care for patients while they were in their homes through telehealth
visits and clinical trial nurses innovated standard operations, such as shipping
investigational drugs to patients’ homes, to enable them to safely remain on their
studies.
● Anne takes great pride in Dana-Farber’s nursing and patient care services staff and
the patient experience at Dana-Farber remains as strong as ever: As a patient you
are never alone.
● Anne leads a nursing staff focused on the future:
○ Continuing to manage through the lingering threats of the pandemic while
focusing on building a pipeline for the future
○ Addressing the national nursing shortage with the goal of training the next
generation of oncology nurses
○ Expanding access to our care by opening Foxborough location and expanding
South Shore
Dr. Barret Rollins, Chief Scientific Officer Emeritus, Dana-Farber
● After graduating from Amherst College, Dr. Rollins received his MD in 1979 and PhD
in 1980 from Case Western Reserve University.
● Dr. Rollins completed his internship and residency in internal medicine at Beth Israel
Hospital, Boston.
● He then served as a clinical fellow in medical oncology at Dana-Farber and a
postdoctoral research fellowship with Dr. Charles Stiles.
● Since joining Dana-Farber in 1989, Dr. Rollins has worked in the area of white blood
cell trafficking and the interactions between inflammation and cancer.
● Dr. Rollins served as Chief Scientific Officer for many years, only recently stepping
down from that role.
2004 Red Sox hero Dave Roberts joins Joe to talk about his personal experience with Dana Farber and The Jimmy Fund. Dave also wants Red Sox fans to know the Dodgers are taking good care of Mookie Betts.
Brock Holt joins Joe while Brock is quarantined in Boston while his team the Texas Rangers are in Cleveland. Brock talks about how important The Jimmy Fund is and how it will always mean so much to him and his family
Nelle Ann Kinsella with her parents Simone and Tom join Joe and Will in the booth to talk about their experience with Jimmy Fund
Larry Lucchino joins Joe and Will in the booth to talk about the amazing work of The Jimmy Fund. They also talk about the Woo Sox, Polar Park, and what other things they have played for the park.
MLB Umpire Phil Cuzzie joined Joe to talk about his battle with prostate cancer and how important yearly physicals are to your health.
Mike Lowell joined Joe to talk about his battle with cancer and how it was discovered. They also talk about the importance of The Jimmy Fund and Mike's involvement with it as a player and now. They also talk about this years Red Sox team as they make a playoff push
Zach noticed enlarged neck lymph nodes one day as he was about to drive home from work. He visited his primary care doctor for evaluation and testing, and she referred him to Dana-Farber for a consultation.
Before he could attend the consultation, his situation got worse and he was admitted to the hospital to start treatment under the care of Dr. Stone.
Zach has been in treatment since February 2020. He has been on various chemotherapy and radiation treatment for approximately 2 ½ years.
On selecting his care, Zach chose Dana-Farber because it is a "highly rated institution with worldwide recognition" that is within 10 minutes of his home. He also appreciates the groundbreaking research and professional, caring staff available.
Zach is supported by his parents, Debra and Clark, sisters, Meaghan and Claire, and girlfriend Kelly.
In his spare time, Zach enjoys gardening and reading. He hopes to eventually return to school for a master’s degree.
President of the Boston Red Sox Sam Kennedy and Tom Werner Chairman of Red Sox join OMF
Brian works as a Hockey Scout for the NHL as well as scouting for Division I, III and Junior hockey programs for Neutral Zone.
He was diagnosed with prostate cancer Labor Day Weekend in 2018. He was impressed that during a holiday weekend doctors wasted no time studying his case, making a diagnosis and starting his treatment plan. He underwent radiation for 9 weeks and is currently on medication as a maintenance plan.
He has become an outspoken advocate of keeping a good relationship with your primary care doctor and getting screened for prostate cancer. He says it's a disease men don't typically feel comfortable discussing and the stigma against discussing it needs to end.
His youngest daughter Ava is in high school. His middle daughter Ally is headed to Princeton to play hockey. His oldest daughter, Mia is pre-med at Tufts
Gavin was diagnosed with an optic glioma brain tumor at the age of 2 ½.
The daycare provider noticed small light brown marks on Gavin’s skin. They later learned that this is an indicator of Neurofibromatosis 1 (NF1). Another symptom of NF1 is optic glioma.
An MRI was done, and it confirmed the brain tumor diagnosis. Gavin has been on and off treatment for the last 12 years. He just finished proton radiation this June and is still being treated by his Dana-Farber team.
Gavin enjoys going to the gym, playing guitar and video games.
He attends Walpole High School and will be a sophomore in the fall.
The McCarthy family has known many of the Dana-Farber staff for 12 years and look forward to seeing them at appointments. Lisa Scherber and the staff do an amazing job planning activity for the families and it gives them all something to look forward to.
The music therapist has been especially wonderful and has taught Gavin how to play the guitar and the ukulele.
Lamar was diagnosed when he was 35-years old in September 2019. He was having severe back pain in his lower back on the left side. The pain got worse and he developed a swollen lump.
He went to the hospital where they did a variety of tests. At first, they weren't sure what was wrong, and he ended up being admitted for 13 days
They originally told him he was diagnosed with lung cancer which came as a complete shock. They after more tests they discovered he had a very rare cancer, renal medullary carcinoma, which is a type of kidney cancer. It had spread to his lungs and abdomen.
He's been treated with chemotherapy, then surgery and then chemotherapy again. He's starting a new round of chemotherapy which is an oral pill that he takes each day.
Lamar grew up in New York City where he still lives. His son and ex-wife live in Boston and his ex-wife encouraged him to seek out Dana-Farber.
He's very close with his son and describes him as inquisitive, friendly and generous. They love watching Jeopardy together and grew very close watching Alex Trebek fight his own battle with cancer.
Lamar works as an Air Force recruiter, joining the Air Force nearly 15 years ago in March 2007. He's been stationed in Phoenix and deployed to Badhdad, Abul and Italy.
He played football when he was younger, and college basketball and basketball for an Air Force travel team. He says being part of a team builds character, saying there is no 'I' in team. He feels the same way about the team at Dana-Farber. He says he's had amazing experiences at Dana-Farber but not because of any one individual, but rather the entire team from the person screening him, to the person checking his vitals to his visits with Dr. McGregor.
Lamar, a Yankees fan, will be throwing out the First Pitch tonight.
Carrigan was initially diagnosed just after her 18th birthday. She was misdiagnosed with a sports injury for about 6 months. She had been feeling lethargic and had pain in her leg. The pain worsened over time and swelling began to develop just below her knee.
She had been training for a Tae Kwondo Tournament when the pain became severe, she could no longer walk. Her primary doctor sent her for scans which revealed a 10cm tumor behind her kneecap in March 2019. A biopsy confirmed osteosarcoma.
She began chemotherapy immediately, and that treatment lasted about 9 months
During that time Carrigan endured 2 limb salvage surgeries and numerous other surgical procedures. She fought hard through complications and was declared cancer free.
She relapsed last August when a large tumor was found in her original tumor site and her care was transferred to Dana Farber and Boston Children's Hospital. She underwent above the knee amputation and 5 months of high dose chemotherapy. Carrigan has spent cumulatively over 120 nights in the hospital.
She is 6 months post chemotherapy and 11 months post amputation. Her cancer has metastasized to her lungs but is currently stable.
Carrigan is an award-winning vocalist, youth mentor, and community advocate. She is 2015's Aquidneck Island Beach Idol Winner and the 2019 Producer's Choice Winner for the Celebration of Music National Talent Search. Carrigan is Newport County's 2019 NAACP Role Model of the Year and the Newport Daily News 2020 Youth Leader of the Year. Carrigan is Miss Rhode Island's 2020 Honorary Miss Outstanding Teen and 2020's Miss Aquidneck Island for the ARB Crown to Serve Program both of which Carrigan's platform was Pediatric Cancer Awareness
Carrigan is a former dancer and is an 8-time state gold medalist and black belt in Tae Kwon Do.
Carrigan hosts several informational pages on social media platforms which honor pediatric cancer warriors and survivors while remembering pediatric cancer angels
Carrigan loves music, camping, animals and traveling. Her bucket list includes traveling to all 50 states of which she has already visited 43.
She wants to continue to empower others and to use her singing voice to help community causes and to raise awareness of the need for pediatric cancer research and funding. Carrigan will attend college this fall and is exploring a career in music and art therapy.
Carrigan will be singing the National Anthem this evening prior to the game.
Prior to Easter 2020, Sydney’s parents noticed she was not acting like herself, she had fevers and was not being her usual outgoing self. She did not participate in the egg hunt and slept most of Easter Sunday. Due to COVID, Lyndsey was hesitant to take her to the local Emergency Room, so she went to a walk-in clinic. The walk-in clinic wasn’t able to do the bloodwork and other tests they thought might be necessary, so they sent her to the area hospital’s emergency room. The doctor in the ER said she was severely anemic, but her blood counts also indicated a chance of cancer. He then referred the family to Boston’s Children’s Hospital.
Sydney was diagnosed with B cell lymphoblastic leukemia; due to COVID her father had to learn about her diagnosis over the phone with a call with the doctor and Lyndsey.
Sydney started her treatment immediately and was in the hospital for 40 days. She now receives treatment every 3 weeks and will continue to do so for 2 years.
Immediately the Jimmy Fund Clinic staff made the family feel at ease. The nurses listened to Sydney and to Lyndsey and made everyone feel comfortable.
They selected Dana-Farber because Adam is a union carpenter and had worked in the area on several projects.
She has a younger brother, Jack and two dogs. Charley and Boomer.
Lyndsey believes her daughter is an old soul, her favorite cereals are Special K and Raisin Bran and she is an early riser. She often starts her day at 5 am. She loves to craft, paint, color, reading and loves being a big sister.
Sydney enjoys being outdoors, she loves to hunt with her bow and her favorite place is the archery shop in Middleborough.
Sydney loves watching hockey, especially the Boston Bruins. Her two favorite players are Patrice Bergeron and Tuukka Rask.
Lyndsey said it took her family some time to learn be positive with Sydney’s situation. Seeing Sydney happy has had a huge impact on her entire family. Sydney’s strength has surprised her mom and dad.
Through this journey, Sydney has shown her family that she can handle anything, she is strong, and she has grown so much and found her voice. She is resilient.
Hanna was diagnosed on Father’s Day, June 2019.
Hanna had begun to have severe migraines that would not go away, no matter what her and her family tried. She also had petechiae running down her legs and had no idea what it was. Hanna was also very tired and knew something was wrong with her body.
Hanna kept telling her mom " I know my body and I know that something is wrong."
Then her neurologist said, "why don't we get blood work, just to be safe." After running a few tests, Hanna found out she had cancer.
Hanna spent the next month on the 6th floor of Boston Children's Hospital and for the next 24 months she received chemotherapy at the Jimmy Fund Clinic.
She just finished treatment on July 22.
Her hobbies include competitive dance, varsity volleyball, and painting.
Hanna also babysits for a 4-month-old and a 2-year-old while also working for her dad at his golf course in the pro shop in Watertown.
In the fall, she is starting her freshman year at Emmanuel College, Hanna will be a nursing major.
Hanna's thoughts about the Jimmy Fund Clinic are all about the nurses. She says, “I knew when my nurses were engaged, having a baby, or even buying a house. They let me in on their personal lives to help lighten the long day at The Jimmy Fund. The nurses helped me, and my family get through this incredibly hard time. When I was admitted to the ICU from the Jimmy Fund, the two nurses who helped take care for me that day at the Jimmy Fund Clinic came up to ICU after their shift was over to check on me and my family. That's the kind of nurse I want to be. Also, Lisa Scherber, the Director of Patient and family programs, and her staff were also incredible giving teens special projects, zoom calls, Red Sox games, and trips (before COVID to help get us through treatment and keep cancer off our minds.”
Dr. Cleary is an oncologist who specializes in gastrointestinal cancers. In addition to treating patients with neuroendocrine cancer, he treats malignancies including pancreatic, colon, rectal, biliary, and liver.
He was awarded a Lustgarten Foundation/Stand Up To Cancer (SU2C) grant in support of his work developing new therapies for patients with pancreatic cancer. Dr. Cleary has published over 30 publications in such journals as The New England Journal of Medicine, The Lancet, The Journal of Clinical Oncology, Cancer Discovery, and The Journal of Clinical Investigation. In addition to his research activities, he has won awards for both his clinical care at Dana-Farber and his teaching at Harvard Medical School.
After swimming one day, Mike felt strange so went to see his nurse practitioner. She could not hear any breath sounds from his left lung and X-Ray showed a totally collapsed lung and enlarged right lung compensating.
Mike was diagnosed with stage IV lung cancer in 2018.
He chose Dana-Farber for his treatment because it is world-renowned and just hours away by car,
Mike has completed multiple treatments during his time at Dana-Farber, including combination therapies, oral chemotherapy, and surgery.
In his spare time, Mike enjoys skiing (snow/water), boating, reading, bowling, and golf. He is married to his wife, Alice.
Mike is a pharmacist and hopes to continue to work (have purpose) as long as possible and enjoy friends and family who provide him love and support.
When Mike was training as a pharmacist in the 90’s, the expected survival (with chemotherapy) was 6-8 months. Thanks to the research at Dana Farber, he was matched up with a targeted therapy giving him 36 months before resistance. Fortunately, Mike was at Dana Farber where the drug was being studied and he had a genotype match with. The FDA allowed this targeted therapy to be used before phase 2 trials completed.
Shelby was diagnosed with ALL in October 2019. Shelby had fevers for about 2 weeks. She had bad headaches and severe bloody noses. Her breathing was off, and she had an incredibly high heart rate.
After a stop at a local urgent care center, the family was immediately sent to Boston Children’s where Shelby was diagnosed and stayed for 3 weeks.
Shelby’s treatment includes weekly chemotherapy treatment at the Jimmy Fund Clinic and will finish her active treatment in November.
Shelby loves being outdoors, swimming and playing on her swing set.
When she’s not feeling well, she loves to watch YouTube and play Roblox.
Shelby’s mom Samantha is currently not working as she needs to take care of Shelby.
Shelby will be attending 1st grade at Lunenburg Primary School this fall
Kerry is a 4th-grade teacher in Taunton Public Schools
Kerry was diagnosed with renal cell carcinoma, or kidney cancer, on her birthday - September 11, 2019.
Earlier in the spring, she developed an annoying cough. It at first was attributed to asthma, reflux or allergies.
She then lost her appetite and ended up losing about 30 lbs. and became very tired. By August, she developed a fever with sweats/chills throughout the day and night
She asked for a CT scan but her primary care doctor did not order one.
In September, when she went back to teach her 4th grade class it became apparent, she needed medical help.
Kerry went to the hospital and the doctor ordered urine testing, blood testing and a CT can. They found the kidney tumor that day.
She's been treated with surgery and then immunotherapy. She's currently not in treatment.
She loves scrapbooking and crafting as well as walking and spinning.
She says she loves being treated at Dana-Farber. "Everyone I have encountered has been positive and empathetic. Dr. Braun is always realistic and truthful, but kind and caring. There is nothing better than his smile and enthusiasm when scans look good!"
She says even the attendant that greeted her on the morning of her surgery has touched her. "My husband and my friend had to drop me off at the front door due to COVID regulations at that time. The man who opened the door for me saw that I was upset and proceeded to encourage me, saying "We've got you, you are going to be fine, etc.) It helped more than he could know."
Bill was a Quincy fire fighter for 32 years. He once when he responded to a fire at Home Depot and learned that what was burning was a mixture of pool chemicals, fertilizers, defoliants and insecticides that were all stored together for the upcoming Spring and Summer season. The fire consisted of a toxic compound to which all the firefighters who were in the area of the fire were exposed.
When fire was over, all who responded were sent to area hospitals for blood draws to provide the city with a medical baseline from that time. When all the draws were completed, an emergency department doctor came into the conference room where Bill and other firefighters were being held and gave them some somber news. His words still ring in Bill’s ears; “With what all of you were exposed to tonight, I would recommend that you get your blood tested regularly, because I can’t say when, but I’m pretty confident that many of you are going to come down with some pretty nasty diseases.”
Fast forward to April 2016, after taking a photography class, Bill was walking and felt a strange electrical shock across his chest. Having been an Emergency Medical Technician for over 20 years, he knew the symptoms were not that of a heart attack. Bill later found out that the atrial valve in his heart got stuck in the open position, and he lost consciousness.
When he lost consciousness, Bill was running on asphalt and face planted on the pavement. Bill hit the ground with such force that the impact caused a veritable pre-cordial thump on his chest and closed the valve, allowing his heart to work properly again. When he came to, he was rushed to a hospital where his atrial valve was replaced. Bill was then sent home only to be called two weeks later and informed that the pathology of his tissue revealed that he had abnormalities and was immediately referred to Dana-Farber.
Having been in the medical field for such a long time, Bill was embarrassed to have no idea of the level of severity and was shocked to learn he had multiple myeloma.
According to Bill, after learning from his doctor about his cancer – his response, after taking a deep breath was, “well, I guess I’m going to lose some weight.” Dr. Laubach looked quizzical at my response. “You do understand that you have a serious cancer?” he replied. Bill nodded my head, looked him in the eye and said, “I know, do you want me to cry? Stamp my feet? Punch the door? I’m still going to have it.”
Dr. Laubach shook his head and smiled. “I’ve never had anyone respond to news like this in my career. If you keep this attitude and outlook, you’ve got a great chance of beating this.” Bill took his advice to heart, and even through my continual treatments of chemotherapy.
Over a couple of months, Reylyn's family noticed she couldn't smile. The pediatrician sent her to an oral surgeon who thought it could have been an abscess from just getting her braces on and didn’t see anything concerning. They sent her to an ENT where they did a CT scan and noticed a growth in her sinus pocket around her eye socket.
In order to get a correct diagnosis, she needed to have her braces removed to get an MRI which then showed the tumor.
Reylyn was diagnosed in September 2020 with B lymphoblastic lymphoma.
She was admitted to the hospital at the end of September 2020 for about 25 days for the induction phase which include very heavy doses of steroids which broke down her tumor along with chemotherapy. She endured sickness from this treatment and lost her hair. But her spirit to fight this shined through and she went home in the middle of October.
Since then she has been doing weekly outpatient chemotherapy in the Jimmy Fund Clinic on Thursdays along with lumbar punctures every 9 weeks to prevent any type of spreading of this disease. This outpatient treatment will conclude in October 2022.
Reylyn loves to read, watch movies, make Tik Tok videos, and especially loves to hang out with her best friends Tegan and Ava. She also enjoys cooking and baking.
Reylyn attends North Attleboro Middle School in North Attleboro and is going into the 8th grade.
Dana-Farber has helped the family to realize that they are not alone through this journey. They have made so many great friends within the nursing team at Jimmy Fund Clinic along with other patients that they see weekly and consider all of them not just friends but family.
The resource room staff are always there to make Reylyn smile and they either play games or do crafts to pass the time away while either waiting for or receiving treatment every week.
Dana-Farber has also helped the family when they were in a financial bind. Angela lost her job when Reylyn was diagnosed as she had to go stay at the hospital and care for Reylyn.
All the Jimmy Fund Clinic staff has incredibly kind and caring and supportive through this trying time that their family is going through. The staff has really made the family made feel like everything will be ok. It takes a lot of pressure off the family knowing how much support they have from the Jimmy Fund Clinic.
Big Papi joins the show to discuss the Dana-Farber center, Jimmy Fund Clinic, as well as deliver some advice to this year's Red Sox team
Sarah had a history of cancer in her family, her mom was diagnosed with cancer twice in three years, first with breast followed by uterine cancer.
One of the doctors treating her mother suggested she might have a hereditary condition known as Lynch Syndrome that predisposes individuals who carry this genetic mutation to a variety of cancers.
A common and underdiagnosed genetic condition, Lynch syndrome increases the lifetime risk of colorectal cancer by up to 80 percent, endometrial cancer by up to 60 percent while significantly elevating the risk of ovarian, stomach, and other cancers.
In the United States, an estimated 1 in 300 people carry 1 of the 5 Lynch syndrome mutations, but most carriers are either undiagnosed, or diagnosed after they have developed cancer.
Sarah made an appointment for genetic testing for Lynch but was told there was a 3 month wait, her PCP said it was a good idea for her to get colonoscopy in the meantime.
She is glad that she did. The colonoscopy revealed cancer. Sarah underwent surgery to remove the cancer and a part of her colon.
She was then referred to Dana-Farber and Dr. Matt Yurgelun, an oncologist and a Lynch Syndrome specialist. Her subsequent genetic testing revealed that she indeed had Lynch Syndrome.
In 2017, Rachel was driving home from school in Ohio and had a seizure. Luckily, she wasn't hurt (except for some bruises and other small cuts) and no one else was injured.
At the hospital, doctors found a tumor during a CT scan. Once Rachel and her family realized that surgery was going to be the best option, they decided to go to Boston Children's for the surgery. The surgery was extremely successful, and Rachel went to college at Harvard a few months later.
When her tumor came back again her junior year of college, Rachel went to Dana-Farber and joined the Adolescent and Young Adult (AYA) clinic
Adolescent and Young Adult (AYA) Neuro-Oncology Program was established in 2020 tocultivate research and bring highly specialized care to adolescent and young adult patients (ages 15-39) diagnosed with central nervous system (CNS) malignancies,including brain and spinal cord tumors
Rachel has had two major surgeries so far and if it comes back again, she will likely choose to go on a clinical trial. She is not currently in treatment (however there is a spot they are watching, and she has MRIs done every three months).
Rachel loves knitting and she recently started learning sewing from her grandma. She is beginning her final semester at Harvard and majoring in government with a minor in global health and health policy
At age 50, Jonathan's wife Nicole was giving him a hug when she felt lumps in his neck. That night he had a stomach ache but they never connected the two things. Shortly after that, he had excruciating stomach pain. He went to the emergency room and test showed a tumor in his colon the size of a grapefruit. He was diagnosed with stage 4 colon cancer.
Since then he's lived with the disease. He underwent chemotherapy and then surgery. He still undergoes cycles of chemotherapy followed by breaks, and then more rounds of treatment.
Marios is a medical oncologist focusing on gastrointestinal cancers. He conducts research to understand the molecular mechanisms of colorectal cancer formation and develop novel targeted and immune-based treatments for gastrointestinal cancers
In December 2019, Rosemary was exhausted and unable to focus on her schoolwork or activities. She fainted 3 times, both at school and at home. She didn't have enough energy to make it down the stairs from her room on the 2nd floor. She had a high fever, so she went to see her pediatrician, who thought it was some sort of virus Her fever wouldn't go down and she started seeing dots in her vision. She also developed unusually pale skin. Her pediatrician sent her to the hospital, where they did blood tests that revealed a diagnosis of acute lymphocytic leukemia (ALL).
Rosemary's treatment has included chemotherapy, radiation and a bone marrow transplant from her brother, Kosei. In her spare time, she enjoys drawing and baking.
The family is so grateful to the Jimmy Fund Clinic and they consider them superheroes for the wonderful care and work that they do.
Dr. Glimcher is a distinguished immunologist, widely renowned for her work in one of the most promising areas of cancer research. Dr. Glimcher speaks nationally and internationally on cancer, immunology, and translational medicine and has contributed more than 350 scholarly articles and papers to medical literature.
Aside from her research efforts, Dr. Glimcher has been a staunch proponent of improved access to care, health policy, and medical education, while simultaneously serving as a pioneering mentor and role model for cancer research trainees and for all women in science.
She was the first female to be appointed as dean of Weill Cornell Medicine in New York and is the first female President and Chief Executive Officer of Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in Boston.
Previously, she was the Stephen and Suzanne Weiss Dean and Professor of Medicine of Weill Cornell Medicine and Provost for Medical Affairs of Cornell University.
Magnolia Contreras, MSW, MBA joined, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in 2007 and is the current Vice President of Community Health. In this role, she is charged with helping the Institute carry out its community benefits mission through the delivery of evidence- based cancer prevention, screening and early detection programs.
She is also a leader in Dana-Farber’s efforts to fight cancer care disparities due to race, ethnicity, or financial charities.
Prior to joining Dana-Farber, Contreras was employed by AIDS Action Committee of Massachusetts where she served in senior executive roles as the Director of External Affairs and Director of Public Policy and Community Relations. Additionally, she had a consulting services practice in non-profit management and political coaching and research
Contreras’ efforts have been widely recognized through numerous awards and recognitions for her professional and volunteer endeavors. She lives in Lynn, Massachusetts where she enjoys spending time with her family and friends.
Lisa has worked in the Jimmy Fund Clinic for 30 years. Lisa and her team are responsible for the programs that help take the patients and their families minds off of the treatment.
In the past, they have hosted a Summer Festival, Winterfest and Teen Red Sox Spring Training, Trips and Girls Weekend.
Due to COVID, they had to pivot the programming and create new programs -- ask her about their Zoom events.
They will be able to host Summer Fest in September following COVID protocols
They also plan programs for parents whose children are being treated at the Jimmy Fund Clinic as well as for siblings of patients in treatment.
In 2010, Grace started feeling short of breath during her soccer season, so she went for some tests to see what was going on. Her heart looked great, but the doctors saw some abnormal abdominal spots and her blood work also came back with very concerning levels of anemia.
After an endoscopy and some sample testing, it was revealed that Grace had a gastrointestinal stromal tumor, a type of soft tissue sarcoma, and the tumor in her stomach that had ulcered and was actively bleeding. Grace then went in for a major open abdomen surgery and they removed the bleeding tumor plus more than a dozen other tumors throughout her abdomen and abdominal organs.
Following her surgery, Grace was on oral chemotherapy for 5-6 years, throughout her college years, then was off treatment for about 2 years. Grace is now on an oral chemotherapy for just under a year. Grace works as a concussion research technician at Boston Children’s Hospital. She received her undergraduate degree from Boston University in neurobiology as well as an MBA from Simmons
Former Boston Bruin, and current Chief Commercial Officer of the Florida Panthers Shawn Thorton joins the show.
Bruins goaltender Tuukka Rask joins the show to discuss his injury, his future, and the upcoming season.
CEO of Granite Telecommunications and Co-Founder of Copley Equity Partners Robert Hale joins the show and makes a pledge to match all donations from the show today.
Massachusetts State Treasurer Deborah Goldberg joins the show from Find Mass Money.com for a sponsor interview.
Friend of the Greg Hill Show Ernie Boch Jr joins the show and makes a very generous donation to the Jimmy Fund.
Thayer was diagnosed with a rare form of cancer called Langerhans cell histiocytosis, a cancer of the jaw and ribs. He was diagnosed in May 2019
Thayer had an odd-looking spot in his mouth that Thayer’s dad, a dentist noticed. They had followed it for months. After seeing a pediatric dentist and oral surgeon, Thayer had a mass and a few teeth removed from his lower jaw and they were shocked when the biopsy results came back, revealing it was cancer.
The day after receiving his diagnosis the family met with the team at the Jimmy Fund Clinic and after more testing, they discovered the mass on his ribs. From there, his treatment started very quickly and included 21 rounds of chemotherapy and over 350 doses of steroids.
He ended his treatment in May 2020 and his cancer remains inactive. unity for Thayer to grow up.
Thayer had a lemonade stand in their neighborhood as a fundraiser for their Jimmy Fund Walk team.
In 2015, when he was 48, Chuck was diagnosed with advanced (stage 4) renal cell carcinoma or kidney cancer. He had a cold and noticed blood in his urine. He credits the thoroughness of his primary care physician for immediately sending him for diagnostic tests where they discovered a massive tumor two days later.
He is married to his high school sweetheart Liz, and they have 4 daughters
He has undergone multiple surgeries and has participated in numerous clinical trials. He works as the vice president of business operations at the National Fire Protection Agency and is a life-long Boston sports fan and die-hard Boston College Eagles fan.
Dave is the police chief of the Pepperell Police Department, a position he has been in for the last 11 years.
His colon cancer has spread to his liver and lungs. He is seen by Dr. Marios Giannakis as well as Dr. Jeanna Walsh in Londonderry.
He was diagnosed with stage 4 colon cancer when he was 49 years old. He began having stomach issues which at first, he dismissed as indigestion. The doctor sent him for a work-up on his heart, initially. Through tests they discovered lesions and in March 2021 he was diagnosed with advanced colon cancer.
Chief Scott is going public with his cancer journey to educate others that an increasing number of younger people are getting diagnosed with colon cancer.
Chef Scott is married with two sons. He has continued working as police chief during his treatment.
Former Boston Bruin, and current St. Louis Blues defenseman Torey Krug joins the Greg Hill Show.
Daniel has been with the Jimmy Fund Clinic for more than 13 years. He volunteered at a camp for multi handicapped children as college student and felt blessed helping children and families. He changed careers because of that experience.
Daniel has been on 12 Spring Training trips. What makes the Spring Training weekend so special, according to David is strangers becoming close friends in just a few days. Only another teenage with cancer knows what a teenager with cancer is going through. Seeing the teenage patients together as they almost forget about cancer for a weekend is fantastic and it’s gratifying to see happy joyful kids all weekend.
Dan feels blessed to have the opportunity to touch the lives of the patients and families, and to have the opportunity to work with such amazingly dedicated fellow nurses, doctors and administrative staff. He says it’s the best work position he’s ever had.
Andrew and Rachel join Joe and Sean in the booth to talk about their late daughter Francesca and her battle with atypical teratoid rhabdoid tumor. They also talk about Team Beans Infant Brain Tumor Fund.
Chris Vaughan joins Joe and Sean in the booth to talk about Cape Cod Lumbers commitment to the Jimmy Fund and the weekly donation they make in recognition of a great offensive performance.
Raunada knows firsthand what it is like to be both patient and caretaker and talks to Joe and Sean about moving to the area for her job and how lucky it was to be here when she found out about her breast cancer diagnosis.
Michael McGregor joins Joe and Sean in the booth to talk about his role with Volkswagen. Michael also talks about their partnership with the Jimmy Fund and the local New England Volkswagen Dealers donation
Jeff describes himself as "the luckiest person I know." The first year after his lung cancer diagnosis was difficult, with lots of medicine and oyxgen tanks. But thanks to Dana-Farber and Brigham and Women's, Jeff feels terrific today and hopes that feeling will last a long, long time
He is currently on a clinical trial that requires regular visits to Dana-Farber every three weeks, a schedule he happily follows with a smile. Jeff calls every member of his care team “absolutely fantastic." On his treatment experience, Jeff says: "I truly believe that every doc and tech and staff member at Dana-Farber must pass a personality test before they are hired. EVERYBODY! Each one cares for every patient as if that patient is a brother or sister. The warmth and caring are part of their mission."
In thinking about his future goals: Jeff hopes to (1) lose 40 pounds the right way, (2) help as many people become debt free as possible (he is a consumer and small business bankruptcy lawyer) and (3) finally learn to promptly put away stuff his wife asks him to put away.
Jeff also hopes to continue practicing bankruptcy law for many years. He recently signed a 25-year lease for his law office space. He will continue work there with the help of Dr. Sands, his oncology team, and all the wonderful staff at Dana-Farber.
Jeff's family includes his wife of 47 years, Rhonda Kitaeff, and daughter, Sara Kitaeff, who is also a lawyer practicing family law in downtown Boston.
In his spare time, Jeff enjoys golf and jazz music. He is very passionate about live music and is particularly fond of going to local venues like, Scullers in Allston and the Sahara Club in Methuen.
Addison Gould (4) has optic pathway gliomas she's with her parents Jillian and Graham
Addison was diagnosed with optic pathway gliomas in 2019 but an August 2020 MRI revealed substantially growth over the year and the left optic glioma was making her left eye protrude from its socket rendering her essentially blind in that eye.
Red Sox Pitcher Chris Sale joined OMF to discuss the Sox and his road back to playing baseball again.
Sherril was living in Delray Beach, Florida when she was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2018. She went through treatment in Florida, including a mastectomy.
Having grown up in Massachusetts, and the daughter of Bruins Hall of Fame goalie Gerry Cheevers, Cheryl was very familiar with Dana-Farber.
Cheryl decided to go for a second opinion with Dr. Erica Mayer at Dana-Farber's Susan F. Smith Center for Women's Cancers following her treatment in Florida, just to make sure everything was on the right track.
She was just finishing up a telehealth consult when she told Dr. Mayer that she thought she felt a swollen lymph node.
That revelation set off alarm bells for Dr. Mayer and Cheryl was subsequently diagnosed with a different type of breast cancer in March 2020 at the start of the COVID pandemic shutdown.
Her treatment included chemotherapy, radiation, surgery and targeted therapy for her specific type of cancer.
Because patients could not have visitors with them during the shutdown, Cheryl took money she raised from a golf tournament to help pay for little gift baskets for other patients at Dana-Farber to help boost their spirits during this difficult time.
Josh is a United Sates Marine Corps veteran, who served in Afghanistan. He served as infantry platoon commander for over 6 years.
Josh was diagnosed with glioblastoma while he was on leave in Las Vegas and had a seizure.
He is currently in treatment under the care of Dr. David Reardon. He is a participant on a clinical trial and receives infusion every two weeks.
He chose to come to Dana-Farber for his treatment because as, Josh says it is the “best cancer care in the country”
He holds a master’s in journalism from Boston University and worked as an intern at WEEI in 2012.
Josh is supported by his wife and 2-year-old daughter.
In Josh’s spare time he likes to read, snowboard, golf and watch Boston sports. He hopes to continue to be a good father and husband and enjoy his life
Last summer Charlotte began limping and complaining of leg pain. Her primary care doctor referred the family for blood work and x-rays. Her original diagnosis was minor leg length discrepancy and was sent to a physical therapist.
After about a month with no improvement from physical therapy and her symptoms getting worse, Charlotte had additional x-rays, blood work and an MRI.
The MRI showed a mass pushing on her lower spine. The mass had wrapped around her nerve that ran down her leg. Charlotte went into surgery the following morning.
Charlotte’s treatment has included triple laminectomy to decompress her spine -- 8 rounds of chemotherapy and 6 weeks of daily radiation. Charlotte completed her treatment in April.
Charlotte loves playing outside with her brother and neighborhood friends.
She likes to color and tell stories. She enjoys singing and dancing around the house too.
Charlotte is going into kindergarten at Moose Hill School in Londonderry NH.
Sara admits that she never really understood what the Jimmy Fund was prior to her daughter's diagnosis. She’d see the logo at a Red Sox game or hear about a fundraiser and knew it had something to do with sick kids but that was about the extent of it. Now that she has seen firsthand and experienced the care, they provided her family, she is forever in their debt and will do anything she can to help raise awareness and funds.
In July 2019, Polina noticed a lump in her right breast during a self-exam. She did self-exams regularly due to a family history of the disease
Her mother, grandmother, and great-grandmother all lost their lives to breast cancer.
When the lump didn't go away, she got an appointment with her primary care physician who knew her family history and immediately sent Polina for a mammogram. They found cancer and did a biopsy the same day.
Polina was new to the United States but her boss did some research on her behalf and told her that she should go to Dr. Burstein at Dana-Farber and she is so happy she made the decision to do so.
When she had an initial conversation with Dr. Burstein, she was 100% confident in the team.
Celtics Pres. of Basketball Operations Brad Stevens joined OMF for a Celtics discussion
Jeremy Lavoie has acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) with his mother Danielle
Jeremy was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) in March 2019 when he was 11. Over the winter, he started getting back and muscle aches. The pediatrician thought Jeremy was having growing pains or muscle spasms.
Near then end of January, Jeremy wasn’t feeling good he rolled his ankle and was limping and was having knee pain. After x-rays and an MRI, the doctors saw the cancer cell build and after additional bloodwork it was determined Jeremy had leukemia.
He received almost 26 months of chemotherapy and he finished his last treatment in April 2021.
He is doing great now and is finally starting to feel like a kid again. He has been hanging out with his friends more and has been biking and swimming and was able to play baseball this past spring. He is so excited to start football in September as it is his favorite sport.
One of Jeremy's hobbies is to have lemonade stands. This year he wanted to have one and donate the money to the Jimmy Fund, which he did a couple weeks back, and Jeremy raised $3027 for the Jimmy Fund.
Jeremy will be heading into 8th grade at Hingham Middle School in the fall. Jeremy has 4 siblings Corey, 23, Andre, 21, Nathan, 19, and Bella, 17.
Katie was diagnosed with metastatic colon cancer at 49 years old.
She's a single mom of two children, McKenzie, 17 and Zachary, 13. She's a proud dog-mom to LuLu, the English Bulldog who is 'really the boss of the house.'
She's a marketing executive and general manager for Fitness Asylum. She coaches classes and the bikini competition team. She is a competitive body builder in Fitbody and is dedicated to living a clean lifestyle.
In March March 2021 she was diagnosed with metastatic early-onset colon cancer.
She had no symptoms but had a 7-day bout of constipation that led her to the emergency room.
She was alone in the emergency room due to COVID restrictions and in a lot of pain.
She was sent for emergency surgery to 'clear a blockage' that turned out to be a mass.
She says the first few weeks were hard as she came to terms with the diagnosis and had to tell her children that their mom was sick.
She was determined to keep things in control: Her mindset. "I wasn’t going to be living like cancer kicked my ass. Instead, I was going to live as Katie and fight this thing like a boss. I have every bit of faith that I will be cancer-free and repeat this daily and her team. "I knew within minutes of meeting Dr Ng that she was MY Doctor. We connected immediately and I am so grateful to be fortunate enough to have her and her clinical team oversee my care."
She is in on aggressive course of chemotherapy and will be going to her 10th treatment tomorrow.
Jack broke his leg at summer camp in 2018. He had complained of some leg pain, but it was brushed aside as growing pains of a very active boy. It turns out it was osteosarcoma and his family of 5 uprooted and moved to Boston for 10 months for his treatment.
In April 2019, the family returned home until a small nodule was found in his lung the following winter. Jack came back to Boston for a month where he underwent lung surgeries.
He went back home to resume his active life of skiing and mountain biking, until April 2021 another nodule was found in his lungs.
He is now in Boston again receiving care at the Jimmy Fund Clinic where his treatment includes lung surgery and ongoing chemotherapy. He also received a rotationplasty in 2018, a form of leg amputation.
Jack has two younger brothers. The family considers Boston their second home now due to the amazing family they have made at the Jimmy Fund Clinic. Jack's mom will be running the Boston Marathon for Dana-Farber in October.
Jack is throwing out the first pitch tonight.
Eric was diagnosed glioblastoma in 2014 and needed multiple surgeries after the initial diagnosis. Dealing with his cancer diagnosis has inspired Eric to write lifestyle fiction
Hadley was born on 7/27/19. Shortly after her birth, a vigilant nurse discovered a small lump on Hadley’s tailbone - which would eventually lead us to Boston Children’s Hospital.
Although in shock, with a brand-new baby and a Hadley’s older sister Maren,1.5-year-old at home, they brought Hadley to Boston Children’s Hospital.
The family feels so fortunate to live near, and have access to, one of the top pediatric hospitals in the world. Hadley’s first stop was an appointment at BCH at just 5 days of age. This quickly led to an inpatient admission for further evaluation and testing. At 13 DAYS old, Hadley was diagnosed with Neuroblastoma, a form of childhood cancer that develops from immature nerve cells and can occur in several areas of the body (in Hadley’s case, the sacrococcygeal area, aka the tailbone area).
Her team worked quickly, and her first round of Chemotherapy started when she was 18 days old.
Adam Stern, 37, metastatic kidney cancer, Newton
Adam was diagnosed in December 2017 with stage 3 kidney cancer. Later that year doctors discovered the cancer spread to his lungs. He was 33 years old.
He's married with a 4-year old son. His son was only 11-months old when he was diagnosed.
His early symptoms were weight loss which he attributed to exercise and running around after his young son. He decided to visit his primary care doctor when he started having night sweats and saw blood in his urine.
Adam was sent for tests and they discovered the tumor on his kidney.
He's been treated with surgery and immunotherapy drugs.
Adam is a psychiatrist and is an assistant professor of psychiatry at Harvard Medical School.
Adam has written numerous articles about his journey with kidney cancer, with reflections on being a young father facing such a difficult diagnosis. His essays have published in the New York Times and Boston Globe.
He recently published a book, "Committed: Dispatches from a Psychiatrist in Training."
Dr. Paul Richardson is the clinical program leader and director of clinical research on the Jerome Lipper Multiple Myeloma Center and LeBow Institue for Myeloma Therapeutics.
Chris Devin was diagnosed with multiple myeloma at the age of 45 during the heart of the Covid-19 pandemic. Chris immediately underwent five straight days on intensive radiation that stopped his excruciating headaches and readied him for a clinical trial at Dana-Farber/ Brigham.
Devin and his wife Erica have been transparent with their kids about their father's situation.
There are more than 700 registered nurses, nurse practitioners, clinical scientist, and nurse scientists working at Dana-Faber under the watch of Anne Gross.
President of Apollo safety John Carvalho joins the show and explains the reasoning behind his sponsorship of the Jimmy Fund.
Karen was diagnosed with ovarian cancer in February 2019. She had experienced a gallbladder attack and then had a CT scan that uncovered an ovarian tumor.
In February 2020, Karen joined a new clinical trial for a new type of drug known as a bispecific antibody. The drug works by binding to two specific proteins that may be involved in the growth and survival of cancer.
Her doctor, Ursula Matulonis and other doctors at Dana-Farber worked hard to keep clinical trials like Karen's open during the pandemic when many other aspects of health care system were shutting down
In 2014, Kelly began experiencing sinus headaches and sinus issues. Which didn't have anything to do with her diagnosis, but forced her to keep her physical appointment that she often tended to postpone.
During routine blood-work Kelly's white blood cell count came back significantly above the normal average. After 3 weeks of tests, the diagnosis came, cancer.
Kelly credits Dr.Davids with saving her life.
Kate Nixon is an Adolescent Specialist at the Jimmy Fund Clinic. As the Adolescent Specialist, Kate works with patients ages 13+, providing activities to pass time in the Clinic, help facilitate 3 activity-based support groups, and helping plan Clinic trips.
David is the pediatric music specialist in the Jimmy Fund Clinic. He manages outpatient music therapy services for the pediatric patients who are receiving treatment
Zara is 4 years old and was diagnosed with B cell-acute lymphoblastic leukemia in November of 2020. Her diagnosis came after having recurrent fevers and and fatigue for 1 month with no lab abnormalities initially and no likely explanation.
She has been undergoing chemotherapy and it will continue for 2 years. Zara loves to read, draw, dress up like Elsa, and play with her cousins. She will be starting pre-K this fall.
Chloe is a 7 year old that was diagnosed in February of 2021 after her parents found a lump in her thigh.
Chloe's treatment includes weekly chemotherapy, and 6 weeks of radiation. Her treatment will continue through the end of November and maintenance chemotherapy will start in December pending how labs go.
Chloe loves making slime and will begin 2nd grade this Fall.
Caroline McGuirk is an inflammatory breast cancer patient at Dana Farber.
Caroline was experiencing some skin changes on her right breast beginning in September 2020. While it wasn't overly alarming, she thought she had an infection, which the Web told her often clears itself.
She underwent 20 weeks of chemotherapy, followed by modified radical mastectomy and then 6 weeks of radiation.
Dr Fliipa Lynce received her medical degree from the Universidada Nova de Lisboa, Portugal in 2004. In 2020 she joined the staff of Dana-Farber Caner Institute and Brigham Women's Hospital, where she is a medical oncologist and clinical investigator in the Breast Oncology Center
Arianna was on an "after-graduation" trip with her best friend when she experienced a low-grade fever and unexplainable bruising. When she arrived home she took blood tests, and it was discovered she had acute lymphocytic leukemia.
After 25 long months, Arianna received her last chemotherapy treatment on August 10th, 2021.
Arianna will be attending Boston University in the Fall.
Kate was diagnosed with colorectal cancer in July 2020. She had been experiencing symptoms for about a year and eventually brought them up to her PCP which were largely ignored. She finally went in for a colonoscopy in July 2020 and a tumor was found.
Kate has been in treatment for about a year. She has gone through 12 rounds of chemotherapy, 30 rounds if radiation, and had various surgeries.
She finished her treatment on July 24th and as of now, she is cancer-free.
Carly Moran is an Oncology Nurse Navigator, Jimmy Fund Clinic at Dana-Farber.
Carly graduated from Union and Simmons College and has worked for Dana-Farber for 3 years.
Carly's favorite part of the job is getting to know her patients and seeing their progress. Carly says she is also inspired by the patients and families bravery.
Congratulations to Carly and her fiancee as they will be getting married next month.
Raunada Bryant is a stage II breast caner patient at Dana-Farber. Raunada has a very special bond with her nurse, Kristen Donoghue.
Kristen is an Infusion Nurse at Dana Farber's Chestnut Hill location. Kristen shares the day she met Raunada, and the special bond the two have.
Dr. Allison O'Neill is a physician-scientist who serves as the Clinical Director of the Pediatric and Solid Tumor Program and the Medical Director of the Liver Tumor Center of Excellence.
Dr. O'Neill works on rare diseases and transnational initiatives focused on immunotherapy for pediatric patients with solid tumors.
The Mayor of Flavortown joins the show.
Guy talks about his new location coming to Boston, talks Brady/Belichick, and he learns about the Wiggy Parm at Milanos in East Boston.
After graduating from Amherst College, Dr. Rollins received his MD in 1979 and PhD in 1980 from Case Western Reserve University.
Dr. Rollins completed his internship and residency in internal medicine at Beth Israel Hospital, Boston.
He then served a clinical fellow in medical oncology at Dana-Farber and a postdoctoral research fellowship with Dr. Charles Stiles.
Since joining Dana-Farber in 1989, Dr.Rollins has worked in the area of white blood cells trafficking and the interactions between inflammation and cancer.
Mut and Fitzy are joined by Nadege Vilnaigre to talk about being diagnosed with inflammatory breast cancer and why she picked Dana-Farber for treatment. Nadege wants people to know about the signs of inflammatory breast cancer and empower them to seek specialized care sooner in their disease course.
Mut and Fitzy are joined by Steve Paglicua and he talks about his family's experience with Dana-Farber and The Jimmy Fund. They also talk about how important it is for the Celtics and their players to make an impact on and off the court. The Celtics are also hopeful that they can have fans in the stands at some point this season.
Mut and Fitzy are joined by BC football coach Jeff Hafley and he shares his own experience with cancer. Coach Hafley also talks about how proud he is of his team and his staff and how they have handled the Covid-19 situation. Coach Hafley reflects on his first season at Boston College and how the fans have shown their support.
Mut and Fitzy are joined by Steve Paglicua and he talks about his family's experience with Dana-Farber and The Jimmy Fund. They also talk about how important it is for the Celtics and their players to make an impact on and off the court. The Celtics are also hopeful that they can have fans in the stands at some point this season.
Mut and Fitzy are joined by Seamus Gregory the father of Clare Gregory and they talk about the families experience with Dana-Farber. They also talk about the family moving from Wisconsin to Massachuesttes so Clare could be treated at Dana-Farber