Linda's Racing for Pops

Cantering for the Cure


Me and my Mom at the
2007 MMRF Race for Research



Why We Race…
Multiple myeloma is a type of blood cancer that affects more than 50,000 Americans. It develops in the bone marrow, causing normal plasma cells to transform into malignant cells. Those cells interfere with normal bone growth and health, increase the risk of infection, prevent normal blood clotting, and lead to overworked and failing kidneys.

The Multiple Myeloma Research Foundation is an international nonprofit foundation driven by a single purpose: to accelerate the search for a cure for multiple myeloma. Drug companies have typically not been interested in developing drugs for myeloma, preferring to focus on diseases that affect large numbers of people, for which treatments are most profitable. But scientists at the MMRF track myeloma research at academic institutions around the world and choose projects that are most likely to lead to new therapies for patients, and are thus the best candidates for funding. Once funded, researchers are required to meet strict deadlines for demonstrating progress.

Why I’m Fighting for a Cure…
Multiple myeloma became a part of my life in 2002 when my best friend’s mother Lin was diagnosed. At that time, the prognosis was bleak: no cure, no remission, few extreme treatments, and a life expectancy of 6 months to 1 year. Two years later, multiple myeloma became a bigger part of my life when my uncle Paul was diagnosed. By that time, treatment options had increased and diagnoses were being made in earlier stages, which resulted in longer life expectancies. Both Lin and Paul have undergone intense treatments that left them both wonderfully in remission. Without research made possible by funding from the MMRF, those treatment options would not have been available to them, and they would both be facing much harsher realities.

Why You Should Help…
93% of every dollar raised by the MMRF goes straight to research. That means that $.93 of every dollar you donate will directly fund those research projects that are most likely to result in an effective treatment and, one day, a cure. Please give what you can to help others like Lin and Paul have brighter futures.

Thank you for supporting me in my Race for Research!