WASHINGTON: The largest men's health series in America set new records this year. Rallying 20,000 participants across 40 cities nationwide, the ZERO Prostate Cancer Run/Walk raised more than USD 3.3M to help families fighting prostate cancer.
"It wasn't until I was diagnosed and got involved in the ZERO Run/Walk that I realized how prevalent the disease is," said Scott Moore, a prostate cancer survivor and Run/Walk participant in Long Beach, CA. "I was surprised by how many people I knew were touched by it, or had lost a man to it, and just hadn't openly discussed it before. That's why events like the ZERO Run/Walk are so important: to increase awareness in every community and to encourage men to talk about the disease openly."
Prostate cancer impacts one in eight men and the mortality rate of the disease is double among African-American men.
"We're incredibly thankful for the passionate support from our countless volunteers and partners. In a record-setting year, families across the country laced-up their sneakers to advance research for new treatments and diagnostic tools, and to educate and prepare their communities to fight the disease," said Jamie Bearse, ZERO's CEO.
During the past 10 years, the Run/Walk series has provided more than $2.3M in grants benefiting dozens of local organizations that provide vital programs for patients.
"We are using the grant received from ZERO, raised by the amazing Daughter's for Dads Team, to purchase a new state-of-the-art transrectal ultrasound machine to replace our current unit. The new unit will have improved imaging and be more portable, allowing the brachytherapy program to expand to include other local hospitals. This will make these life-saving brachytherapy services available to a much larger population of men in the North Bay area," said Dr. Stephen J Banks, Radiation Oncologist at the Martin-O'Neil Cancer Center, a nonprofit hospital at Adventist Health St. Helena.
The ZERO Run/Walk series receives support from several national sponsors, including AbbVie, Pfizer Oncology, Astellas Oncology, TOLMAR, Strand Diagnostics/Know Error, Clovis Oncology, and Outcome Health. This year's events included six new cities, a ceremony honoring caregivers who are so vital to men battling prostate cancer, and touching performances by ZERO's national spokesman, country singer and Outstanding Young Tennessean, Jimmy Charles.
