Seena Magowitz Foundation - Honoring Impact by Frontdoors Media

Honoring Impact

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Those that give all they canâ&#x20AC;Ś

Can change the world.

Leggett & Platt would like to express its sincere gratitude to Dr. Daniel Von Hoff, M.D., for his lifetime commitment to finding a cure for pancreatic cancer. The world is a better place because of people like him.

Table of Contents WELCOME . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 LIZ McBETH . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10 TONY SUBIA . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12 MIKE SAUCIER . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14 TGEN-HONOR HEALTH BREAKING NEWS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16 LEGACY HEROES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19

Johnny Clegg . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Dr. Jill Pechacek . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Phil Zeblisky . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Nikki Mitchell . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Arvind Varma, Ph.D. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Pam Ryan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Juan Burton-Flores . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

20 24 28 32 34 38 40

DR. VON HOFF . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46 DEBBY WOLVOS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52 PANCREATIC CANCER WARRIORS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55

Howard Young . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Elizabeth O’Connor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Stanley Vitikas . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Steve Mielke . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Joe Levine . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Steve Burge . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Kay Kays . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Saundra Demey-Forrest . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Camille Moses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Bill Eblin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Mildred “Mickey” Somerman . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Craig Hellmers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Tom Bennett . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Janet Bor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

56 60 64 68 70 72 74 76 78 82 84 86 88 90

PANCREATIC CANCER AMBASSADORS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 93

Karl Glassman . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 94 Phil Sherman . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 96 Phil McCarty . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 98 Steve Stagner . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 100 Gary Fazio . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102 Tom and Juli LaPorte . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 104 John & Lynn Morley: Morley Companies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 106 Randy Dobbs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 108 Ellman Family Vineyards . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 110 Derrick Hall . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 112 Natalie Sabga . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 114

THANKS TO SO MANY ADVOCATES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 118

Each and every person can make a difference.

Thank you, Dr. Daniel Von Hoff, for your lifetime of hard work and dedication to pancreatic cancer research. Because of you, hope for finding a cure is greater than ever. Sincerely, Karl and Cathi Glassman 4

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DR. JILL PECHACEK Will Be Desperately Missed ROGER E. MAGOWITZ

Founder LIZ MCBETH

COO, Director of Annual Golf Classic TONY SUBIA

Awareness Communications, Tribute Book

your key to the community ANDREA TYLER EVANS

Publisher TOM EVANS

Contributing Editor NEILL FOX

Creative Director LESLEY KITTS

Graphic Designer JILLIAN RIVERA

Cover and Contributing Photographer CONTRIBUTING WRITERS

Julia Brabant Debra Gelbart Carlin Kuhlmann Fernanda Santos Tony Subia GENERAL INFORMATION & PRESS RELEASES

info@frontdoorsmedia.com Frontdoors Media 3104 E. Camelback Road, #967, Phoenix, AZ 85016 480-622-4522 frontdoorsmedia.com

Frontdoors Magazine is dedicated to the memory of Mike Saucier.

“When a bleak prognosis faces you, don’t hold resentment in your heart. Extreme challenging times will spawn the amazing. Life is about deepening relationships with new people God brings into your life. Let your faith be bigger than your fear.” Dr. Jill Pechacek Left us, January 2018 Sponsored by

KARL AND CATHI GLASSMAN

â&#x20AC;&#x153; You Have Given Us Hope Where There Was None.â&#x20AC;? There are not enough words to express our sincere GRATITUDE for all you have done for us and our family. You have given us HOPE where there was none. Over the last five years we have been BLESSED with so many cherished memories. Our first granddaughter and another on the way. Spending treasured time with our family. Traveling and experiencing so many JOYFUL times that would not have been possible without your leadingedge treatments.

We love you Dr. Von Hoff.

Steve (Your Grateful Patient ) and Jeanine Mielke & Family

THE FACE AND VOICE OF PANCREATIC CANCER At the Seena Magowitz Foundation, we accept the challenge. Facing the deadliest cancer of all head on. Accelerating breakthrough advancement of pancreatic cancer research that will lead to earlier detection, extension of patient quality life and ultimately a cure of this brutal and devastating disease Our goal is harnessing the most formidable team that delivers the most impact at the most rapid pace. A concerted synergy of compassionate advocates that unite to fund the brightest minds in medical science and technology. Providing knowledge and information that encourages those at the highest risk to become diligent self-advocates.

“If not me, then who?” That’s the question that kept echoing in the mind of Roger Magowitz after he accompanied his mother, Seena, to her oncologist appointments following her pancreatic cancer diagnosis in 2001. Expecting the doctors to recommend a course of treatment that would set Seena on the road to recovery, Roger instead heard that their focus was not on treating her condition or finding a cure, but rather, enhancing her quality of life in what little time she had left. “No one should ever have to hear that there’s nothing doctors can do for a loved one,” he noted, and it was this sentiment that set the wheels in motion for what is now the Seena Magowitz Foundation. It’s also what cemented the foundation’s focus on clinical trials that would help pave the way for new treatment methods, new innovative treatments and, ultimately, new conversations for patients and family members facing devasting pancreatic cancer diagnoses.

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Welcome TO OUR INAUGURAL SEENA MAGOWITZ FOUNDATION TRIBUTE BOOK When I decided to produce a tribute book, I immediately knew the first honoree would be Dr. Daniel Von Hoff because of his many contributions to medical research. But how many others should this book give tribute to? There are so many cherished memories and so many stories that have impacted the Foundation in uniquely positive ways. The courageous Legacy Heroes, who lost the war with pancreatic cancer but gave so much valuable discovery to medical research. The volunteers who made our events hum like finely tuned machines. Our inspired and energetic Warriors who woke up every morning with enthusiasm, hope, and confidence they are going to defeat the beast. The many sponsors and donors whose generosity enabled us to do what we do. And so many advocates that helped in so many ways. This book had to pay tribute to all the people that have been instrumental to the Foundationâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s success. It had to be filled with photos that captured cherished moments. It is so very hard to reach out and thank everyone who have helped weave the fabric of what this organization has become, but we wanted to give it our best shot. The three pillars of the Seena Magowitz Foundation, besides myself, include Liz McBeth, who handles all administration and serves as the director of our annual Foundation Golf Classics. Liz has been with me since inception of the Foundation, always unwavering in her dedication to the cause. Tony Subia, the person most of you never see, performs behind-the-scenes administering of our website and social media. He is a sounding board, my mentor and my friend. He also directed our Inaugural tribute book. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s important to note that no one in this Foundation receives a salary. All efforts are out of love of what we do. This tribute book is a celebration of the numerous individuals and companies that have championed us. It celebrates the masterful work of Dr. Von Hoff and sheds light on so many individuals and companies that have been so generous with their time and money. Congratulations to you all.

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Liz McBeth: COO Seena Magowitz Foundation

LIZ McBETH Backbone of The Seena Magowitz Foundation BY J ULIA BRABANT | CONTRI BUTI NG WRITER

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Liz McBeth: COO Seena Magowitz Foundation

ASK ANYONE AFFILIATED WITH THE SEENA MAGOWITZ FOUNDATION HOW THEY MANAGE TO KEEP MULTIPLE BALLS IN THE AIR AT ANY GIVEN TIME, AND CHANCES ARE, THEY’LL SAY THE CREDIT GOES TO ELIZABETH “LIZ” MCBETH. While Liz singlehandedly manages all administrative, event-planning, accounting and related efforts on behalf of the foundation, she and her husband, Vince, have also become ardent advocates for the cause. So much so, in fact, that Liz devotes countless hours to the foundation and its fight against pancreatic cancer. An integral part of the foundation since day one, Liz knew Founder and CEO Roger Magowitz from their days working together in the bedding industry. Over time, she became a close friend of Magowitz, his wife, Jeanne, and his mother, Seena, the foundation’s namesake. After playing basketball for the University of Washington and professionally in Sweden, Liz moved to San Diego and started her career as an accountant, tying the knot with “The Commander” Vincent McBeth. They moved to Virginia Beach and she joined Magowitz’s company, Mattress Discounters. “Roger, as many know, is a passionate leader, and he’s someone you want to be involved with as a friend, in business and in all aspects. Roger and Jeanne have become like family to us,” Liz said. “You can’t just say

‘no’ when Roger calls, because he’s someone who’s there for you at all times. His passion drives this endeavor.” While Liz’s official foundation title is “Tournament Director,” highlighting how she manages all aspects of the annual Seena Magowitz Golf Classic and has for the past 17 years, she doesn’t limit her efforts to a single weekend. Instead, she takes calls, fields questions and collects donations for it year-round while devoting the same degree of attention to her husband and daughter, Madison, at home. “Liz really is the backbone of everything we do here at the Seena Magowitz Foundation,” Magowitz said. “She’s been here since day one, and without her unwavering dedication, tenacity and drive, we’d never be where we are today.” And while coordinating events, handling accounting efforts and otherwise keeping all trains running on track are among Liz’s many contributions to the foundation, she also works with other advocates, patients and Dr. Daniel Von Hoff, who she considers one of the most groundbreaking oncologists and researchers of our time. She has also made advocacy a true family affair, having 8-year-old daughter Madison accompany her to every Golf Classic event since birth. “Liz is someone who does the majority of her work behind the scenes, and she’s one of the most selfless and generous advocates out there,” said Tony Subia, who is one of three full-time foundation volunteers, alongside Magowitz and Liz. “She has a calm, collected demeanor, and she’s also one of the most empathetic, dedicated and compassionate people I’ve worked with.”

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Tony Subia: Seena Magowitz Foundation

TONY SUBIA The Man Behind the Scenes BY J ULIA BRABANT

SEENA MAGOWITZ FOUNDATION

CONTRI BUTI NG WRITER

Tony Subia: Seena Magowitz Foundation

TONY SUBIA IS NOT A MAN WHO SEEKS OUT THE SPOTLIGHT – ON THE CONTRARY, HE’S SELDOM SEEN AT SEENA MAGOWITZ FOUNDATION EVENTS, INSTEAD PREFERRING TO MAKE HIS VOICE HEARD BEHIND THE SCENES. It’s a bit ironic, though, that the man who rarely appears in public has also proved to be one of the loudest noisemakers when it comes to educating the public about pancreatic cancer. Nowadays, the former graphic design and marketing professional serves as Seena Magowitz Foundation Founder & CEO Roger Magowitz’ sounding board, so to speak, assisting with a wide range of efforts on behalf of the foundation. One such effort involved the planning and content direction of the foundation’s inaugural tribute book, working closely with its publisher, Frontdoors Media. If you ask him directly, though, he’d say he considers himself the foundation’s “Director of Awareness,” noting that his biggest contribution to the cause would be spreading the power of knowledge about this brutal disease. First introduced to Magowitz through a mutual friend about 10 years ago, Subia soon learned of the remarkable work the foundation was helping fund. “After a couple of hours, he had me hooked,” he recalled, of his earliest meeting with Magowitz. At the time, the foundation had no web or social media presence to speak of, so Subia set about creating its website and Facebook profile to inform exponentially more people about causes, symptoms and medical developments in the fight against the disease.

“The best job we can do for society when it comes to fighting pancreatic cancer is educate it,” Subia said. “If we’re going to continue to save and extend lives until a cure is discovered, we need to make people more diligent and vigilant, and that’s where the awareness aspect comes into play.” Compared to many other forms of cancer, awareness about pancreatic cancer causes, risk factors and detection methods is alarmingly low. There’s also a clear link between a lack of awareness about these elements and the percentage of pancreatic cancer patients who go un- or misdiagnosed, with misdiagnosis playing a role in about 30 percent of pancreatic cancer cases. “If a patient’s pancreatic cancer is found while it’s still Stage I and confined to the pancreas, the average five-year survival rate is about 37 percent,” Subia said. “Once it metastasizes, or spreads to distant organs, though, that rate falls significantly to about 2.9 percent, highlighting the critical nature of early detection. Unfortunately, only about 10 percent of cases are diagnosed when the cancer is confined to the primary site.” Subia also acknowledged that there is a lack of public knowledge about certain gene mutations linked to pancreatic cancer, among them the BRCA2 gene and the PALB2 mutation, both of which can increase the risk of getting pancreatic cancer. Raising awareness about these inherited risk factors will, in turn, help encourage at-risk individuals to seek genetic counseling and testing. “The more information we give people, the more assertive they can be with their general practitioners,” Subia said, noting that he plans to continue to support the efforts of the foundation – which he does completely without compensation. “The most rewarding part of this experience has been the heart fulfillment it brings,” he said, of his time with the Seena Magowitz Foundation. “It’s hearing people who were told they only had a few months or even weeks to live tell their own survival stories years later.”

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From the Publisher

THE TWIST OF FATE That Brought Us Together BY TOM EVAN S | CONTRI BUTI NG EDITOR

THIS FIRST-EVER SEENA MAGOWITZ FOUNDATION TRIBUTE BOOK HAS A BACK STORY TO IT. LIKE MANY OF YOU WHO ARE READING THIS, IT’S DUE TO A DEEPLY PERSONAL CONNECTION TO PANCREATIC CANCER. My wife and I purchased Frontdoors Media and Frontdoors Magazine in early 2017. One of the reasons we did so was because we had a great team assembled to produce it — led by a close friend and colleague of ours named Mike Saucier, who served as our first editor. We had worked with Mike for years and became friends with both he and his family, including his wife, journalist Fernanda Santos Saucier, and their young daughter Flora — who quickly became our daughter Ellie’s best friend. Mike did an exceptional job of building the vision for the publication and writing compelling stories and content, as we knew he would. In late June 2017, he was pitched a story about a guy named Roger Magowitz and the foundation he created in honor of his late mother Seena, who died of pancreatic cancer. Mike interviewed Roger and the article ran in the July 2017 issue of Frontdoors Magazine. It was one of dozens of articles Mike wrote, and we published it and kind of forgot about it after the time. Three months later, the cruel twist of fate occurred. In what seemed at the time like a sick irony, while we were producing an issue of the magazine celebrating cancer survivors, Mike was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. The disease ravaged his body and didn’t provide him with an opportunity to fight back. Mike died, with Fernanda at his side, at home on November 1, 2017. It is difficult to understate how devastated we all were at the loss. Mike was a kind, thoughtful, purposeful 14

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person who so thoroughly lived and enjoyed the human experience. He was beloved by friends, family and colleagues for his patient manner and exceptional wit. His passing sparked an outpouring of condolences from across the country, from people who were positively impacted by Mike throughout his time with us. Andrea and I decided to dedicate Frontdoors Media and Frontdoors Magazine to Mike’s memory, in perpetuity. Along with Fernanda, we established a memorial fund for those who wanted to help in some way, with the idea that when the dust settled, we would turn that into a charitable foundation that would be the philanthropic arm of Frontdoors Media. This fund turned into The Sauce Foundation, which is raising money to fund pancreatic cancer research at TGen, and to fund the Mike Saucier Memorial Scholarship at the Arizona State University Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communications. So back to how we met Roger — I was sitting around one night in March 2018 thinking about all the things that had transpired since Mike had passed away, and just out of curiosity, I decided to Google Mike’s name, to see some of what had been posted online since his passing. It was then that I stumbled across Mike’s article about Roger and the Seena Magowitz Foundation. I had completely forgotten about it until then, but reading Mike’s description of Roger and the foundation’s work, I felt like he had left me an Easter egg. So, I reached out to Roger, and since then he’s become a good friend to Andrea, Fernanda and I, culminating with us all working together to produce the book you see in front of you — Fernanda even wrote the cover story on Dr. Daniel Von Hoff. It’s an incredibly gratifying twist of fate that after all that happened with Mike — who was as gifted a storyteller as you would ever encounter — we’ve all been brought together to tell the stories you’ll read in this book. I think Mike would approve. I think he’d be proud that we’re able to share the experiences of these pancreatic cancer warriors, heroes and advocates. We hope you enjoy them, and trust you will be inspired by what you read.

From the Publisher

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BREAKING NEWS! TGen-HonorHealth clinical trial shows tumor shrinkage in 71 percent of patients with late-stage pancreatic cancer Trial partially funded by Seena Magowitz Foundation shows promise for patients

PROVIDE D BY TG E N

EDITED BY SEENA MAGOWITZ FOU N DATION

Adding a drug that targets a molecular vulnerability in pancreatic cancer could provide substantial benefit to patients, according to a clinical trial study by the HonorHealth Research Institute and the Translational Genomics Research Institute (TGen), an affiliate of City of Hope, in conjunction with the Pancreatic Cancer Research Team and Cancer Research And Biostatistics. The study was funded by grants from a Stand Up To Cancer and Lustgarten Pancreatic Cancer Dream Team research grant, with help from the Seena Magowitz Foundation, the TGen Foundation, the HonorHealth Foundation and Mattress Firm. Published in early October in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) Oncology, researchers found that among a clinical trial of 25 patients, adding the drug cisplatin to a current standard-of-care drug regimen resulted in substantial tumor shrinkage for 71 percent of those patients, and dramatically increased survival beyond one year. “By adding the drug cisplatin to the current standard of care — nab-paclitaxel plus gemcitabine — we demonstrated substantial clinical activity. The results of this triple-drug regimen are very encouraging

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for these patients,” said Daniel D. Von Hoff, M.D., FACP, who is physician-in-chief, distinguished professor and director of TGen’s Molecular Medicine Division; and chief scientific officer at HonorHealth Research Institute and founder of the Pancreatic Cancer Research Team (PCRT). He also is leader of the Stand Up To Cancer (SU2C)-Cancer Research UK (CRUK)-Lustgarten Foundation Pancreatic Cancer Dream Team. One year after entering the trial, 16 patients (64 percent) were still alive, far greater than the average one-year survival, which is only 26 percent for advanced pancreatic cancer patients. Ten patients (40 percent) were alive after two years, a survival rate not previously seen for patients with stage IV pancreatic cancer, said Dr. Von Hoff, the study’s senior author.

“In addition to a high overall response rate, this three-drug combination was well tolerated, with manageable side effects,” said Gayle Jameson, N.P., the principal investigator in this clinical trial and one of the study’s co-lead authors.

The most significant side effects were a lowering of platelets, which helps blood clotting; lower levels of red blood cells, which carry oxygen throughout the body; and fewer neutrophils, the most common type of white blood cells, which serve as the immune system’s primary defense against bacterial and viral infections. The combination of nab-paclitaxel and gemcitabine — pioneered by a 2009 SU2C Pancreatic Cancer Dream Team, also supported by the Lustgarten Foundation and led by Dr. Von Hoff — was approved by the FDA in 2013. Extensive testing led by HonorHealth and TGen demonstrated that the combination enabled longer survival for patients with advanced pancreatic cancer. “Many pancreatic tumors possess DNA repair deficiencies and are potentially vulnerable to new targeted therapies. We hypothesized that the addition of a platinum, in this case cisplatin, could improve treatment efficacy and patient outcomes,” said Erkut Borazanci, M.D., a clinical oncology investigator at HonorHealth Research Institute, and clinical associate professor at TGen. Dr. Borazanci also is a co-lead

author of the paper and an investigator on the SU2C-CRUK-Lustgarten Dream Team. In laboratory conditions, TGen researchers had discovered that cisplatin inhibited the ability of pancreatic cancer cells to repair their DNA, causing them to self-destruct. Because some patients showed substantial improvement in the first three weeks of this clinical Gayle Jameson, N.P. trial, this three-drug combination — dubbed the “TGen Triple” or “Triplet regimen” — is being considered for early management of pancreatic cancer patients, and also as a pre-surgical treatment, according to the study.

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Courageous Warriors They are the beacons of hope that inspire gallantry to win the war against pancreatic cancer. Warriors carry the torch of awareness that gives people the knowledge to become more diligent in reducing risk. Eradication of this brutal disease not only requires close collaboration among medical institutions but also between patients and their medical providers. The combined synergy strengthens the attention on developing new innovative treatments that will extend quality life and quicken the pace to an eventual cure.

Sincere Thanks To The Moran Family Foundation For Supporting The Fight Against Pancreatic Cancer

Legacy HEROES JOHNNY CLEGG DR. JILL PECHACEK PHIL ZEBLISKY NIKKI MITCHELL ARVIND VARMA PAM RYAN JUAN BURTON-FLORES

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Legacy Heroes

JOHNNY CLEGG “THE WHITE ZULU”

The World Lost A Uniting Voice

DE BRA G E LBART

SEENA MAGOWITZ FOUNDATION

CONTRI BUTI NG WRITER

Legacy Heroes

WE SADLY LOST JOHNNY CLEGG TO PANCREATIC CANCER ON JULY 16, 2019 AFTER A FOUR-YEAR BATTLE AGAINST THE DISEASE.

Johnny Clegg was a beloved song-writer, musician, singer and social justice activist in South Africa — he is often credited with helping to crush apartheid in South Africa. He had the ability to unite people across the races. Because of this, he made an indelible mark in the music industry and the hearts of the people around the world. His fans knew him primarily as a prolific singer-songwriter of music that combines South African Zulu-inspired sounds with African pop. He is often called the “White Zulu.”

A DIFFICULT DIAGNOSIS Clegg was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in April of 2015. He was a lightning bolt of optimism and sage advice as he continued to entertain audiences around the world. “Everyone battling pancreatic cancer has to have ‘inkani yempilo,’ Zulu for ‘the stubborn determination to live,’” said Johnny, who had lived in South Africa since the mid-1960s.

RELISHING CAMARADERIE When he traveled from his home in Johannesburg, South Africa to attend the 16th Annual Seena Magowitz Foundation Annual Golf Classic for the first time (held in Boston in 2018), Clegg was delighted to

find that other pancreatic cancer warriors have the same stubborn determination to survive that he had. But he was also fascinated that each has their own story. “I really appreciate the opportunity to meet them and talk to them and share their experiences and get an idea of their struggle,” he said during an interview at the Boston event. “The struggle is very personal and at times a lonely thing, even if your family is there with you. Because you’re the guy who’s got it.”

HONESTY AND AUTHENTICITY Johnny was upfront with his fans about his health challenges. “I made a decision to post my condition on my Facebook fan page and just give a history,” he said. “It’s a desire to say, look, this has happened to me — I’m not special. This is the cancer lottery. I mean, it just happens. It’s a random thing that’s happened, right? I’ve had to cancel some of my tours while I went through chemo. That’s why I’m not around. I had kept silent until then and I thought, it’s not real. I want to be real.”

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Legacy Heroes

He appreciated how genuine the Seena Magowitz Foundation event to raise awareness and funds for pancreatic cancer research is, especially for pancreatic cancer survivors. “I’m grateful information is getting out there and that the Foundation is celebrating the survivors.”

A CONTINUING LEGACY OF INSPIRATION In the sunlight of a democratic and equal South Africa, Clegg was a cultural ambassador for his country. As much as he could, he continued to put on concerts for his fans all over the globe. In fact, in October of 2017, two and a half years after he was diagnosed, Johnny was performing at a soldout venue in San Diego. A mutual friend brought Roger Magowitz, founder of the Seena Magowitz Foundation, to see Clegg perform there. Magowiz was so moved by Clegg’s story that he invited him to the Magowitz Foundation event in Boston.

CANCER DID NOT SLOW CLEGG DOWN SIGNIFICANTLY UNTIL THE END ”I’m dancing, I’m singing, I’m writing. I put out a new album that went to number one on the Canadian world music charts,” he said at the Seena Magowitz Foundation Annual Classic in 2018. “It’s also being released in France.” Though Clegg finished chemotherapy less than a month before going to Boston, he had the energy and drive to perform for an enthusiastic, grateful audience at the golf classic. “You have to accept that you’re dealing with this cancer,” he said. “Your life takes a turn. You have to incorporate it. Instead of just saying, ‘Okay, I’m done for,’ you say, ‘Keep on doing what you’re doing.’ I’m carrying on with my music.”

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Legacy Heroes

honors

DR. DANIEL VON HOFF, M.D. for his commitment to finding a cure for pancreatic cancer.

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Legacy Heroes

DR. JILL PECHACEK Defined By Relentless Optimism

DE BRA G E LBART

SEENA MAGOWITZ FOUNDATION

CONTRI BUTI NG WRITER

Legacy Heroes

DR. JILL PECHACEK OF COLORADO PASSED AWAY IN JANUARY 2018 AT THE AGE OF 49 AFTER A 40-MONTH BATTLE WITH PANCREATIC CANCER.

She was a family medicine physician with enormous compassion for her patients — in part because she was a multiple cancer warrior. Pechacek survived a bout with ovarian cancer when she was just 25. About 21 years later she was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in September 2014.

LIFE INTERRUPTED, BUT NOT SLOWED Her determination to make life better was emblematic of Pechacek’s ebulliently positive outlook, despite facing enough challenges for multiple lifetimes. She was diagnosed with ovarian cancer just before her last semester of medical school. “That was my first time being a patient with a serious condition,” she said during an interview in 2017. She said she didn’t any doubt she was going to defeat ovarian cancer. She did just that and went on to have three children: sons Hawk and Brooks and daughter Hope, who are now teenagers. Eight years after the birth of her youngest child, Hope, Pechacek never thought she’d soon be experiencing another bout of cancer. But in September of 2014, pain in her stomach wouldn’t let up. She thought it was either an ulcer or pancreatitis, but received the

devastating news that she had stage 4 pancreatic cancer that had metastasized to her liver. This time it was tougher for her to stay positive. “My survival isn’t about just me, it’s about my kids,” she said.

NEVER GIVING IN With boundless determination, she traveled to six different cancer-care institutions around the country in search of optimal treatments, though she was already receiving regular infusions of Folfirinox, a cocktail of chemotherapy drugs. “Those were really hard, dark days,” she said. “All consults estimated I had only about six months to live.” After researching clinical research trials, Dr. Jill found Dr. Daniel Von Hoff, a pioneer in the development of targeted therapies for treatment of cancer at the Translational Genomics Research Institute (TGen) in Phoenix and the HonorHealth Research Institute in Scottsdale. “When I first met him, one of the leading cancer researchers in the world, I noticed that he has the kindest face and treats you as if you were his only patient in the world,” she said.

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She flew to Arizona about every eight weeks to be seen by Dr. Von Hoff and by Dr. Erkut Borazanci, an oncologist and clinical investigator at HonorHealth Research Institute.

LIFE LESSONS SHARED WITH OTHERS “When diagnosed with pancreatic cancer, you can’t hold resentment in your heart. So many amazing things come out of challenging times, and life is all about deepening relationships and all of the new people that God brings into your life, ”she said. She underwent separate surgeries to have her pancreas removed and two-thirds of her liver removed. She became a motivational speaker to remind people of what’s truly important in life: having faith in God and knowing the power of prayer; that “nothing tastes better than life” and each day is a gift; the restorative and healing impact of “being around the people you love and the people who love, support and encourage you,” and the value of investing in your health.

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When she spoke at the 2017 Annual Seena Magowitz Foundation Golf Classic in 2017, she felt guided by wisdom from several sources, including Verse 31:25 from the Book of Proverbs that says, “She is clothed with strength and dignity and she laughs without fear of the future.” She remained determined “to do whatever it takes to be here because I’m extremely motivated and confident in my future.” She urged those in her audiences to “let your faith be bigger than your fear” and underscored that “God has a plan for you.” Dr. Jill Pechacek passed away about six months later in January 2018.

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PHIL ZEBLISKY

A LEGACY OF INSPIRATION

He Carried The Torch of Awareness

J ULIA BRABANT

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WHILE NO ONE CAN SAY FOR SURE WHEN A CURE FOR PANCREATIC CANCER WILL ARRIVE, ONE THING THAT CAN BE SAID WITH CERTAINTY IS THAT PHIL ZEBLISKY HAD A HAND IN FINDING IT. The one-time certified public accountant-turned tireless cancer research advocate first learned of his Stage 4 pancreatic cancer diagnosis in May of 2014, following a failed Whipple procedure he had after a Stage 2 diagnosis. While most people who learn of this fate have an estimated six months left to live, Phil had far more to do in his fight against the disease than he could fit into that timeline. Like many patients facing similar circumstances, Phil didn’t receive his diagnosis until his surgeon discovered that his cancer had progressed outside of the pancreas, at which point there is only so much modern medicine can do. Delayed diagnoses of pancreatic cancer are devastatingly common, and this is largely due to the fact that this particular form of cancer often fails to cause disease-specific symptoms until it has progressed past the pancreas and moved on to other areas of the body.

pancreatic cancer. After only six treatments, Phil’s tumor had stopped growing, and after 17 treatments, it was no longer detectable at all in CT, MRI or PET scans. As it so often does, though, the disease returned within a few months, and Phil’s doctors at HonorHealth again began to treat it with the triple combination of drugs. After about four months of treatment, doctors found no signs of active cancer remaining in his body, so he started a chemotherapy maintenance medication that proved effective until doctors saw signs of his cancer reemerging in 2016.

So, Phil’s doctors advised him to get his personal affairs in order, but he had something else in mind. He’d seek exploratory treatment from HonorHealth’s Dr. Daniel Von Hoff (known in some circles as “Dr. Von Hope”) and become part of a clinical trial that could not only help extend his own life, but potentially save countless others – and ultimately, he did just that.

At this point, Phil’s doctors offered him a second chance at the curative Whipple surgery. A complex surgical procedure that involves removing part of the pancreas as well as part of the bile duct, gall bladder and, in some cases, stomach, the Whipple procedure is rarely a treatment option for patients with Stage 4 pancreatic cancer, because, as Phil put it, such treatment is typically palliative in nature. The Whipple procedure proved successful, though, paving the way for Phil to spend another two years advocating, traveling, spending time with friends and family and otherwise making the most of his days. He was also able to celebrate his 35th anniversary with his wife, Kathy, and two more joyful anniversaries after that.

The trial in which Phil participated, NCT01893801, required that he take a three-drug combination of Abraxane, Gemzar and Cisplatin, which had not yet received approval for use in the treatment of

“Phil was all about living his life as normally as possible after his diagnosis,” Kathy said. “Of course, your ‘normal’ changes, but he was never going to let his diagnosis turn him into a cancer victim.”

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While Phil ultimately succumbed to the disease in January of 2018, he didn’t go without first giving his all to the fight against it. “Your outcome will be determined by how you approach the disease, not by how others who have gone before you have fared,” Phil once said, with his own approach to fighting the disease proving to be one of bravery, hope and dedication. He told others facing similar battles that they should always consider clinical trials, because, while they grant you access to cutting-edge treatment methods and medications that are otherwise unavailable, they also give you the opportunity to play a real, tangible role in the advancement of science — and in prolonging the lives of pancreatic cancer fighters everywhere. To help ensure that even more people battling pancreatic cancer have the resources, financial and otherwise, to participate in clinical trials, Phil’s wife launched Phil’s Fund in partnership with HonorHealth in 2019. While doing so helped her keep Phil’s legacy alive, it also helped eliminate some of the financial hurdles that prevent so many patients from pursuing exploratory care. “We knew a clinical trial was the right move when we recognized that it presented the only real chance we had at prolonging Phil’s life,” Kathy said. “After a devastating diagnosis, it was the first time we truly felt hope.”

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Dear Dan,

It is a pleasure to put into words what you have meant to me personally and to all of those who have been affected by your work. It is easy to rattle off the list of therapeutic agents that you helped develop that have resulted in approval by the FDA. Agents such as gemcitabine, irinotecan, nab-paclitaxel, nanoliposomal irinotecan among others. The big impact of this has been in the individuals with cancer whose lives have improved. I don’t know how to best measure the impact of living longer with cancer but every wedding anniversary, birthday, degree attainment, child or grandchild’s graduation counts beyond any way we can measure and without your work these milestones would be missed. One of your gifts to the world has been your impact as a mentor. You have mentored so many physicians and scientists over the years and they all carry your legacy through their work. It seems to me every other individual has had some professional relationship with you that has impacted them in a positive way. The ability to collaborate with others to do more cannot be understated. With all of your accomplishments over the years it would be easy be aloof and set in your ways of doing things but you continue to seek out other like-minded individuals who want to do more not only for pancreatic cancer but for so many malignancies. I’ll never forget when I first met you – you said “Hi I’m Dan” and you constantly chided me for calling you Dr. Von Hoff insisting we are colleagues. Every day I’m trying to live up to be your colleague.

I don’t know how to best measure the impact of living longer with cancer but every wedding anniversary, birthday, degree attainment, child or grandchild’s graduation counts beyond any way we can measure and without your work these milestones would be missed.

And finally I would be remiss to speak of you as a physician at the bedside. Your insights over the years have not only led to the development of new therapies but have helped countless others in managing individuals better. I was floored to find out you were the one responsible for the observation of dose dependent cardiac toxicity of doxorubicin- every single fellow in oncology in the world is taught that. Your observations both in the clinic and in the lab and in discussions with your colleagues have led to the aforementioned breakthroughs. The ability to take all that information and being able to apply to patient care is the ultimate definition of a physician. So Dr. Von Hoff or Dan- I thank you for being my friend, my mentor, and my colleague. I look forward to continuing to work with you in improving patients’ lives.

Erkut Erkut Borazanci M.D., M.S. Medical Oncology/Clinical Investigator | HonorHealth Research Institute Clinical Associate Professor, Clinical Translational Research Division TGen Clinical Assistant Professor, Internal Medicine | University of Arizona College of Medicine, Phoenix

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NIKKI MITCHELL SPECIAL ANGEL

Full of Hope, Courage, and Faith

TONY SUBIA

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“ALL OF US WHO KNEW AND LOVED NIKKI WILL NEVER FORGET SUCH A SPECIAL ANGEL.”

Nikki Mitchell lost her battle to pancreatic cancer in July 2013, about 2 ½ years after diagnosis in December 2010. Originally given just a few months to live, she defied the poor odds and remained full of hope, courage, and faith. Mitchell’s adventurous spirit would never stop her from continuing to follow her dreams and aspirations. She truly lived her life to the fullest extent despite the rigors and pain of fighting the most brutal of cancers. According to Mitchell, “as a young West Texas girl, I worked hard for nothing more than a smile on my father’s face. When school was out, I would haul hay and move irrigation pipe.” As a young lady she eventually moved from Abilene, Texas to Nashville, Tennessee to begin a career in the music business and eventually became president of Waylon Jennings and Jessi Colter Music, a position she held for 22 years.

She was extremely interested in flying and eventually, and along with her best friend Rhonda Miles, made history in 1998 with their “Bridge of Wings” flight — piloting a single-engine aircraft retracing the historical 1938 “Flight of the Rodina” which showcased heroic Russian women pilots. To learn more about this historic flight visit bridgeofwings.com. In 2011 when she owned the Normandy River Cafe in suburban Nashville. Mitchell met Alyssa Bonagura, an up-and-coming singer who was performing for guests at Nikki’s restaurant. They instantly became close friends and Bonagura was inspired to write the song “Warrior,” and dedicated to Mitchell because it embodied the struggle, resilience and courage it took for her to battle pancreatic cancer. According to Bonagura, “all of us who knew and loved Nikki will never forget such a special angel.”

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ARVIND VARMA, PH.D. An Academic Super Star Remembered

DE BRA G E LBART

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DR. ARVIND VARMA RECENTLY PASSED AWAY IN JULY 2019. THE FOLLOWING WAS HIS STORY.

RESEARCH PROVES TO BE A LIFESAVER

AN AMAZING RESPONSE

The only symptoms Arvind Varma, Ph.D. had before his diagnosis were a persistent, but not severe, stomachache and some weight loss. The weight loss didn’t alarm him because he had been trying to shed a few pounds. That was in October 2015. But the pain concerned him enough to visit his doctor, and in November of that year, he learned he had Stage 4 pancreatic cancer.

His clinical response to the treatment was nothing short of stunning. Before he enrolled in the study, his tumor marker — one way doctors and researchers assess the extent of a particular cancer — was 5,500. A normal value is 0 to 37. Immediately after he finished the treatment, his tumor marker had dropped to 120. He returned to Indiana in July 2016.

As devastating as the diagnosis was, it wasn’t entirely unexpected. “I have a long family history of cancer,” Dr. Varma told assembled guests in August 2017 at the Seena Magowitz Foundation Annual Golf Classic in Boston. “My mother died at age 37 of esophageal cancer when I was 8 years old. My younger sister and eldest brother also died of cancer. Another older brother had breast cancer which was caught early and cured. So I regularly had tests to see if cancer was coming for me.” No one diagnosed with pancreatic cancer with metastasis to the liver would ever consider themselves lucky, but sometimes timing can save your life. Dr. Varma, a professor of chemical engineering at Purdue University in Indiana, immediately began researching the best place to seek treatment. He chose the Translational Genomics Research Institute (TGen) and HonorHealth Research Institute in Scottsdale, Arizona. He was able to become patient #19 in a clinical trial called the TGen Triple for 25 Stage 4 pancreatic cancer patients who had no previous treatment. He and his wife Karen relocated to Scottsdale for seven months so he could receive the treatment, a combination of three chemotherapy drugs that had not been combined before to treat pancreatic cancer. Dr. Varma was also the head of the School of Chemical Engineering at Purdue at that time. Throughout his treatment, he was able to continue his work remotely, regularly conferring with colleagues and students through email and Skype.

Since then, he has taken an oral chemotherapy, Lynparaza, twice daily. Currently, his tumor marker is 11 — comfortably in the normal range. And his scans show no evidence of disease. While he was undergoing treatment in Scottsdale, Dr. Varma also had genetic testing, which revealed that he has a BRCA 2 mutation, making him more susceptible to pancreatic cancer. He believes this also explained his family history of related cancers. Of the 24 patients the research team was able to evaluate in the TGen Triple study, two had what’s called a “complete response,” meaning they had no evidence of disease when they had their best response to treatment. Another 15 patients, like Dr. Varma, had a “partial response” — a reduction by at least 30 percent in the size of their tumors and a falling tumor marker. Four patients experienced no change in their disease and three experienced an advancement of the cancer.

PARTICULARS OF THE REGIMEN The three drugs administered in combination were Abraxane, Gemcitabine and Cisplatin. Abaxane plus Gemcitabine already is FDA-approved for treatment of advanced pancreatic cancer. Research has shown that tumor cells like those in pancreatic cancer possess DNA repair problems, so they may be highly sensitive to the drug Cisplatin.

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Building on this three-drug foundation, a new study is underway at HonorHealth Research Institute, adding a synthetic Vitamin D and an Immunotherapy drug called Nivolumab to the Triple Trial.

A BUSY LIFE WITH CAREFUL FOLLOW-UP Dr. Varma comes to Scottsdale every three months to see his medical oncologist, Erkut Borazanci, M.D., who also is a clinical investigator at HonorHealth Research Institute and medical director of the institute’s early cancer detection program and to see Daniel Von Hoff, M.D., one of the world’s leading pancreatic cancer researchers with TGen. Every month, through his oncologist in Indiana, his tumor marker is evaluated. In between visits, he has been traveling and working during this, his sabbatical year through the university. He has gone to University of California Santa Barbara and to ETH Zurich in Switzerland — a science, technology, engineering and mathematics university that has produced 21 Nobel laureates — to research and present seminars. Beginning in November and continuing until next March, he will be based at the University of California at Los Angeles. “I’m extremely grateful to be able to continue working and researching during my entire treatment,” Dr. Varma said. “And I urge anyone with a family history of cancer to undergo genetic testing. If any mutations are discovered, your health can be closely monitored, and in many cases, disease can be detected earlier than it might have been otherwise”

“It is not because things are difficult that we do not dare; it is because we do not dare that things are difficult.” — Seneca

Dr. Von Hoff is an inspiration to current and future generations of researchers and has dedicated his life to fighting Pancreatic Cancer. His continued, selfless dedication to his research – and his desire to teach others – has significantly impacted the lives of countless individuals and their families. We are honored to have supported Dr. Von Hoff’s efforts and will continue to do so at every opportunity in the future. Keep up the good fight, Dan. ISSAC provides tailored Artificial Intelligence solutions leveraging our VOR AI™ platform. We believe the next major advancement in humanity will be based on the undiscovered knowledge currently residing in the massive amounts of data collected every day. We know every data set has a story to tell.

WE HELP YOU FIND YOUR HIDDEN STORY!

ISSAC Corp | 6760 Corporate Drive, Suite 240 | Colorado Springs, Colorado 80919 (719) 725-6900 | www.issaccorp.com

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PAM RYAN A Cherished Legacy

TONY SUBIA

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ORIGINALLY DIAGNOSED WITH PANCREATIC CANCER IN NOVEMBER 2012, PAM RYAN PASSED AWAY IN APRIL 2014. ORIGINALLY GIVEN A BLEAK PROGNOSIS OF JUST A FEW WEEKS TO LIVE, PAM DEFIED THE ODDS AND LIVED FOR 16 TREASURED MONTHS.

Pam thought she was suffering from strained muscles in her legs but it was ultimately diagnosed as blood clots not only in her legs but in her lungs as well. Blood clots can be a symptom of pancreatic cancer. A subsequent CT Scan revealed a malignant tumor in her pancreas and the cancer had already spread to distant organs. It was diagnosed as an inoperable stage 4 advanced adenocarcinoma pancreatic cancer. “I was in shock when her oncologist told me my wife would die soon,” said Jim Ryan, her husband of 40 years. Both Jim and Pam refused to accept that verdict and began the search for a second opinion, which led to a clinical trial at the Virginia G. Piper Cancer Center in Scottsdale, Arizona. That trial, administered by TGen, was performed under the guidance of Dr. Daniel Von Hoff, one of the world’s foremost scientific research oncologists. The combination of being treated with “Abraxane”

(Nab-Paclitaxel) mixed with Gemcitabine extended Pam’s life from the original prognosis of just weeks to 1½ years. Besides continuing to guide and protect her children, Pam was very active with charities, including helping create a live Bethlehem Village for her Church’s annual Christmas event known as “Christmas At First.” She was in the National Charity League with her daughter and was also very active in the Junior League of Phoenix. She served as President of the Maricopa Bar Auxiliary helping the County Bar Association provide law educational programs for grade school students. Pam was active in the P.E.O. Sisterhood and served as the President of the Arizona Historical League. She genuinely cared for people, as evidenced by the years she spent sending care packages to our soldiers overseas as a participant in the “Soldier’s Angels” Program.

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JUAN BURTON-FLORES An Amazingly Inspirational Warrior Story

TONY SUBIA

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JUAN BURTON-FLORES UNEXPECTEDLY PASSED AWAY AUGUST 29, 2019. HE WAS DIAGNOSED WITH STAGE 4 PANCREATIC CANCER IN JULY 2017. HIS ORIGINAL PROGNOSIS GAVE HIM ONLY A COUPLE OF MONTHS TO LIVE. HE DEFIED THE ODDS AND LIVED FOR TWO YEARS.

JUAN BURTON-FLORES’ STORY

JOURNEY TO ARIZONA

In early May 2017, Juan Burton-Flores, a resident of Hermosillo, Mexico, began experiencing discomfort in his abdomen area. When symptoms persisted, he underwent an endoscopy which examined his digestive system through an inserted scope. According to his doctor, they did not find a problem and he was given a clean bill of health. Unfortunately this was a misdiagnosis.

By August 2017, Juan and Geovanna had relocated to the Phoenix and Scottsdale area so Juan could begin the clinical trial under the direction of Dr. Von Hoff and and Dr. Erkut Borazanci, another leading pancreatic cancer researcher with HonorHealth.

By the following July, Juan had lost 20 pounds and the symptoms not only continued to persist, but progressively became more intense. He and his wife Geovanna Proto went back to his doctor, who became concerned and ordered an MRI scan. The results would change the couple’s life dramatically. Juan was diagnosed with stage 4 pancreatic cancer. A 9.1 centimeter tumor was found in the tail end of his pancreas and had adhered to his colon, kidney, and spleen. “The doctor concluded that any treatment would not make a measurable difference and his prognosis was that Juan likely would not survive more than a couple of months,” Geovanna said. But Geovanna and Juan were unwilling to accept that prognosis. They began searching the Internet for credible sources for a second opinion that would give them a more positive outlook. According to Geovanna, “Our searches for treatment kept leading back to Dr. Daniel Von Hoff of the Translational Genomics Research Institute (TGen) in Phoenix. He had the reputation of being among the best pancreatic cancer research oncologists in the world. We learned that Dr. Von Hoff had implemented a clinical trial at the HonorHealth Research Institute in Scottsdale, Arizona. We lived in Hermosillo, Mexico and couldn’t believe that driving to Scottsdale was only about a six-hour trip.”

“At first we were nervous about moving to Arizona and Juan had initially preferred to go to Mexico City for treatment,” Geovanna said. “But when we got to Scottsdale, everyone on our HonorHealth treatment team were so wonderful to us. They became like an extended family.” At the clinical trial, the chemotherapy treatment regimen included a combination of five drugs which included Abraxane, Gemcitabine, Cisplatin, Paricalcitol (a synthetic form of Vitamin D) and Nivolumab (an immunotherapy drug). The clinical trial was nick-named “The Grand Slam.” “Juan would be so exhausted after a 12-hour session of chemo, but we were so happy to be there because of all the love we felt made it so enjoyable,” Geovanna said. During the course of his treatment, Juan and Geovanna came to know about the Seena Magowitz Foundation. Juan and Geovanna also learned about the Foundation’s ongoing fundraising, which provides funding for pancreatic cancer research by Dr. Von Hoff. “When we heard about all the work Roger does, we were so impressed,” Geovanna said. “Here his mom passed away in 2001 and he’s still so devoted to the cause of finding a cure for pancreatic cancer. These are the things that lift us up. If Roger continues to fight on behalf of us and all pancreatic cancer patients, we have to conjure-up the spirit to fight like warriors. We can’t give up.”

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THANKFUL FOR BLESSINGS Geovanna reflected on unexpected surprise. “Roger Magowitz invited us to attend his Foundation’s Annual Golf Classic that was held in August 2018 in Boston, Massachusetts,” said Geovanna. “When would I ever have thought Juan and I would be in Boston? It’s been quite a journey and we hope to be at the Golf Classic next year.” “Juan had an impressive response to his treatment under Dr. Von Hoff and Dr. Borazanci,” Geovanna said. “When we got to Scottsdale, in addition to his pancreas tumor, he had four masses in his liver and masses in his peritoneum. When he finished the treatment, the size of the pancreas tumor had reduced from 9.1 to 4.5 centimeters, and there was no sign of masses in his liver or his peritoneum.” Juan and Geovanna have a renewed, more positive outlook on life and hope and pray the treatments will extend Juan’s quality of life for many years well beyond the “couple of months” that was the original prognosis. And who knows — with the more rapid pace of medical research, today, there could be a cure for pancreatic cancer discovered in the near future.

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NOT ALL SUPERHEROES WEAR A CAPE. Some wear a white coat and a warm smile. In the war against cancer, there is one superhero who is truly making a difference…. Dr. Daniel Von Hoff, chief medical officer for the HonorHealth Research Institute.

Dr. Von Hoff has worked tirelessly to develop breakthrough treatments in the fight against the world’s toughest cancer. Many of these treatments are now routinely used to extend, improve and save lives. Today and every day, we recognize his extraordinary work which has provided patients and their families with hope and the opportunity to celebrate birthdays, anniversaries and… life itself.

8125 N. Hayden Road, Scottsdale, AZ 85258 | 480-587-5000 | honorhealth.com/foundation HonorHealth Foundation is a not-for-profit 501(c)(3) organization

Congratulations Dr. Daniel Von Hoff

he impact of your medical research achievements are beyond measurement. Youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re being honored for a distinctive career that includes pioneering new innovative treatments for some of the deadliest of cancers is so well-deserved. Your relentless passion to defeat pancreatic cancer has made a positive impact on every patient who benefited from new treatment innovation that you shepherded along the path of of medical discovery. Your journey of vision has inspired so many patients along the way.

Thank you Dr. Von Hoff. JOHN AND LYNN MORLEY The Morley Companies

Dr. Von Hoff Thanks For All You Do

DR VON “HOPE”

The story behind the leader in the fight against pancreatic cancer

FE RNANDA SANTOS | CONTRI BUTI NG EDITOR

AS A CHILD, DANIEL VON HOFF USED TO ACCOMPANY HIS FATHER, STANLEY, TO HIS JOB LAYING ROW AFTER ROW OF BRICKS THAT WOULD GIVE RISE TO HOSPITALS, SCHOOLS, HOMES. IT WAS IN THOSE DAYS, AND FROM HIS FATHER, THAT VON HOFF LEARNED WHAT HE DESCRIBES AS A DEFINING LESSON. “DAN,” HIS FATHER WOULD TELL HIM, “YOU’VE GOT THE ABILITY TO LISTEN AND WATCH, AND THESE ARE THE MOST IMPORTANT THINGS.” 46

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he lesson would present itself again and again — in the words of Amber Morgan, his teacher in the one-room school he attended outside Oshkosh, Wisconsin, and Ken Artiss, the psychiatrist who helped train him and other fellows at the National Cancer Institute in Bethesda, Maryland. Artiss explained to him that he owed every patient his undevoted attention because it is the patient “who is going to tell you what’s wrong, what’s bothering them the most, and you have to listen to them.” It is because he listens that Dr. Von Hoff discovered that being a doctor isn’t just about having the right degrees, training and credentials. It is about giving his patients what they need.

As an intern in New York, while studying at Columbia Medical School, that meant giving a woman whose leukemia had caused her to go blind a chance to spend time with her seven children, even though children at the time weren’t allowed inside hospitals. It meant going against the advice of experienced nurses years ago and treating a little girl hobbled by neuroblastoma with a new chemotherapy drug, then being rewarded by seeing her four days later joyfully ride a tricycle in the hospital hallways. Once, while working at the Audie L. Murphy VA Hospital in San Antonio, Texas, Dr. Von Hoff heard a pancreatic cancer patient tell him about a newfound taste for Kentucky Fried Chicken, which struck him as

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odd because pancreatic cancer patients usually have a hard time digesting any type of food. A CAT scan proved what Dr. Von Hoff already suspected: Gemcitabine, an experimental drug at the time, was helping shrink the patient’s tumor. And just as importantly, he said, it had improved the patient’s quality of life, allowing him even to take some leisurely walks. To this day today, Dr. Von Hoff remembers the brand new Adidas the patient had on his feet. “Careful observation, listening to people. These are the foremost things a doctor can do,” he said.

That stranger was Roger Magowitz. “I lost my mother to pancreatic cancer,” Magowitz told Dr. Von Hoff. “I want to do something against the disease.” Magowitz had recently started the Seena Magowitz Foundation, named after his mom, who died at the age of 64, and was looking, in part, for a beneficiary for the money he planned to raise at a golf tournament,

COURAGE

Fifteen years ago, Dr. Von Hoff listened to a stranger who called him and accepted the stranger’s invitation

for lunch, paving the way for what could arguably be described as one of the most impactful alliances for the future of clinical advances to improve survival rates among patients with pancreatic cancer.

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the first in what has become a successful annual event. He was also searching for a brother in arms of sorts, someone as determined — and hopeful — as he was to defeat pancreatic cancer, which, according to a recent study, is on track to become the second-leading cause of cancer deaths in the United States by 2030. “When I started the Seena Magowitz Foundation, it certainly was a way for me to heal,” Magowitz said. “In my head, I had a justified answer to move forward: My mother went from this earth to give me the motivation to help others.” In its 17 years, the Seena Magowitz Foundation has raised about $12 million, making it easier for physicians, nurses and researchers not only to carry out a number of clinical trials, but also to test drugs that could lead to clinical trials. One of those trials was to explore whether combining gemcitabine with nanoparticle albumin-bound paclitaxel, a chemotherapy medicine better known by its commercial name, Abraxane, could increase the survivability of pancreatic cancer patients.

WHEN I STARTED THE SEENA MAGOWITZ FOUNDATION, IT CERTAINLY WAS A WAY FOR ME TO HEAL,” MAGOWITZ SAID. “IN MY HEAD, I HAD A JUSTIFIED ANSWER TO MOVE FORWARD: MY MOTHER WENT FROM THIS EARTH TO GIVE ME THE MOTIVATION TO HELP OTHERS.”

The story of Abraxane’s development began decades ago. Dr. Von Hoff, while still in San Antonio, worked with Patrick Soon-Shiong — who, among other things,

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is a surgeon, philanthropist and the owner of the Los Angeles Times — to design the clinical trial that led to the FDA approval of Abraxane for use in the treatment of patients with advanced breast cancer. Then, in 1999, he came to Phoenix to lead the University of Arizona Cancer Center, taking the reins from its founding director, Dr. Sydney Salmon, who would die that year of complications related to pancreatic cancer. It was at the cancer center that Dr. Von Hoff and a team of clinical researchers noticed the presence of a protein called “sparc” in pancreatic cancer tumors. They wondered, if Abraxane binds itself to sparc, could we use it in combination with gemcitabine to help advanced-stage pancreatic cancer patients live longer? Finding out the answer would not be easy, in part because only a small number of patients who participate in clinical trials. One reason, Dr. Von Hoff said, is that it is not as common as, say, breast cancer, so there aren’t as many people who are afflicted by it and not as many investigators working against it. Enter the Seena Magowitz Foundation, which helped support the first clinical trial on the use of Abraxane and gemcitabine on a small number of stage-4 pancreatic cancer patients. The trial happened in five places throughout the United States, including the Translational Genomics Research Institute, or TGen, where Dr. Von Hoff is physician-in-chief, and HonorHealth, known as Scottsdale Healthcare back then. The results of the trial were so positive that the FDA gave the go-ahead for a larger clinical trial, which led to the approval of the Abraxane-gemcitabine mix for standard care. “Roger played a critical role in this development, but I don’t think that he realizes how much of an impact he has really made,” Dr. Von Hoff said.

Magowitz isn’t one to brag about anything. To him, the most important thing that the partnership with Dr. Von Hoff, TGen and HonorHealth have allowed is also a very simple thing: “We give people hope.” He recalled asking Dr. Von Hoff years ago to talk about his work on pancreatic cancer research, back when there was a lot less success in the trials and, consequently, a lot fewer reasons to be hopeful. “What am I going to speak about?” Dr. Von Hoff asked him. “Everything I’ve touched has failed.” These days, Magowitz and many of Dr. Von Hoff’s patients have a nickname for him: Dr. Von Hope.

INSPIRATION FERNANDA SANTOS teaches narrative writing at the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass

Communication at ASU, which she joined in the fall 2017, after a long reporting career that included 12 years as a staff writer for The New York Times. Her husband, Mike Saucier, died of pancreatic cancer on Nov. 1, 2017, and she has started The Sauce Foundation in his honor, raising money for scholarships for journalism first-generation college students and research into pancreatic cancer at TGen. Though Mike didn’t live long enough to benefit from any of TGen’s clinical trials, she is a firm believer in TGen’s mission.

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Pancreatic Cancer

WARRIORS HOWARD YOUNG ELIZABETH O’CONNOR STANLEY VITIKAS STEVE MIELKE JOE LEVINE STEVE BURDGE KAY KAYS SAUNDRA DEMEY-FORREST CAMILLE MOSES BILL EBLIN MILDRED “MICKEY” SOMERMAN CRAIG HELLMERS TOM BENNETT JANET BOR SEENA MAGOWITZ FOUNDATION

Pancreatic Cancer Warriors

HOWARD YOUNG DEFYING THE ODDS

A Patient, Fundraiser & An Inspiration of Hope J ULIA BRABANT

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CONTRI BUTI NG WRITER

Pancreatic Cancer Warriors

BASED ON STATISTICS ALONE, HOWARD YOUNG PROBABLY SHOULDN’T BE HERE, BUT HE’S NEVER BEEN THE TYPE TO LET NUMBERS OR DATA DETERMINE HIS FATE. Now, nearly 17 years after receiving his initial pancreatic cancer diagnosis, the Atlanta-based beer distributor has helped countless others “ignore the numbers” while replacing the sobering statistics so often heard by pancreatic cancer patients with some life-changing figures of his own. He didn’t set out to be a trailblazer for the pancreatic cancer community – in fact, back before that fateful day in November, 2002, the biggest hurdle the then-42-year-old saw in his path was hunting down a Christmas present that would please his wife, Becky. After suffering through a month’s worth of stomach pains, though, he trusted his gut, so to speak, and soon after, he heard the words that would ultimately set the path for the next nearly two decades: he not only had cancer, but he had one of the harshest, most unforgiving forms of it out there: pancreatic cancer. Now, typically, hearing news like this takes some time to digest, but time is not something many have much of in the weeks and months following a cancer diagnosis. So, because Young was one of the “lucky ones,” or the 20 percent or so who receive the pancreatic cancer diagnosis early enough to have surgical intervention as an option, he knew what his future held, and he knew there would be hard days ahead. What he didn’t realize at the time, though, was just how much he’d learn along the way about love, perseverance and the strength of the human spirit.

See, that surgery was not without complications, and the subsequent struggles were some of the worst he’d ever faced. He dropped 35 pounds from his long, lean 6’6” frame, and he spent as many as eight hours a day receiving intravenous drugs so powerful he could feel them burning through his veins. He underwent months and months of chemotherapy and 29 radiation treatments, and when his doctor concluded he’d done all that he could do, Howard simply refused to accept his fate. He was a father of three daughters, after all, and he’d yet to see them graduate high school, marry or have children. He didn’t have any intention of missing out on these milestones. So, he decided to seek a second opinion from Dr. Daniel Von Hoff of the Translational Genomics Research Institute, setting the wheels in motion for a relationship that would help change the face of the modern pancreatic cancer community. One of the globe’s most prolific pancreatic cancer researchers, Dr. Von Hoff’s studies and clinical trials have led to some of the most significant medical advances ever made against the devastating disease. And while his scientific contributions and breakthroughs have saved and extended countless lives, it was his approach to working with pancreatic cancer patients that set him even further apart from the pack. “Here’s someone so brilliant that he’s working handin-hand with geneticists, but he’s also able to break

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Pancreatic Cancer Warriors

“ So often, this disease is viewed as a death sentence, but what Dr. Von Hoff gives patients is confidence that’s grounded in real-life science,” Young said. “I wholeheartedly believe he is going to cure pancreatic cancer, and that he’ll quite possibly receive the Nobel Prize in the process.”

down incredibly complex medical terminology into terms any patient can understand,” Young said of Dr. Von Hoff’s bedside manner. “Talking with him opened up a whole new world of hope for me, and not false hope, either – real, true hope, translated in plain language.” Now, almost 17 years later, and with the help of Dr. Von Hoff, he’s walked all three daughters down the aisle, gained three new granddaughters and celebrated their birthdays, first steps and similar milestones. He also continues to draw upon the knowledge and hope he gained working with Dr. Von Hoff to encourage countless other pancreatic cancer patients to join clinical trials and otherwise work toward a cure. He also hit the pavement quite literally for the cause, raising $100,000 for the TGen Foundation by participating in Georgia’s 10K Peachtree Road Race just a year after he could barely climb stairs. He also co-launched Howard Young’s Atlanta Golf Classic with John Morley and the Seena Magowitz Foundation

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to fund pancreatic cancer research, which is now in its tenth year and has raised, to date, more than $1 million. A board member for TGen, the chair of its National Pancreatic Cancer Committee, a patient advocate for Stand Up to Cancer and an active member of many local pancreatic cancer efforts, he’s a tireless champion for the cause. And while finding a cure is his primary focus, he also looks to help those grappling with their own diagnoses learn to live life to the fullest and make the most of the time available to them. “People share some amazing things with you when they’re telling you goodbye,” he notes, adding that everyone from his business colleagues to his barber made efforts to connect with him after learning of his diagnosis. “It’s a shame people don’t always tell you, ‘I love you,’ ‘I think the world of you,’ in the absence of these circumstances,” Howard said. “If it weren’t for the chemotherapy and radiation, I’d recommend everyone go through it, because it tells you so much about what you mean to the people around you.” Nowadays, an estimated 44,000 Americans succumb to pancreatic cancer every year, and while the number of deaths linked to other common forms of cancer has remained relatively consistent, the number of pancreatic cancer deaths in the United States continues to rise. More than 60 percent of those diagnosed with the disease die within one year of their diagnoses, while fewer than 10 percent of those afflicted live five years past their diagnosis dates. While some members of the pancreatic cancer community commonly cite these statistics, they’re something Young chooses to ignore. “Every individual is a statistic of one, and every individual has a fighting chance,” he recalls his doctor telling him early on. It’s a sentiment he’s held dear not only though his own battle, but in his efforts to help others fight theirs.

Pancreatic Cancer Warriors So, rather than dwell on the numbers, he’s decided to work toward some new ones of his own. To date, he has helped raise well over $3 million for pancreatic cancer research, and he’s also touched countless lives not only through fundraising, but through refusing to let patients facing similar hardships give up or lose hope when the going gets tough. He’s also cemented himself a symbol of hope for others struggling to come to terms with their own diagnoses, offering them the same strength and support other showed him, which he credits, alongside Dr. Von Hoff’s clinical trials, with helping save his own life. Rather than see a cure as something that might happen sometime in the distant future, Young explained, Dr. Von Hoff focuses on finding one today. And he’s not relying on the information in dusty books or referencing studies performed long ago in doing so, either – he’s making medical advancements literally every day in the fight against pancreatic cancer, utilizing a comprehensive approach in doing so that attacks the disease from all angles. “So often, this disease is viewed as a death sentence, but what Dr. Von Hoff gives patients is confidence that’s grounded in real-life science,” Young said. “I wholeheartedly believe he is going to cure pancreatic cancer, and that he’ll quite possibly receive the Nobel Prize in the process.”

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Pancreatic Cancer Warriors

ELIZABETH Oâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;CONNOR A UNIQUE STORY

To Her, Every Moment Matters

J ULIA BRABANT

SEENA MAGOWITZ FOUNDATION

CONTRI BUTI NG WRITER

Pancreatic Cancer Warriors

A 9-YEAR SURVIVOR. AN INSPIRING STORY OF BEATING THE ODDS.

Young, vibrant and effervescent, Elizabeth O’Connor may not seem like the “typical” pancreatic cancer patient, but the approach she’s taken to fighting the disease has proven to be anything but typical, too. Unlike many people who learn of their devastating diagnoses later in life, O’Connor was just 31 years of age and a married mother of two when she initially learned of her condition. Unlike her first pregnancy with daughter Abigail, which was as seamless and comfortable as a pregnancy can be, O’Connor’s second pregnancy brought with it substantial discomfort and complications, and her son, Andrew, ultimately ended up entering the world six weeks early. Prior to giving birth for the second time, O’Connor’s doctors had identified large cysts on her ovaries that they considered cause for concern, and following treatment for a blood clot and two diagnostic procedures, she received news that no young mother in her 30s expects to hear: she had Stage 4 pancreatic cancer, and it would likely claim her life in a matter of months. “I felt doomed,” she said. “I’d sit there and picture my children and my husband, and them moving on…and that hurt.” Her husband, too, expressed the devastation he felt upon hearing of his wife’s diagnosis. “I was in disbelief,” said O’Connor’s husband, Patrick. “I mean, 31 years old!? It’s impossible, you know?” Statistically speaking, the average age at which a patient receives a pancreatic cancer diagnosis is 70, so O’Connor fell into a small category of patients who experienced an early-onset form of the disease. Statistics also show that only one out of every six people diagnosed with Stage 4 pancreatic cancer survives a full year. O’Connor’s doctors, fearing that there was little they could do to prolong her life, told her they could begin chemotherapy to keep her comfortable in the months to come, but that there was not much they could do to help her beyond that.

Staying comfortable for the few months she may have remaining simply wasn’t going to suffice for O’Connor or her family, though, and their first sign of real, tangible hope came from a visit with Atlanta, Georgia-based Oncologist Daniel Dubovsky. “No one holds a crystal ball for your life,” she recalls the doctor telling her before recommending she travel to Scottsdale, Arizona, to meet Dr. Daniel Von Hoff, one of the world’s leading pancreatic cancer researchers and the brains behind several groundbreaking pancreatic cancer clinical trials. Upon doing so, the doctor adjusted her chemotherapy regimen to maximize its effectiveness, and he also directed her toward Milwaukee, Wisconsin-based Surgeon Douglas Evans, M.D., who would go on to remove about 75 percent of her pancreas. Following about 30 months of intensive chemotherapy, surgery and surgical recovery, O’Connor’s doctors declared her condition “stable” in 2013. She and her family’s joy was short-lived, however, and the year to come brought painful spasms that ultimately revealed her worst fears: Her cancer had not only returned, but metastasized, and she’d need to undergo lung and brain surgery to remove what remained. Over the course of the next few months, she had lung surgery, brain surgery and brain radiation, and by February 2015, she began taking an experimental drug called Lynparza that had proven effective in the treatment of ovarian cancer. The results appeared promising, but in May of 2018, O’Connor suffered a seizure, and a subsequent biopsy revealed pancreatic cancer had moved into her brain. She began taking a combination of oral chemotherapy drugs, but she soon found out that her pharmacy had been giving her the wrong dosage of them. While some of her physicians thought another biopsy was in order, Dr. Von Hoff instead chose to treat her using BGB-290, a PARP inhibitor not yet available on the American market. Subsequent MRI scans revealed that her condition had stabilized, and she credits her team of

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Pancreatic Cancer Warriors

doctors with her improved condition as well as her friends and family, who refused to let her quit. “It’s amazing to me – I used to be fearful and anxious anytime I had to travel to Arizona to get scans,” O’Connor said, noting that, rather than rattle off statistics and sobering prognoses, Dr. Von Hoff always had something new up his sleeve. “Now, I feel excited, because I know he’s always working to come up with a new way to fight this disease.” O’Connor and her expansive network of friends, family members and supporters are also doing their part in the fight against pancreatic cancer. Her parents, Randy and Judy Dobbs, have become staunch advocates for the cause, devoting considerable time and manpower to the Seena Magowitz Foundation and other organizations working toward finding a cure. O’Connor and her husband Patrick also lend support to a wide range of pancreatic cancer charities and causes, including Purple Pansies, an organization out of their native Georgia that works to encourage early detection of the disease and boost survival rates for those affected. O’Connor also has some words of wisdom for other young parents and patients dealing with pancreatic cancer diagnoses. “Find a doctor who won’t give you a death sentence,” she said, noting that she had never seen a doctor as dedicated to finding a cure as Dr. Von Hoff. “The biggest thing I worried about was visiting the oncologist and finding out that I had only so much time left to live. You cannot underestimate the value of finding a doctor who fills you with hope.” O’Connor also stressed the importance of having a team of doctors that would collaborate, rather than compete, with one another, and acknowledged the importance of taking life one day at a time and focusing her energy on today, rather than tomorrow. “You look at life a lot differently after a diagnosis,” she said. “You cherish everything so much more.” O’Connor also acknowledged the difficulty that often comes with diagnosing pancreatic cancer, because the condition frequently goes undetected until it has progressed enough to produce noticeable symptoms. “If I hadn’t been pregnant with Andrew, they may not have found my cancer until it was too late,” she said. “I tell him all the time he’s my angel.”

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“If I hadn’t been pregnant with Andrew, they may not have found my cancer until it was too late,” she said. “I tell him all the time he’s my angel.”

HonorHealth Research Institute is honored to be a part of the Seena Magowitz Golf Classic this year! We thank the Seena Magowitz Foundation for its continued support of research and clinical trials offering cutting-edge options for the treatment of pancreatic cancer.

Patients have access to the newest treatments today Pancreatic Cancer Research & Clinical Trials at HonorHealth At HonorHealth, the pancreatic tumor board meets weekly to discuss patient cases to gain insight and expertise from all specialties. The multi-disciplinary tumor board involves oncologists, oncology nurse practitioners, surgeons, gastroenterologists, radiologists, radiation oncologists, nurse navigators, genetic counselors and research nurses. Innovation and collaboration are hallmarks of the Research Institute. It’s an institute without walls, thanks to its many partnerships with researchers locally and around the world. The pancreatic team works closely with community health care physicians to ensure all physicians are a part of the multidisciplinary team to ensure the highest quality of the care for the patient. HonorHealth Research Institute offers an expanding list of clinical trials and investigator-initiated studies. Research is a team effort that encompasses not only doctors, nurses and labs, but also patients and families. The best science, combined with the best care, means that patients receive state-of-the-art care across the HonorHealth system.

HonorHealth Research Institute has early detection programs for the prevention of breast, ovarian, pancreas and colorectal cancers.

Daniel D. Von Hoff, MD, FACP, FASCO, FAACR

Virginia G. Piper Distinguished Chair for Innovative Cancer Research and Chief Scientiﬁc Ofﬁcer, HonorHealth Research Institute Physician-in-Chief, Distinguished Professor & Senior Consultant - Clinical Investigations Translational Genomics Research Institute (TGEN), U.S. Oncology & City of Hope

Congratulations to Daniel D. Von Hoff, MD, for being honored by the Seena Magowitz Foundation in recognition for the extraordinary clinical research and inﬂuential contributions in establishing effective clinical trial designs and therapeutic interventions for the treatment of cancer all around the world and for our patients at HonorHealth Research Institute.

For more information please contact 480-323-1339 or HonorHealth.com/research

Pancreatic Cancer Warriors

STANLEY VITIKAS WARRIOR & FUNDRAISER

Passionate Fighter Against Pancreatic Cancer

DE BRA G E LBART

SEENA MAGOWITZ FOUNDATION

CONTRI BUTI NG WRITER

Pancreatic Cancer Warriors

MAKING A DIFFERENCE, TWELVE YEARS LATER

Stan Vitikas of Chandler, Arizona has always had an analytical mind, and that may have contributed to his being an 11-year survivor of pancreatic cancer. He’s been an engineer and a supply chain manager and now a professor at Arizona State University. He reads everything he can about a subject he’s interested in. He advocates continually for a cause he passionately believes in.

THE DEFINING MOMENTS In March 2008, Vitikas was told he had a small mass in his pancreas. He had a biopsy that indicated the mass was “suspicious” for adenocarcinoma. He was scheduled for the Whipple procedure in May of that year. “It’s hard to submit to a Whipple when they’re not certain you have cancer, but you also know the risk of waiting,” he said. By that time, he had spent “literally thousands of hours reading about pancreatic cancer” and was comfortable that he was taking the correct next step.

Four years later, Vitikas began experiencing complications related to residual scarring, resulting in several bouts of acute pancreatitis. He underwent a second Whipple procedure in January 2013. “That was really hard to face, but I was mostly pain-free for another five years.” In 2018 several bouts of pancreatitis resurfaced, and by February 2019 he was hospitalized again with severe pancreatitis due to another blockage and surgery wasn’t an alternative. Mayo endoscopist Norio Fukami, M.D. dilated the stricture and inserted multiple stents via a complex procedure through the stomach. “It’s been a journey,” Vitikas said, “but once again I was fortunate to have access to the skills of a world-class doctor.”

A BRIGHT FUTURE

His surgeon removed a two-centimeter tumor that was identified as a Stage 1, Grade 3 adenocarcinoma. “The fight was on,” Vitikas said. Doctors aren’t sure why Vitikas was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer but it may have arisen from chronic pancreatitis.

Vitikas is a long-time advocate for fighting pancreatic cancer. He previously volunteered with the Pancreatic Cancer Action Network, lobbying for congressional funding and sharing his story. He also is a patient liaison volunteer, offering emotional support to newly diagnosed pancreatic cancer patients. “I want to share my success story because hope is the most important thing when you’re facing this diagnosis.”

After he had surgery, he underwent six months of chemotherapy and 30 days of radiation therapy. Vitikas attributes his survival to his surgeon at the Mayo Clinic, Adyr Moss, M.D. “He’s a brilliant doctor—beyond capable and physically skilled,” Vitikas said. “He told me he was confident he had removed every bit of the cancer. He told me, ‘You’re gonna live to be 80 and die from something else.’ That gave me the hope I needed.”

Vitikas became an advocate and fundraiser for the Seena Magowitz Foundation after he was moved by Roger Magowitz’s call to action: “If not me, then who?” Vitikas said he’s “been lucky enough to survive, so if not me, then who could I ask to step up and raise money for this cause?” Through the 2018 Seena Magowitz Foundation’s Annual Golf Classic, Vitikas has now raised more than $100,000 for the Foundation by asking others to donate.

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Pancreatic Cancer Warriors

“What really impresses me is that Roger personally calls every donor to thank them for their generosity; people really appreciate that and as a result they continue to donate annually, for which I am eternally grateful to all.” Vitikas credits what he calls the “four Fs” for navigating the post-cancer journey: “faith, friends, family and fitness.” He is grateful for his faith and the support of family and good friends during a difficult time in his life. “I’m very lucky,” he said.

CURES FOLLOW MONEY Here’s what Vitikas says he’s learned in 10 years of advocacy:

Progress and cures follow money: • Polio eradicated through research funded by the March of Dimes campaign. • Breast cancer: 91 percent 5-year survival rate today driven by billions of dollars in research funding. • HIV: now mostly a chronic, survivable disease due to massive U.S. government funding; • Childhood Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia: survival rate grew from 4 percent to 90 percent today resulting from the efforts of Danny Thomas and the St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. “Your donation does matter,” Vitikas said. “My hope is that countless others will continue to donate or help in any way possible. With your help, we can win this fight.” To reach Vitikas to donate, contact him by email at 2spaniels@cox.net.

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“ My hope is that countless others will continue to donate or help in any way possible. With your help, we can win this fight.”

Pancreatic Cancer Warriors

Vitikas’ generous donors include these people who have donated $500 or more to the Seena Magowitz Foundation through his ongoing efforts: • Todd Altman

• Rick Grybos

• Roberto & Mary Perez

• Bill Birtcil

• Darryl Janisse

• Angelo & Mary Perri

• Rick & Joanne wBoggs

• Bill & Kim Kroll

• Parrish & Stacey Pynn

• Paul & Tanya Brinsky

• James & Helen Kukura

• Eric Rabbanian

• Curt Bruns

• Eric Leta

• Laurie Reinertsen

• Michael & Laurie Buczek

• Jay & Kristin Luse

• Robin & Brenda Renowden

• Rick Carruth & Carrie Adank

• Carolyn & Sam Luse

• Ian Roe

• Rob & Michele Cook

• Joe Martin

• Steve & Carrin Rowe

• Mark Dellis

• Dean & Beth Meyer

• Glen & Kathleen Ruhl

• Sean Dowd

• John & Dawn Miranda

• Jim & Helen Sandrolini

• Dave & Paula Dunny

• Tom Newcomer

• Paul Scholz

• Ron Duranti

• Rich Nockels

• Jeff Van Norman

• Stu Graber

• Sherri & Mark Novad

• James White

• Joe Grilli

• Mary Olson

THANKS

FOR HELPING FUND THE FIGHT On behalf of the Seena Magowitz Foundation and Stan Vitikas, Thank you Karen for your generous donation in the memory of your husband Dr. Arvind Varma.

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Pancreatic Cancer Warriors

STEVE MIELKE

A GRATEFUL WARRIOR

Thankful and Blessed With Renewed Hope

J ULIA BRABANT

SEENA MAGOWITZ FOUNDATION

CONTRI BUTI NG WRITER

Pancreatic Cancer Warriors

WHEN STEVE MIELKE DECIDED IT WAS TIME TO GET FIT, HE DID SO WITH THE HOPE THAT HE WOULD SHED A FEW POUNDS AND ADOPT A HEALTHIER LIFESTYLE. WHAT HE DIDN’T REALIZE AT THE TIME, THOUGH WAS THAT HIS DECISION TO TAKE UP CYCLING WAS ONE THAT WOULD ONE DAY SAVE HIS LIFE.

Six years later (and 45 pounds lighter!), the avid cyclist found himself suffering from extreme dehydration following a long-distance group bike ride. When his symptoms became severe enough to warrant an emergency room visit, a subsequent CT scan revealed what doctors referred to an “incidental finding” of a dilated pancreatic duct. Physicians told him it was likely “nothing to lose sleep over,” but they did advise him to follow up with his doctor, at which point, after another scan, he received devastating news: he had pancreatic cancer and that he would need surgery to remove it. The hits didn’t stop there, though – after the procedure began, the surgeon realized that the cancer had spread to his liver, meaning he was no longer a candidate for the surgery. With surgery off the table, Steve began an intensive chemotherapy regimen developed by TGen’s Dr. Daniel Von Hoff, who had spearheaded a number of groundbreaking clinical trials targeting pancreatic cancer patients. Steve’s employer, Simmons Company’s Gary Fazio, was a longtime supporter of the Seena Magowitz Foundation and Dr. Von Hoff, and he set the wheels in motion for Steve to seek treatment from the doctor

in Scottsdale. Steve’s treatment involved adding Paricalcitol (synthetic Vitamin D) to the existing approved set of cancer-fighting drugs over the course of the next 13 months. This regimen developed by Dr. Von Hoff and TGen led to scans that revealed “no evidence of disease.” Shortly before a visit to determine if Steve was now a candidate for pancreatic surgery, a life-threatening cycling accident sidelined his plans and he was unable to receive chemo during the six weeks he spent in the trauma unit. Even after the six weeks without chemo, doctors saw no reemergence of the disease, and Steve was able to undergo the pancreatic surgery, after all. Now, almost five years after the initial diagnosis in October 21, 2014, Steve is back on the bike and the proud grandfather to a 3.5-year-old granddaughter with another one on the way – both of whom he may never have met, had it not been for Dr. Von Hoff. He also has some words of wisdom for others dealing with similar diagnoses. “Don’t underestimate the power of having an advocate,” he says, acknowledging his wife, Jeanine. “And get out to Scottsdale to see Dr. Daniel Von Hoff. The reason I’m here is because of him.”

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Pancreatic Cancer Warriors

JOE LEVINE

PANCREATIC CANCER WARRIOR

Creating A Better World For Other Patients

CARLIN KUHLMANN

SEENA MAGOWITZ FOUNDATION

CONTRI BUTI NG WRITER

Pancreatic Cancer Warriors

JOE LEVINE GETS HIS POSITIVITY AND LOVE OF LIFE FROM HIS MOTHER, FREIDA. WHEN SHE WAS DIAGNOSED WITH STAGE 4 OVARIAN CANCER, HER FOCUS WAS ON LIVING LIFE TO THE FULLEST.

When her cancer progressed and it became time for hospice care, Joe and his siblings were by her side. It was during that time that Levine noticed his urine had turned very dark. Levine’s wife, Tammy urged him to get to the emergency room where blood tests showed his Lipase level was very high. Other factors indicated an extreme case of pancreatitis. He was immediately admitted to the hospital. “For four days I was often on the phone with my mom making up stories why I couldn’t be there with her.” Levine said. An endoscopy revealed a blockage in his bile duct so a stent was inserted to open the blockage. He was discharged but scheduled for follow up testing a few weeks later. Levine was then fortunate to be with his mom during her last days. His follow up testing included an endoscopic retrograde cholangio pancreatography (ERCP) which captures images of the pancreatic and bile ducts. Levine’s gastroenterologist saw the growth and collected a sample to biopsy. Levine woke up from sedation to the grim news he had pancreatic cancer. He was devastated, yet ready to begin the fight. Fortunately, Levine’s cancer was operable. On July 1, 2015, Levine had the complex Whipple Procedure Surgery to remove the head of the pancreas, the first portion of the small intestine, the gallbladder, and the bile duct. Soon he was preparing for a clinical trial that included chemotherapy combined of Gemcitabine and Ab-

raxane under the care of Mayo Clinic oncologist Dr. Mitesh Borad formally a researcher with the Translational Genomics Research Institute (TGen). The trial had already shown some success in patients with advanced pancreatic cancer. Levine later learned the original trial was led by world renowned pancreatic cancer expert Dr. Daniel Von Hoff, Physician-in-Chief of TGen. Upon completing the clinical trial, Levine was declared cancer-free. “I’m convinced the trial killed any cancer floating around my system. Three and a half years later, I’m still clear,” Levine said. Levine is now closely followed by Dr. Erkut Borazanci of the HonorHealth Research Institute, who Levine describes as “a compassionate soul on the cutting edge of pancreatic cancer research.” Today, Levine says his focus is elsewhere. “It’s about creating a better world for those around me. Helping others in the pancreatic support world.” At the 2018 Seena Magowtiz Foundation 16th Annual Golf Classic held in Boston, Levine’s list of friends grew larger. “I got to meet many other patients that are still experiencing the trauma of pancreatic cancer, but are also finding hope through clinical trials administered by Dr. Von Hoff and Dr. Borazanci.” He also credited Roger Magowitz, founder of the Seena Magowitz Foundation in honor of his mother, for his support.

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Pancreatic Cancer Warriors

STEVE BURDGE

DIAGNOSED AT AGE 30

Predisposed By The Lynch Syndrome

J ULIA BRABANT

SEENA MAGOWITZ FOUNDATION

CONTRI BUTI NG WRITER

Pancreatic Cancer Warriors

FOR MANY AMERICANS, THE ONSET OF LABOR DAY WEEKEND MEANS BURGERS, BBQS AND BACK-TOSCHOOL SHOPPING, BUT FOR STEVE BURDGE, THE LATE-AUGUST CELEBRATION OF SUMMER’S LAST HURRAH SERVES AS AN ANNUAL REMINDER OF ONE OF THE BIGGEST STRUGGLES HE’S EVER FACED.

It all began on Labor Day weekend of 2012, when Burdge started experiencing pains severe enough to warrant a visit to the emergency room. Doctors there told him he had a bad bout of the flu before prescribing antibiotics and sending him on his way. By October, though, his symptoms had not only returned, but substantially worsened, and a subsequent visit to the doctor led to a gallstones diagnosis and a recommendation for surgery. Upon waking up from that surgery, Burdge heard news that no 30-year-old father of two expects to hear: He did not, in fact, have gallstones – he had a tumor that turned out to be pancreatic cancer. “I was in the deepest, darkest hole someone could ever be in,” Burdge said, of the weeks and months following his diagnosis, which involved intensive chemotherapy, radiation, and, ultimately, the Whipple surgery, a highly invasive procedure that brought with it considerable complications. Burdge also learned that his own cancer likely resulted from a genetic condition called Lynch syndrome, which would explain why so many family members on his mother’s side also battled various forms of the disease. Upon getting his own children tested, he found out that his daughter, too, had Lynch syndrome, but detecting it early meant that she could receive preventative care to help manage it. Coming to terms with his own pancreatic cancer diagnosis, and then his daughter’s Lynch syndrome

diagnosis, was immensely difficult, but some of the strongest support he received along the way was from his own employer, Mattress Firm, which happened to be one of the nation’s most prolific fundraisers for pancreatic cancer research. Through his employer, Steve learned of the tireless work of Dr. Daniel Von Hoff, and when his disease returned, he found himself meeting with the doctor in Arizona. In discussing Steve’s condition and treatment, Dr. Von Hoff mentioned touching base with “Dr. Lynch,” and it took a few moments for Burdge to realize that his doctor was referencing the very physician who discovered his rare gene mutation in the first place. It was then that he realized the depth of the world of opportunity opened up by Dr. Von Hoff, and how he could now, thanks to the doctor, connect with world’s best and brightest minds in the fight against cancer. “Dr. Von Hoff was willing to put Steve on a higher dose of chemotherapy than other doctors we’d seen,” said Burdge’s wife, Susan. “His willingness to push the envelope may well be why Steve is still here.” Because of the uncertainty surrounding Burdge’s future, he chose to put together graduation and wedding presents for his children ahead of time in the event he’d be unable to be there for these milestones. Now, though, as his son begins his senior year of high school, it seems Burdge just may be able to give him that graduation gift himself.

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Pancreatic Cancer Warriors

KAY KAYS

A LONG TERM 25-YEAR SURVIVOR

An Incredible Story of Surviving Pancreatic Cancer

J ULIA BRABANT

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CONTRI BUTI NG WRITER

Pancreatic Cancer Warriors

IN COMPARISON WITH THE FOUR OTHER FORMS OF CANCER THAT CLAIM THE MOST LIVES, PANCREATIC CANCER IS THE LEAST-FUNDED AND TOUGHEST TO DETECT, BUT THIS WASN’T SOMETHING KAY KAYS PLANNED TO SIT BACK AND ACCEPT.

One of the longest-living pancreatic cancer survivors out there, Kays first began battling the deadly disease back in 1994, after suffering severe back pains. Initially, she was thrilled to find out she wasn’t dealing with gallstones, but her joy was short-lived, and she soon learned, thanks to the help of some diligent interns, that what she had was pancreatic cancer. Likening the diagnosis to “getting hit by a freight train,” she had little time to let the news sink in before finding out she was a candidate for the Whipple procedure, which involved, as she put it, an “extensive replumbing of the digestive system.” Soon after having the head of her pancreas removed, she learned that she not only had pancreatic cancer, but that she had cyst mucinous adenocarcinoma, a rare, slow-growing form of the disease for which there was no form of treatment available. Without chemotherapy or radiation as viable options, Kays’ doctors told her that, should her cancer return, she would likely succumb to the disease within four to six months. Five full years passed before Kays found out that cancer had, in fact, returned to what remained of her pancreas, at which point she had both her pancreas and spleen removed. She felt hope for the first time in

a long time, but that hope was short-lived, and she soon learned that the cancer had metastasized to her lymph nodes. At this point, doctors deemed her inoperable, but after reading an article in a newspaper about pancreatic cancer researcher Dr. Daniel Von Hoff, she made an appointment to meet with him and ultimately ended up signing on as one of his first targeted therapy patients. Three years later, her cancer reemerged in her lung, and she ended up having a portion of it, too, removed. Now, 25 years later, she may not have a pancreas, spleen, gall bladder or a full lung, but she has something arguably just as invaluable: hope. She’s also become an ardent patient advocate, helping patients come to terms with their diagnoses and treatments while touting the work of Dr. Von Hoff. “The man is a bulldog,” she said, noting that he’s known for pulling out chairs for his patients and urging them to call him “Dan.” “He’s not only a fantastic researcher, clinician and mentor... he’s a fantastic patient advocate. He’s more patientoriented than any doctor I’ve ever met.”

“ I ’ve survived over 25 years after first being diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. It is so important that my story is being told, because people need to know that a diagnosis of the worst of cancers does not mean an automatic death sentence. Patients are living longer and longer as medical advancements are occurring at a more rapid pace. Sustaining hope and courage is so important.” — KAY KAYS

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SAUNDRA DEMEY-FORREST A PICTURE OF HOPE AND FAITH

In The Face of No Hope, A Second Chance

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Pancreatic Cancer Warriors

SAUNDRA DEMEY-FORREST OF PEORIA, ARIZONA WAS FACING THE SCARIEST CRISIS ANYONE CAN CONFRONT. SHE HAD BEEN TOLD BY A SURGEON THAT HER STAGE 4 PANCREATIC CANCER COULDN’T BE CURED, THAT SHE SHOULD “GO HOME AND GET YOUR AFFAIRS IN ORDER.”

Then, an oncologist told her that her cancer was so advanced, she would have no quality of life if she were treated with chemotherapy. But DeMey-Forrest refused to accept what she was hearing. She went home and searched online for “Stage 4 pancreatic cancer research trials.” That simple act of not giving up, of thinking beyond conventional wisdom, has helped her stay alive far longer than the three months or so the doctors had predicted in January 2015 when she was diagnosed. Today, she’s feeling good, traveling, enjoying time with her husband Jeff, her grown children and five grandchildren, and showing almost no sign the cancer is progressing. Now her motto for her life, she says, is “No cure, no hope, no problem.” In February 2015, she was enrolled in a clinical trial sponsored by the Virginia G. Piper Cancer Center at HonorHealth and the Translational Genomics Research Institute (TGen) for 25 Stage 4 pancreatic cancer patients who had no previous treatment.

A combination of three chemotherapy drugs that hasn’t been combined before to treat pancreatic cancer was administered intravenously every three weeks for about 10 months. After just three treatments, DeMey-Forrest’s scan showed dramatic improvement. Her tumors had shrunk and her tumor marker—one way doctors and researchers assess the extent of a particular cancer—had gone way down. Last year DeMey-Forrest says she’s “had a few setbacks,” but she’s now on an oral chemotherapy, Lynparza, hoping to stop a creeping tumor marker in its tracks. So far, it appears to be working.

HER MISSION IS TO HELP OTHERS In the meantime, DeMey-Forrest wants to let the world know that “stage 4 pancreatic cancer is not a death sentence. “I pray every night that I can help someone else,” she said. “I think God has a plan for me. At the very least, I can pay it forward.”

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Pancreatic Cancer Warriors

CAMILLE MOSES HIGH-ENERGY WARRIOR

Enthusiastic Inspiration to Other Patients

TONY SUBIA

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Pancreatic Cancer Warriors

“I HAD ALWAYS BEEN ACTIVE, REASONABLY HEALTHY, AND VISITED MY FAMILY PHYSICIAN REGULARLY FOR CHECK-UPS” CAMILLE MOSES SAID. “ BUT IN EARLY 2012 I BEGAN FEELING DEPRESSED, FATIGUED, AND A GENERAL FEELING OF MALAISE. SINCE THE SYMPTOMS WERE RELATIVELY MINOR, I BRUSHED THEM OFF.”

But the symptoms became more intense and soon accompanied by some intense pain beneath her breast area. She became more concerned and paid a couple of visits to urgent care trying to source the symptoms. Since she received no definitive answers, she visited a local emergency room where they ordered a CT scan. Moses waited anxiously for the scan results. Finally the doctor came into the room with a concerned look on his face and told Moses the scan showed spots on her pancreas, liver, and lungs. “In that moment”, she said “I couldn’t believe what he said. I immediately had past visions of my mother dying from pancreatic cancer when I was 24.”

overwhelmed with fear when they gave me the diagnosis. I had pancreatic cancer. Crying in disbelief, I was almost certain I had little time to live.” She was sent to have a chemo port inserted and then waited for a visit from the pancreatic cancer oncologist on staff to discuss the prognosis and a suggested plan of action. When the oncologist visited with Moses, he told her that the cancer was detected too late. Although she could elect to take chemotherapy, it likely would not work and she would probably not live past a few months.

The doctor suggested she be admitted to a hospital for further testing and biopsies to confirm a final diagnosis. Later that day she was admitted to a local hospital that had a comprehensive cancer center where she spent the next seven days being monitored and subjected to a myriad of tests.

She was not going to accept that prognosis and immediately started the search for a second opinion. She was fortunate to get an appointment at the UM/Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center at the University of Miami hospital. Upon meeting with the new oncologist and his team and after reading all of Moses’ tests, he gave his final diagnosis — Stage 4 Metastasized Pancreatic Cancer.

“After what seemed like an eternity, an entire team of doctors and nurses came to my room” Moses said. “I immediately knew that meant bad news. I was

“Somehow”, Moses said, “although devastated, I had a good feeling about this team. They told the severity of my situation would make treatment very difficult,

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but they were going to give me the best chance possible. “This gave me renewed optimism. Although my oncologist was brutally honest about the prognosis, he gave me visions of realistic hope. That with an intense regimen of chemotherapy, he felt confident that it could prolong my life. He gave me a glimmer of light on an otherwise very dark period.” After a grueling 17 months of intense treatment, her last treatment was in July of 2013. Today, Moses has no sign of cancer and has survived for more than 7 years. She is so grateful to be alive and so committed to helping other patients cope with the same ordeal. She intends to dedicate her life’s mission to spreading awareness about this brutal disease and fundraising to help medical research discover life-extending treatments and eventually prevention and a cure. Moses has since appeared on local and national television news broadcasts including “Good Morning America” and has been profiled in many published articles. She has made several videos that gives other patients encouragement and the will to fight. She has also lobbied Congress to increase funding for pancreatic cancer research. “I am so thankful that I can help other patients.” Moses said.

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“ I am so thankful that I can help other patients.” Moses said.

Thank you for making a difference!

Customatic is Proud to Honor Dr. Daniel Von Hoff, M.D. Dr. Daniel Von Hoff is one of the world’s foremost oncologists, medical researchers, and cancer scientists, renowned for his dedication and life mission to find a cure for Pancreatic Cancer.

“Dan, you’re the BEST”

CUSTOMATIC® TECHNOLOGIES

Adjusting How The World Sleeps

PROUD SUPPORTER FOR OVER 10 YEARS

Pancreatic Cancer Warriors

BILL EBLIN

DEFIES ORIGINAL PROGNOSIS

Pancreatic Cancer-Free for Over 20 Years

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Pancreatic Cancer Warriors

BILL EBLIN OF PEORIA, ARIZONA IS ADAMANT ABOUT ADVISING PEOPLE NOT TO IGNORE ANY STRANGE MEDICAL SYMPTOMS FOR MORE THAN A COUPLE OF WEEKS, AND TO SEEK A SECOND OPINION IF SYMPTOMS PERSIST AFTER A DIAGNOSIS. He lived with abnormal symptoms for more than two years, and by the end of that period, he had been diagnosed with cancerous tumors in his duodenum (the first section of the small intestine) and his pancreas. “I had had stomach pain and frequent vomiting for months when I finally went to the doctor,” said the 53-year-old IT specialist originally from Groveport, a suburb of Columbus, Ohio. “The doctor wrongly diagnosed me with irritable bowel syndrome. I continued to suffer with pain and vomiting for another year and a half, until I finally was seen at the University of Miami Hospital in June of 1999.” At that point, he had recently moved to Fort Lauderdale, less than an hour from Miami, for a new job when he underwent surgery to address what was causing his symptoms. Cancerous tumors on his duodenum and the head of his pancreas were successfully removed and he has been cancer-free ever since.

DISCOVERY OF CANCER For years, Eblin has had multiple endocrine neoplasia Type 2, an inherited condition that predisposes him to medullary thyroid cancer; digestive problems caused by disordered nerves in the gastrointestinal tract; and muscle, joint, and spinal problems. Before his cancer diagnosis, doctors had monitored him regularly for any problems arising from the multiple endocrine neoplasia. Before surgery that day in 1999, Eblin’s doctor had told him he had duodenal tumors, but the doctor wasn’t sure whether they were benign or cancerous and said Eblin needed exploratory surgery to determine that. His doctor, Eblin said, “drew a horseshoe on a manila envelope and said, ‘this is your stomach.’ He drew a line through the middle and said, ‘I’m gonna take all of this out.’ That was fine with me,” Eblin said. “I just wanted the pain to stop.” He underwent what’s called a “Whipple Procedure,”

the most commonly performed surgery to remove tumors in the pancreas. The surgeon found that the duodenal tumors and the pancreatic tumor just discovered in the surgery were cancerous. When Eblin came out of surgery, the doctor said he was a lucky man because without attention to the tumor on his pancreas especially, Eblin might have died in the next three months. Instead, Eblin spent the next three months in the hospital, recovering. He has more advice: live your life to the fullest extent possible, whether or not you have cancer. Eblin was so shaken by events in his life related to cancer that he says for 10 years, until 2003 or so, he felt almost paralyzed socially. He had lost his parents — his mother to brain cancer in 1993 and his father to pancreatic cancer in 1995 — and faced his own cancer scare just four years later. Now he wishes he hadn’t wasted time worrying or withdrawing from social activities. “After my mother died, I figured someday I would get cancer,” he said. “I sat around for 10 years not wanting to marry again and not wanting to pass on any genes prone to cancer. But I realize now that’s no way to live. Get out and live, regardless of what you’re worried about.”

GIVING TO CHARITY A PRIORITY He’s devoted to supporting cancer charities. He donates part of every paycheck to the Seena Magowitz Foundation. “I’m glad Roger is doing something to recognize his mother’s illness and passing, making such a big statement. I’m proud to know him.” Eblin also contributes regularly to charities that support research into brain and breast cancer. And he’s enjoying life in the wide-open spaces of a Phoenix suburb. “You can’t take for granted that you got a second chance,” he said. “I’m going to make the most of my life.”

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MILDRED “MICKEY” SOMERMAN AN ACTIVIST FOR RESEARCH

An Inspiring 20 -Year Survivor

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Pancreatic Cancer Warriors

THE SCOTTSDALE, ARIZONA RESIDENT STAYS VIBRANTLY POSITIVE DESPITE MANY YEARS OF MULTIPLE HEALTH CHALLENGES. The next time you’re tempted to feel sorry for yourself, think of Mildred “Mickey” Somerman. She has lived with a diagnosis of cancer four times previously, and currently, she’s coping with two other cancers. She also has heart disease and a lung disorder. Yet her attitude is upbeat and her outlook is optimistic. “You have to just keep going,” said the 91-year-old mother, grandmother and great grandmother while sitting in her home office in Scottsdale surrounded by family mementos and photos. “There really isn’t any other choice.” She embraces this mindset in spite of finding out very recently that her heart condition has worsened considerably but surgery or another treatment isn’t an option for her.

NEAR-CONSTANT HEALTH CHALLENGES Her older adult life has been a calendar filled with health challenges and second chances: • Fallopian tube cancer in 1988, cured with chemotherapy so effective that’s it’s still used for the same cancer today • Early stage pancreatic cancer in 1999, eradicated by the most common surgery used to treat that kind of cancer — the Whipple • Breast cancer in 2009, managed with a lumpectomy • Six spots on her liver diagnosed in 2012, treated with a monthly shot of an anti-hormone drug • A second breast cancer diagnosis in 2013 that resulted in a double mastectomy • A diagnosis of aortic stenosis (a narrowing of the aorta) in 2017 • And a diagnosis of lung cancer and COPD last year, treated with radiation therapy and supplemental oxygen, respectively. In the aftermath of all of her diagnoses, she said, the only pain she suffers from these days is in her knee, which has developed several problems. You might be thinking that with all of these health issues, Somerman could be almost an invalid. In fact, she walks without assistance much of the time and cares for herself in her apartment. The only hint that

she has health concerns is the nasal cannula tethered to an oxygen cannister that helps her breathe. She is so independent that she’s determined to stay in her own apartment in an all-ages community. “I never, ever want to live in one of those retirement communities,” she said. “The people there are just so old and sick. I don’t want to live in a place like that.” She recently returned from a trip to Las Vegas with her granddaughter and her granddaughter’s husband. Through everything she’s experienced, including the passing of her husband Bernie in 2007, she still believes life is good. “Attitude is everything in life,” said Somerman, a retired greeting card store owner and floral designer. ”It’s how you look at things. Even though I’ve been diagnosed with cancer six times. I’m very, very lucky. I count my lucky stars.”

AN ACTIVIST FOR PANCREATIC CANCER RESEARCH After her pancreatic cancer diagnosis, Somerman was so grateful for her recovery that she became active in fighting for funding for pancreatic cancer research, through a pancreatic cancer advocacy organization. She helped form the committee that stages the “TGen Annual Step-N-Out 5K Fundraiser for pancreatic cancer research. Somerman continues to serve on that committee. That committee was originally formed at a Seena Magowitz Foundation Golf Classic in Phoenix many years ago. “That’s where I met Roger (Magowitz, founder of the Seena Magowitz Foundation),” she said. “We’ve kept in touch ever since.” She has attended the Magowitz Foundation Annual Golf Classic every year that it’s been held in the Phoenix area, she said. She belongs to two other pancreatic cancer networking groups and supports pancreatic cancer research as much as she can. “I want to be here as long as possible,” she said. “I love my four great grandchildren (who range in age from 5 to 17) so much. I want to be with them for as long I can.” She plans on taking her own advice, which she also believes is especially important for pancreatic cancer survivors to hear: “Keep going; never give up.”

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Pancreatic Cancer Warriors

CRAIG HELLMERS LIVING HIS BEST LIFE

An Amazing Inspirational Story

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SEENA MAGOWITZ FOUNDATION

CONTRI BUTI NG WRITER

Pancreatic Cancer Warriors

CRAIG HELLMERS’ LIFE CHANGED ITS TRAJECTORY ON THE NIGHT BEFORE FATHER’S DAY IN 2018.

A healthy, energetic pilot based in Florida for a commercial airline, Hellmers suddenly started experiencing stomach pain and noticed a yellowish cast to his eyes. The next day, on Father’s Day, an urgent care center in Fort Lauderdale recommended he go to a hospital emergency department. He was diagnosed with a mass in his small intestine, and later, his doctors told him he had stage 1 cancer of the pancreas. In mid-July of 2018, he underwent a Whipple procedure. He tolerated the surgery well but began to experience complications after being discharged from the Florida hospital just three and a half days later. The next day, he was admitted to the ICU. He lapsed into a coma and didn’t wake up until mid-August.

A NEW LIFE BEGINS Hellmers and the love of his life, Tricia, had been together for six years before that, but hadn’t been in a hurry to marry. But when Hellmers woke up from his coma, “I realized the person taking care of me every day was Tricia,” he said. “I wasn’t healthy and yet she was still by my side. That’s when I knew what true love is and that’s when I knew I wanted to marry her.” On September 11, 2018, with Hellmers still in his hospital bed, the couple exchanged wedding vows.

When Hellmers was discharged from the hospital again, he learned that he had stage 4 pancreatic cancer and he started researching possible treatments. A friend in Phoenix wanted him to connect with HonorHealth Research Institute in Scottsdale where several clinical trials for pancreatic cancer are being administered. Hellmers qualified for the study, called the Trial of Ascorbic Acid (AA) + Nanoparticle Paclitaxel Protein Bound + Cisplatin + Gemcitabine.

SPECTACULARLY ENCOURAGING INITIAL RESULTS, ONGOING GOOD NEWS After being on the chemotherapy-plus-ascorbic-acid (also known as Vitamin C) protocol for nine weeks, a CT scan showed that Hellmers’ tumors had shrunk by as much as 50 percent. Today, after completing nine months of chemotherapy, Hellmers is showing no signs of active cancer. “My scans have been excellent,” Hellmers said. “I’m now on a maintenance plan of oral medication. The five-year average survival rate for this terrible disease is 9 percent, so why can’t I be part of the 9 percent? I’m grateful to HonorHealth Research Institute and Seena Magowitz Foundation for giving patients like me hope in beating this awful disease.” Note: Parts of this profile first appeared on the HonorHealth website.

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TOM BENNETT GRATEFUL WARRIOR

Dangerously Misdiagnosed

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ON NEW YEAR’S EVE OF 2017 AT A COMMUNITY HOSPITAL NEAR HIS HOME IN ARNOLD, MARYLAND, TOM BENNETT WAS TOLD BY THREE PHYSICIANS THAT HIS CT SCAN WAS NORMAL.

After four months of back pain, five weeks of intense gastrointestinal symptoms and a 25-pound weight loss (that none of the doctors he saw were able to diagnose), he sent the scan to his son, an abdominal radiologist in another state. Nothing could have prepared Bennett and his wife Pam for what his son determined to be the problem — pancreatic cancer. Likely stage 4. Knowing that treatment for this disease is tough to endure, Bennett’s son found what he thought was the best clinical trial at HonorHealth Research Institute in Scottsdale. On January 29, 2018 — less than a month later — Tom and Pam arrived in Arizona. Bennett began treatment with what’s called the Grand Slam — intravenous administration of five medications: gemcitabine, Abraxane, cisplatin, paricalcitol (a version of activated Vitamin D). and an immunotherapy drug called nivolumab (Opdivo).

GRATITUDE FOR ENCOURAGING RESULTS Bennett received treatment for nearly six and a half months. His tumor marker value dropped rapidly, but by mid-August the negative toll of the chemotherapy on his body meant it was time to stop. He and Pam returned to Maryland so he could recuperate. In April 2019 the marker began rising again and the tumor looked bigger on imaging scans. This time, rather than more chemo, Bennett received Stereotactic Body Radiation Therapy (SBRT) closer to his home at Johns Hopkins. He completed that treatment in August and on September 18, 2019, he received the good news that his follow-up scan showed no enlargement of the tumor. “Throughout this hard journey, Pam and I have seen God’s direction and care every step of the way,” Bennett said. “We are overwhelmed by how He is apparently using the prayers of our family and friends.

Honor Health has been in the forefront of this journey. Their staff of physicians, nurse practitioners, nurses, infusion and support staff are the very best. I’m glad to be alive and I’m blessed to have more time with my dear family and friends. This whole experience makes one focus on what is really important in life — God, family and the people around you.”

BENNETT’S ADVICE FOR ANYONE EXPERIENCING SYMPTOMS OF PANCREATIC CANCER Bennett, 71, is adamant that anyone with “symptoms like mine that are persistent and unresolved needs to get a second (or third) opinion until you get answers. If you are diagnosed with pancreatic cancer it is vital you get a second opinion on treatment from a medical center with specialists in pancreatic cancer like Honor Health and consider a clinical trial, since conventional treatment is not often effective.”

CONNECTING WITH THE SEENA MAGOWITZ FOUNDATION Tom and Pam were invited by Honor Health to attend their first Seena Magowitz Foundation event August of 2018 in Boston. They appreciated Roger Magowitz’s attention to detail that made this event so successful. “We were especially encouraged by Dr. Daniel Von Hoff’s talk to pancreatic cancer warriors (known as ‘Dan’s diamonds’),” Bennett said. “Dr Von Hoff’s passion and dedication to find new treatments for pancreatic cancer and his knowledge of what’s promising on the horizon gives us hope.” It was remarkable, Bennett added, “to be a part of Roger’s determined efforts to conquer this terrible disease. His heart to help people with pancreatic cancer is so evident in all he does. We feel blessed to have connected with the Seena Magowitz Foundation. Roger and the Foundation have treated us like royalty.”

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JANET BOR FIGHTING BACK

Benefited From “Neoadjuvant” Therapy

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Pancreatic Cancer Warriors

“I CANNOT TALK ABOUT HOW I FEEL WITHOUT TALKING ABOUT THE PEOPLE AT THE HONORHEALTH RESEARCH INSTITUTE. FROM THE MINUTE YOU WALK IN THE DOOR, EVERY STAFF ENCOUNTER IS A MODEL FOR WHAT THE PATIENT EXPERIENCE SHOULD BE ABOUT.” Patients living with cancer — especially those with pancreatic cancer — now have more treatment options than ever before. “The most significant change in treatment has been the personalization of therapy,” said Steven Sckolnik, MD, a radiation oncologist with HonorHealth. “There is no longer a ‘one-size-fits-all’ approach. By using new treatment techniques, we can individualize cancer care and maximize response while minimizing side effects.” That certainly applies to Janet Bor, who says her first indication something was seriously wrong in June 2017 was her skin tone. “I was at my mom’s group home,” the Scottsdale resident said, “and the owner of the home told me I looked yellow. And not just jaundiced, but bright lemon.” The cause was a build-up of bilirubin, a brownish pigment that’s part of bile secreted by the common bile duct in the liver. In July 2017, a surgeon confirmed a diagnosis of Stage 2 cancer confined to her pancreas, known as localized pancreatic cancer or pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC).

CONNECTING WITH HONORHEALTH RESEARCH INSTITUTE Bor lives near the HonorHealth Research Institute (HHRI) in north Scottsdale, Arizona so she asked her doctor to help her connect with experts there. On a Wednesday in July 2017, Janet had an appointment to see Erkut Borazanci, M.D., an oncologist who told her about a new, investigative regimen of drugs that when administered together are known as “neoadjuvant” therapy (meaning treatment before a surgery). Dr. Borazanci wanted to enroll Bor in a clinical trial as soon as possible. As soon as her bilirubin levels had normalized in September 2017, Janet began the regimen of four drugs administered intravenously: Abraxane, gemcitabine, cisplatin and paricalcitol (an analog of activated Vitamin D). She continued receiving that regimen through December 2017.

In a recently published review of the newer treatment approaches for localized pancreatic cancer, Dr. Borazanci and his colleagues, Albert Amini, MD, and Dr. Sckolnik, highlight several studies showing improved survival with neoadjuvant therapy in individuals with localized pancreatic cancer. Historically, most individuals with localized pancreatic cancer are offered immediate surgery of their pancreatic tumor. However, survival on average with the upfront surgery approach is only around two years. “This review focuses on the shifting paradigm in how we look at localized pancreatic cancer,” Dr. Borazanci said. “By incorporating systemic, multi-agent therapy utilizing newer combinations of chemotherapy, we may be able to offer individuals a much better chance to live longer.”

IMPRESSIVE RESPONSE Bor’s response to the chemotherapy regimen, followed by a surgical procedure to remove the tumor and the pancreas, has been remarkable. She said when she first consulted with Dr. Borazanci, her tumor marker — an indicator of how advanced the cancer is — was 100. “My last blood test showed it was 19,” she said. The normal range for the tumor marker for pancreatic cancer, called CA 19-9, in a healthy person is 0-37. “The advantages of neoadjuvant therapy in resectable (responsive to surgery) pancreas cancer are becoming more and more prominent as chemotherapy options continue to improve,” Dr. Amini said. When Bor was asked how she’s feeling now, she replied, “I cannot talk about how I feel without talking about the people at the HonorHealth Research Institute. From the minute you walk in the door, every staff encounter is a model for what the patient experience should be about.” She added that she’s “eternally grateful for every day I wake up. And I have a great quality of life.”

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CONGRATULATIONS DR. DANIEL VON HOFF You Are Truly A Gift From God

HOPE IS THE MOST IMPORTANT CONSIDERATION FOR SURVIVORS AND THEIR CAREGIVERS. Thank You For Your Tireless Efforts Instilling Hope In All of Us, and Allowing Patients and Their Loved-Ones To Plan For The Future.

“I’m a survivor, a lucky survivor The least I can do is help change the course of this dreadful disease Make sure patients are not alone To know there are success stories And that progress is being made” Stanley Vitikas

An 11-year Survivor and Counting

Pancreatic Cancer

AMBASSADORS KARL GLASSMAN PHIL SHERMAN PHIL MCCARTY STEVE STAGNER GARY FAZIO TOM AND JULI LAPORTE JOHN & LYNN MORLEY RANDY DOBBS ELLMAN FAMILY VINEYARDS DERRICK HALL NATALIE SABGA

Pancreatic Cancer Ambassadors

KARL GLASSMAN Devoted To Fighting Pancreatic Cancer DE BRA G E LBART

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Pancreatic Cancer Ambassadors

Karl Glassman is the President and CEO of Leggett & Platt, a 136-year-old Midwest-based manufacturing company that generates approximately $5 billion and has more than 23,000 employee-partners. The company is comprised of 15 business units and has 145 facilities in 18 countries. He sits on the board of the National Association of Manufacturers and has met presidents, governors, senators and leaders of some of the world’s largest and most high-profile organizations. Yet Karl Glassman views the work of the world’s leading pancreatic cancer researcher, Dr. Daniel Von Hoff, the Translational Genomics Research Institute (TGen) inPhoenix and the Seena Magowitz Foundation as unmatched in “influencing humanity and truly changing people’s lives.” Glassman is one of the nation’s foremost supporters of pancreatic cancer research. He has headed Leggett & Platt, a diversified manufacturer of primarily steel-based materials for bedding, furniture and automotive products, since January 1, 2016. He has worked for the Carthage, Missouri based company for 35 years.

BEGINNING OF INVOLVEMENT FIGHTING PANCREATIC CANCER A bedding industry executive urged him to attend a Seena Magowitz Foundation fundraising event in Phoenix in 2009. Glassman was so moved by the stories from pancreatic cancer survivors there and by the progress made in pancreatic cancer research that, although no one in his family has battled it, he became one of the most devoted advocates to the cause of fighting pancreatic cancer. Before he got involved with the Foundation, he had only known one person with the disease — a colleague who died from it just six months after diagnosis. Glassman isn’t unfamiliar with other kinds of cancer, however. His mother passed away from breast cancer at just 54. On occasion, he is asked why he’s dedicated to fighting pancreatic instead of breast cancer. “Breast cancer is prominent as a cause and already receives so much money for research and treatment,” he said. “But pancreatic cancer is still somewhat misunderstood and doesn’t receive anywhere as much public attention.” He said he’s confident that the research related to pancreatic ultimately will apply to other cancers. In 2016, he pointed out, pancreatic cancer passed breast cancer as the third leading cause of cancer

deaths in the U.S., according to the American Cancer Society. “That’s staggering,” Glassman said, “and underscores why we need to fight pancreatic cancer.” Glassman has attended Seena Magowitz Foundation fundraisers every year since 2009, and in 2012 became the honorary chair of the Annual Seena Magowitz Golf Classic. “It was supposed to be a one-time appointment,” Glassman said, “but I ended up serving for two years.” Roger Magowitz, founder of the Seena Magowitz Foundation, had urged Glassman to take a tour of TGen. “I saw and felt the dedication of Dr. Von Hoff and others at TGen to expanding personalized medicine,” he said. Glassman was so impressed that he has served on TGen’s national advisory board for pancreatic cancer for the past five years.

A GENEROUS, TIRELESS ADVOCATE Karl Glassman and his wife Cathi personally, and along with Leggett & Platt, have donated hundreds of thousands of dollars to the Seena Magowitz Foundation. That’s in part, he said, because of his experience at TGen. “I can’t imagine someone spending time there and not getting involved,” said Glassman, who with his wife Cathi has two grown sons — Ian and Nathan — and a grown daughter, Raychel, along with eight grandchildren and a ninth on the way. Through Glassman’s involvement with TGen and the Seena Magowitz Foundation, he has realized how generous the bedding industry is. Several mattress companies, because of Roger Magowitz’s leadership role in the industry as the former owner of a company that became part of Mattress Firm, help sponsor Foundation fundraisers and donate to the Foundation on a regular basis. “There aren’t a lot of industries where competitors come together over a common cause,” Glassman said. Glassman feels that he gets a lot from giving to the cause of fighting pancreatic cancer. “You can change the world one person at a time through this effort,” he said. “We have a responsibility to try to leave the world better than it was before we got here. In my mind, TGen and Dr. Von Hoff are the opportunity to do that and impact future generations with regard to cancer and personalized medicine. There’s no better way to leave a positive, lasting impact on the world than through TGen.”

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PHIL SHERMAN A Commitment to Giving Back DE BRA G E LBART

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Phil Sherman and Roger Magowitz, two legends in the mattress industry, have known each other for 30 years.

So it was a natural extension of their friendship for Roger to agree to serve as executive vice president for the company that Phil and his business partner Phil McCarty established eight years ago. Called Customatic Adjustable Bedz in 2010, the “Phils” changed the company name to Customatic Technologies in 2018, to reflect an expanding product line. Roger “is part of my dream team,” said Phil Sherman, the company’s president. “He’s going to help us continue our rapid growth.” Customatic Technologies currently manufactures approximately 45,000 adjustable beds a month, Sherman said. The company’s headquarters are in Natick, Massachusetts and its showroom is in the World Market Center in downtown Las Vegas. Sherman has known Roger long enough that he even had the privilege of meeting Roger’s mother, Seena, who passed away from pancreatic cancer in 2001. “She was a lovely person,” Phil said, “so of course I immediately wanted to support the Foundation when Roger established it in his mother’s memory.”

A STORIED HISTORY Phil Sherman’s professional background spans 34 years. His career began as a partner in a dry-cleaning chain until the company was sold in 1987. Then, he was named marketing director for Sleepy’s, one of the largest and most successful mattress retailers in the country. During that time, he met Roger at a bedding symposium. A few years later, when Sherman was working for Somma, Roger, then the president of Metropolitan Mattress, agreed to sell Somma mattresses in his stores. In between Sherman’s stint at Sleepy’s as vice president

of merchandising and becoming East Coast sales manager for Somma, he was executive vice president of Hillside Bedding. He also spent 11 years as the East Coast sales manager for Boyd Bedding and another year as an independent rep, before joining with McCarty to create Customatic.

AN INDUSTRY KNOWN FOR CAMARADERIE “Even though the bedding industry is a big industry,” Sherman said, “it seems more like a small club to those of us who work in it. Manufacturers, sales reps and retailers all have a very special relationship and we have nurtured many friendships over the years. We get to know our competitors in professional and personal settings, and we appreciate the opportunity to keep in touch with each other because we respect each other’s businesses. And with that respect comes a strong bond that lets us pull together when we need to, to support a cause or help each other through difficult times.”

THE COMMITMENT TO GIVING BACK “Over the years, our company has grown,” Sherman said. “It’s gratifying to be able to contribute significantly today to the Seena Magowitz Foundation and to make an impact on the Foundation’s Annual Golf Classic,” he said. Our ‘small club’ is willing to work together to make a difference on this planet. The Seena Magowitz Foundation has raised to help fund finding a cure for pancreatic cancer is truly inspiring and shows how one man’s vision and dedication can help humanity. “It’s pretty commendable and impressive and I’m thrilled to be part of this legacy.”

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PHIL McCARTY Strong Voice Against Pancreatic Cancer DE BRA G E LBART

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Phil McCarty has been working at the leading edge of the mattress industry for decades.

In the 1970s, he first sold waterbeds, then went to work for a company that manufactured them. McCarty’s career in the waterbed business — and his start in it — are notable. Hitchhiking was actually his introduction to the waterbed industry. “I got picked up hitchhiking to Boston by a waterbed delivery guy,” McCarty said. “I got a job there the next day, was that guy’s boss within a week, and fired him two weeks later for stealing.” Those who work in the mattress industry often know the manufacturers and retail store owners, and it’s not uncommon for them to maintain lifelong friendships with each other. In 1998, through his future business partner, Phil Sherman, Phil McCarty met Roger Magowitz, then president of Metropolitan Mattress in Phoenix and Mattress Discounters, in Virginia Beach, Virginia. Magowitz and McCarty kept in touch, and after Roger established the Seena Magowitz Foundation in 2002 in memory of his mother who died from pancreatic cancer, McCarty became an early supporter. Today, the Seena Magowitz Foundation receives the bulk of McCarty’s annual charitable donations.

SUCCESS BEGETS SUCCESS McCarty transitioned out of the waterbed sector and spent 30 years representing home furnishing and bedding manufacturers. In 2004, along with Phil Sherman, McCarty started designing and selling adjustable beds. In 2010, McCarty partnered with Sherman to establish Customatic Adjustable Bedz, based in Natick, Massachusetts. The company manufactures adjustable products that can be tailored specifically to meet customers’ individual market needs.

In January 2017, McCarty, the company’s chief operating officer, and Sherman, the president, recruited Roger Magowitz to be the company’s executive vice president, focusing on strategy. “We were very fortunate to be able to convince Roger to work with us,” McCarty said. “I’m hoping to help Phil and Phil become number one in the adjustable furniture category,” Magowitz said. “They already make great products, with a lot of well-known retailers and manufactures carrying them. We just need to get in front of more people and build out our capacity.” This year, the company changed its name to Customatic Technologies, to more accurately reflect its broader innovative designs for the home. The new name “emphasizes our more extensive, technology-based product line,” said McCarty. Since the company’s founding, it has moved beyond adjustable bases and mattresses, introducing new smart products for other rooms in the home.

SUPPORTING SEENA MAGOWITZ FOUNDATION AND PANCREATIC CANCER RESEARCH The company’s growth and expansion allows “the Phils” to continue supporting the Seena Magowitz Foundation. Neither McCarty nor Sherman has any personal family connection to pancreatic cancer, and yet, the Seena Magowitz Foundation is the focus of the majority of their philanthropic activities. “Phil Sherman and I are very big believers in giving back, and the Seena Magowitz Foundation is our leading charity by choice,” McCarty said. “We both feel blessed and fortunate to be in a position to help this most worthy cause now and in the future.”

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STEVE STAGNER Encouraging Major Businesses To Get Involved

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As the former Chief Executive Officer of Mattress Firm, the world’s largest bedding retailer, Steve Stagner is a man with considerable connections, and he’s managed to leverage those powerful connections to help save and extend the lives of countless pancreatic cancer patients.

First introduced to Dr. Daniel Von Hoff by the Seena Magowitz Foundation’s Roger Magowitz, another former bedding industry alumni, Stagner found himself immediately and profoundly struck by the doctor’s fierce, unconventional approach to fighting the disease. “Dr. Von Hoff helps you fight the disease while you have it, but he’s also always working to find a cure, easy methods of early detection, and leading-edge treatments that extend lives,” Stagner said, noting that similar efforts made in the fight against breast cancer have helped shift the perspective – and the prognosis – of those fighting that disease. “Breast cancer was once viewed in a similar manner to pancreatic cancer, meaning, at one time, it was seen almost like a death sentence. Now, it’s not, and that’s where we need to be with pancreatic cancer.” As an element of comparison, today, the average fiveyear survival rate for those diagnosed with women’s breast cancer is about 89 percent, whereas the average five-year survival rate for those with pancreatic cancer is about 9 percent. That is a huge difference. An immensely successful and storied businessman with more than two decades in the bedding industry behind him, Stagner acknowledged that his most meaningful contribution to helping fight the deadly disease would likely come from using his platform and leveraging his vast professional network to help call attention to the cause.

“Meeting Dr. Von Hoff was a gamechanger for me,” Stagner said. “His approach to fighting the disease was so different, and he’d already had so much success in extending lives. We saw that we could use our platform to get TGen, Dr. Von Hoff, the Seena Magowitz Foundation and the fight against pancreatic cancer in front of an even bigger audience.” Ultimately, Stagner did just that, helping Mattress Firm become one of the world’s most prolific and recognizable names in the fight against pancreatic cancer. To date, the company has helped raise millions of dollars in funding for pancreatic cancer research, and it also partially funded clinical trials with the hope of expanding treatment options and extending the lives of those battling the disease. In one particular trial, nearly 85 percent of pancreatic cancer patients saw their tumors shrink, highlighting both the critical nature of these trials and the far-reaching extent of their effectiveness. While Stagner’s fundraising efforts have touched countless lives, so, too, has his commitment to encouraging other major businesses to follow in the footsteps of Mattress Firm. “This is an incredible opportunity for all of us to be a footnote in the fight against pancreatic cancer,” Stagner said. “I fully believe that not only in our lifetime, but in the not-too-distant future, we’ll find an easy method of early detection and a cure for this deadly disease.”

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GARY FAZIO Challenging Others to Get Involved

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Pancreatic Cancer Ambassadors There’s a mutual admiration society between Gary Fazio and the Seena Magowitz Foundation.

The Foundation immensely appreciates Fazio’s generosity and dedication to the cause of pancreatic cancer research. And Fazio is eternally grateful for the Foundation’s responsiveness to individual needs and for how he personally has been helped by Roger Magowitz, the Foundation’s founder, and by Dr. Daniel Von Hoff, the world’s leading pancreatic cancer researcher. Though Fazio retired from his position as CEO of Serta Simmons Bedding, LLC (SSB) in December 2015, he remains active in industry events and with philanthropic causes important to the industry, including the Seena Magowitz Foundation.

A PROFOUND STORY In 2014, Fazio’s wife Annette was showing signs of something seriously wrong with her health. Initially, doctors thought it might be liver cancer. Fazio let Magowitz know what was going on after Magowitz had asked him to chair the Foundation’s annual fundraising event in Orlando of that year. Fazio wasn’t sure he could attend because of Annette’s health. Magowitz told him Annette needed a second opinion and immediately referred Fazio to Dr. Von Hoff. Dr. Von Hoff connected Fazio, a resident of Charlotte, North Carolina, to a liver specialist in Dallas. Fazio was able to get an appointment for Annette very quickly, and in early May of that year, she underwent surgery. Doctors determined she did not have cancer and that her liver condition was far less serious and could be treated. She could then be monitored to make sure the condition didn’t recur. Today, she feels fine and has a clean bill of health. That amazing turn of events allowed Gary and Annette Fazio to attend the fundraising event in Orlando after all. “That changed everything,” Fazio said. “I was still able to go to the event and speak to those in attendance.”

MAKING A SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCE Fazio decided he wasn’t going to simply speak from the stage at the fundraising dinner. He was going to walk among those in attendance and try to speak directly to as many people as he could. First, he stopped at Magowitz’s table, tapped him on the shoulder and in an imitation of Magowitz’s voice, thanked him for his invaluable help. Then, Fazio tapped Dr. Von Hoff

on the shoulder. “You found the surgeons who saved my wife’s life,” he told Dr. Von Hoff. Then, Fazio turned his attention to the pancreatic cancer survivors in the room. He asked them all to stand and be recognized. No speaker before at a Seena Magowitz event had walked into the audience in the hopes of connecting memorably with the attendees. After that speech in 2014, Fazio spoke at a national sales conference for the combined manufacturers. He challenged the attendees to a contest to see which team — Serta or Simmons — could raise more money for the Seena Magowitz Foundation and its mission of funding pancreatic cancer research. Fazio explained why a disease this deadly is often top of mind for him. “Pancreatic cancer has the worst survival rate of all cancers. We have to find a way to beat it.” At that national sales meeting, Fazio learned that a top sales professional with the company had been diagnosed with pancreatic cancer just two days before the meeting. That prompted Fazio to contact Magowitz, who contacted the patient and put him in touch with Dr. Von Hoff. The patient flew from his hometown in Florida to Phoenix to see Dr. Von Hoff. The patient was placed on a treatment regimen and today, he is cancer-free. “Had Gary not issued that challenge on behalf of the Seena Magowitz Foundation,” Magowitz said, “it’s possible he might not have learned of the patient’s diagnosis in as timely a fashion and the patient might not have connected with Dr. Von Hoff at the time he did to receive life-saving treatment. I am so grateful that Gary made appealing for donations to the Seena Magowitz Foundation a priority before he retired.”

The challenge Fazio issued to the Serta and Simmons teams at that sales meeting resulted in a $600,000 donation to the Seena Magowitz Foundation — presented at the next Foundation fundraising event in May of 2015. “We were able to surprise Roger,” Fazio said. Fazio continues to generously support the Foundation. “This effort is so important,” he emphasized. “And helping the patients and the researchers is up to all of us. As Roger likes to say, ‘If not us, then who?’ This disease is becoming more prevalent. We’ve got to find a cure.”

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TOM AND JULI LaPORTE Steadfast Commitments To The Cause DE BRA G E LBART

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Though Tom La Porte didn’t know anyone personally affected by pancreatic cancer when he first teamed up with the Seena Magowitz Foundation, that has since changed.

But what has remained constant in the years that followed was his steadfast commitment to the cause — and helping find a cure. A longtime fixture on the local financial scene, Tom La Porte knows a thing or two about numbers, and he’s had a hand in changing many of them when it comes to the fight against pancreatic cancer. He first joined forces with the Seena Magowitz Foundation in 2012, after getting to know Founder and Chief Executive Officer Roger Magowitz at a series of social events, and the more he learned about the foundation, its relationship with the Translational Genomics Research Institute and the work of Dr. Daniel Von Hoff, the more impressed by it — and the more involved with it — he found himself. No stranger to philanthropy, Tom and his wife, Juli, have a lengthy history of donating to causes near and dear to their hearts over the years, and Tom credits his own parents for helping him see just how much value there is in giving to others. Growing up the son of a police officer, his childhood was not one of opu-

lence, but he still recalls clearly the day he found an old check register from his mother that listed $1 and $2 donations to the Salvation Army and a range of other charities. “They instilled a sense of giving back in me, no matter how much you have to give,” he said, of his parents’ philanthropic nature. “Imagine what we could do if everyone in the world felt like that?” While he may not be able to change the world, he has fostered the same sense of giving back in his own children, who regularly accompany him to the annual Seena Magowitz Foundation Golf Classic and other local and national charitable events. “I have an enormous amount of respect for Dr. Von Hoff,” Tom said, of his dedication to the cause and his decision to serve as an ambassador for the Seena Magowitz Foundation, which gives 100 percent of every net dollar raised to Dr. Von Hoff and TGen to help pay for pancreatic cancer research. “His compassion for the patients he treats is rivaled only by his passion for finding a cure.”

In Honor of His Mother, Seena Roger Magowitz’s drive comes from his mother. She was his inspiration to live a life of ethics, compassion, and determination since he was a child. The Seena Magowitz Foundation was created in her honor to help pursue the ultimate defeat of pancreatic cancer. As his wife, I know not a day goes by I am not aware of her influence on his moral commitment to life and society. Please join me in honoring both Roger and Dr. Daniel Van Hoff for all the positive outcomes from their collaborations.

- Jeanne Magowitz

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JOHN & LYNN MORLEY: Morley Companies

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Pancreatic Cancer Ambassadors John and Lynn Morley have turned their love of golf into a fundraising force.

For nearly a decade, the couple has been managing the annual Howard Young Atlanta Golf Classic in association with the Seena Magowitz Foundation and its mission of funding pancreatic cancer medical.

200 employees and clients as far away as New Jersey and the Philadelphia area and as far west as Texas. “We like to think we’re the go-to contractors for building restoration services,” John said.

The Howard Young Atlanta Classic is a one-day event that benefits the Translational Genomics Research Institute (TGen) in Phoenix. Its researchers are committed to discovering methods of early detection and new evolutionary treatments for pancreatic cancer.

John Morley has become an expert on the many materials incorporated into buildings and the effects on them of environmental conditions, the major causes of aging and deterioration and practices used in the restoration processes and leak-stopping. He is certified by the states of Alabama, Georgia, North and South Carolina, Tennessee, Florida and West Virginia for his competency in the knowledge of construction.

John Morley and Roger Magowitz, founder of the Seena Magowitz Foundation have known each other for 30 years, and Lynn and Roger’s wife Jeanne have known each other since they were in college together.

THE HONOREE The 9th annual Howard Young Atlanta Classic was held in May 2019, and raised more than $130,000 for pancreatic cancer research. Over the last decade, the event has generated more than $1 million total for the cause. The tournament is named in honor of Atlanta-area resident Howard Young, who was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in 2002 and is one of the longestsurviving pancreatic cancer warriors in the world. “Roger introduced Howard Young to me over 10 years ago and asked me to assist in this fundraiser,” John said. “It’s so gratifying to be a co-chairman with Howard to raise money every year that we hope will move us closer and closer to new treatments and ultimately to a cure for pancreatic cancer. We want to see many more Howards in the years ahead living a normal life span even when diagnosed with this daunting disease.”

THE DRIVE TO BE THE BEST John has been a successful business owner for 30 years, so it’s not surprising he would enjoy success in his philanthropic endeavors, too. An engineer by training, he worked in the nuclear power and oil and gas industries before establishing his own company, J.J. Morley Enterprises, Inc. in Atlanta in 1988. The company specializes in commercial waterproofing and restoration of buildings, and the couple maintains a separate company offering environmental services run by Lynn Morley. The companies are based in the Atlanta area with locations in Birmingham, Alabama and West Palm Beach, Florida. The companies have

Lynn Morley has operated the Morley Environmental Company since its inception in 1994. She has led Morley Environmental to a position as one of the Southeast region’s most respected hazardous materials abatement companies. She has put together a well-trained team of field supervisors and field personnel known as among the best in the asbestos and lead-paint abatement industry. She is a graduate of the American Intercontinental University with a degree in interior design and is a registered interior designer with the Georgia State Board of Architects and Interior Designers The Morleys, who have been married for 37 years and have two married children and three grandchildren, don’t limit their support and philanthropy for pancreatic cancer research to only the golf tournament they run. They have attended Seena Magowitz Foundation Annual Golf Classics for many years including the 2018 16th Annual Seena Magowitz Golf Classic held in Boston. John was especially happy to return to Boston last year, the area where he grew up. He enjoyed participating in the signature event of the Seena Magowitz Foundation annual fundraiser, playing golf at the Wellesley Country Club in suburban Boston. “It was truly enjoyable to play golf in ideal weather on a beautiful, private golf course like Wellesley,” John said. “Playing golf is simply a great way to raise money for pancreatic cancer research.” This year, he and Lynn are anticipating the 17th Annual Golf Classic in Phoenix. “Getting to see Dr. Von Hoff and Roger again is always great, and I’m happy to have the opportunity to again support the Seena Magowitz Foundation,” John said. “We were in Phoenix for the very first golf classic in 2002 and thoroughly that inaugural experience. We’re looking forward to being back in Phoenix.”

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RANDY DOBBS Advocate For His Daughter Elizabeth Oâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;Connor

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For many people, becoming a grandparent marks one of life’s sweetest milestones.

For Randy Dobbs, though, the birth of his fifth grandchild, while a blessing, set the wheels in motion for a series of life-changing events that would ultimately help shine a bright spotlight on one of the world’s most devastating — and underfunded, under-researched and undiagnosed — diseases. Throughout her entire second pregnancy, Randy’s daughter, Elizabeth, struggled with illness and rapid weight loss, and after a premature childbirth, doctors chose to remove Elizabeth’s ovaries, having previously identified cysts they considered cause for concern. Upon doing so, though, they learned that what was really causing her symptoms was not ovarian cancer, as they had expected, but rather, pancreatic cancer that had metastasized to her ovaries. Just about anyone who has ever experienced a Stage IV pancreatic cancer diagnosis can attest that what doctors typically talk to you about in the days following is quality of life, rather than quantity of life, and this was exactly what happened in Elizabeth’s case. “It’s not the natural chain of events for a child to leave this world before her parents,” Randy said, of coming to terms with his daughter’s diagnosis. “You start asking yourself, ‘What can I do? ‘What’s the solution?’” Through a referral, Randy and Elizabeth were able to schedule a consultation with Dr. Daniel Von Hoff. “From the day we met him, it was like he was a member of our family,” Randy said, noting that his approach was unlike that of any other physician and characterized by a constant determination to find “the next best thing” in pancreatic cancer treatment. “His approach to Elizabeth was one that actually brought hope, because he’d always be working on finding ‘the next best thing’ for treatment, detection and survival rates. He’s all-in.” Inspired, Randy, a highly successful businessman, author and public speaker with more than three decades of success at the likes of General Electric

under his belt, opted to go “all in,” too. He took the skills he’d developed during his 30+ years in business and finance and put them into practice raising funds and awareness for pancreatic cancer research. He joined the Advisory Board at the Translational Genomics Research Institute, and he used his wide network of connections to find donors and otherwise raise the national profile of the disease. Comfortable on stage and in front of a microphone, he took on numerous guest-speaking engagements for the Seena Magowitz Foundation and other organizations with similar objectives, all the while advocating for his own daughter and assisting her as she battled her own illness. In Elizabeth’s case, doctors determined that the root cause of her cancer was a PALB2 gene mutation uncovered after she had a DNA test done during her second pregnancy. Upon learning of her condition, Randy and the rest of the family underwent testing to see if they, too, carried the gene, and Randy found out that he did, in fact, have it, highlighting a need for periodic testing for signs of cancer. Elizabeth’s situation is a rare one. She was one of only 10 women ever to receive a pancreatic cancer diagnosis during pregnancy — and she is the only one still alive today. Both Elizabeth and Randy believe that Dr. Von Hoff was the difference. “When I say he’s ‘all-in,’ it’s not just on the medical side — he’s all-in with your family, your life, your survival,” Randy said. “Not many doctors are like that with patients while also working tirelessly to find a cure.” Randy also notes that the hope Dr. Von Hoff brings also comes from the people working alongside him. “The other doctors, oncologists and nurses — his program is incredibly patient-centric, just as he is, and the people he’s teaching and training are the ones who will, one day, continue this battle.”

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The Ellman family sees generous charitable giving as key to the success of the mattress companies they established on two continents and the vineyards and winery they created in Napa, California.

“We do believe and have always believed that you have to give back,” explained Neil Ellman, who with his brother Lance runs the Ellman Family Vineyards. “Part of what has made us successful is giving back to society causes. Leon moved his family from South Africa to Florida in the early 1970s and established the International Bedding Corporation. That company grew to become one of the largest mattress manufacturing companies in the U.S. IBC was sold to a private equity firm in 2005 and shortly thereafter, Neil and Lance (who as adults had become business partners with their father) left to ponder the next entrepreneurial move.

EXPANDING TO THE ELLMAN FAMILY VINEYARDS IN NAPA. CALIFORNIA Neil has nurtured another passion since the early ‘90s. “When I was living in California, I fell in love with the wine region,” Neil said. “I saturated myself in the culture and became a collector of all wines — French, Italian, Spanish, South American and California.” Neil and Lance decided to begin creating a world-class vineyard and winery in Napa. “We purchased a 14-acre vineyard in Napa on land that borders the famed “Silverado Trail” and call it our

Estate Vineyard,” Nell said. “We are pleased to say that our grapes have been a source for one of the great Cabernet brands in Napa. The original water tower, barn, and sprawling vines are key features on the property as well as the soon-to-be new home which will uphold the time-honored tradition of the area.”

COMMITMENT TO SEENA MAGOWITZ The success with wine-making has allowed the Ellman family to be especially charitable toward the Seena Magowitz Foundation. In 2017, the family donated an auction item for the Foundation’s annual golf classic that was valued at about $70,000. It included transportation for two aboard a private jet to Napa, California, a two-day stay at a luxury resort, gourmet meals and tours of several local wineries. “This was an exceptionally generous donation and was instrumental in helping us raise more money for the Foundation in 2017 than we had raised in any previous year,” said Roger Magowitz, founder of the Seena Magowitz Foundation. Neil added that he wants to continue helping to find a cure for pancreatic cancer. “The more money we can direct toward this cause, the quicker we can reach that ultimate mission.”

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DERRICK HALL Helping Strike Out Pancreatic Cancer DE BRA G E LBART

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Arizona Diamondbacks President & CEO Derrick Hall has many responsibilities, but he has found time to passionately urge people diagnosed with cancer and those whose loved ones have had cancer to undergo genetic testing.

Hall, who has been with the Diamondbacks organization since 2005, was diagnosed with prostate cancer in 2011, a couple of years after his father, Larry Hall, was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. After Derrick was diagnosed, Roger Magowitz, founder of the Seena Magowitz Foundation, recommended that Derrick go through genetic testing to get ahead of any indicators that he could be susceptible to another cancer. “We all need to be alert,” Derrick said in an interview in Boston at the 16th annual Seena Magowitz Foundation Golf Classic, where more than $1 million was raised for pancreatic cancer research. It was Derrick’s sixth consecutive year to serve as master of ceremonies for the event. He’s also served as honorary chair for the event in a previous year. “We need to be aware and concerned if we have that hereditary background,” Derrick added. “They thought they would find (cancer-related) genes with me because of my background, with my father and his father. But, as it turns out, we’re okay, which gives me some peace of mind. But it’s important to be as proactive as possible, to make sure you can check off getting tested.” Derrick’s wife Amy was diagnosed with triple negative breast cancer in the spring of 2016. She continues to do well after aggressive treatment, Derrick said.

A PERSONAL CONNECTION Derrick and Amy have been supporters of the Seena Magowitz Foundation for more than a decade. He arrived in Phoenix in 2005 after spending 14 years with the Los Angeles Dodgers organization. “The Seena Magowitz Foundation and TGen are very personal to me,” Derrick said, “because Dr. Daniel Von Hoff was my father’s doctor. When my father was diagnosed in 2010, he was Stage 4.” Before Larry Hall connected with Dr. Von Hoff, the world’s leading pancreatic cancer researcher and clinician, Larry underwent a Whipple procedure and was told that he had between a month and three months to live, Derrick said. “I then went to Dr. Jeff Trent (the founder of TGen) and Dr. Von Hoff and they

said, ‘Bring him to us.’ They told us it would be a challenge, but they were going to try to prolong his life. And they did. He lived for three years, well beyond the three months that was originally expected. Dr. Von Hoff placed Larry Hall on a few clinical trials, including one — a regimen of three chemotherapy drugs — that Dr. Von Hoff named “the triple,” Derrick said, in honor of Larry Hall’s love of baseball. “We grew very close with TGen and with Dr. Von Hoff and then Roger and I became close friends. He’s a supporter of so many causes, including the Arizona Diamondbacks Foundation.” The Diamondbacks Foundation focuses on cancer, education and homelessness, among other issues, Derrick said. “Roger’s been great. He’s a hero, a champion, as humble an individual as I’ve ever met. He doesn’t want the attention, doesn’t need the attention. The money he’s been able to raise, the awareness he’s been able to raise, is so very important to fighting pancreatic cancer. But the advancements made because of generous individuals like Roger are unbelievable. And I look now at where we are versus 10 years ago, and there’s hope.”

ONGOING STRIDES The key to appropriate and successful treatment for cancer especially, Derrick said, is early detection. “The irony is usually you don’t have early detection for pancreatic cancer. But I know Dr. Von Hoff and his team are hard at work developing a method for early detection.” Derrick said he and the Diamondbacks organization will always support the Seena Magowitz Foundation and TGen. “We all know someone who’s been impacted by cancer; everybody knows someone affected. I lost a friend, Senator John McCain, to cancer. Some diagnoses are worse than others. Pancreatic cancer is one of those, but it’s because of people like Dr. Von Hoff and Roger Magowitz that medical advancement is progressing at a more rapid pace.”

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NATALIE SABGA Her Husbandâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Legacy, The John E. Sabga Foundation

J ULIA BRABANT

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CONTRI BUTI NG WRITER

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“Take the sourest lemon life has to offer and turn it into something that resembles lemonade.”

It’s a tear-jerking line from a top-ranked TV show, but it’s also the best way to describe how Trinidad & Tobago’s Natalie Sabga dealt with her husband John’s 2017 passing from pancreatic cancer. John’s brave battle against the disease brought him to Florida, Texas, Arizona, and, ultimately, home to Trinidad, and while it all happened fast – within about 10 months, in fact – Natalie saw to it that John’s legacy would leave a lasting impact well into the future. After his diagnosis, John began undergoing treatment in Florida, not far from where his mother lived. A friend from Trinidad contacted the family, marking the first time John and Natalie heard the name Dr. Daniel Von Hoff. “You must go to this doctor,” he’d insisted, but John had several treatments in the works already and wanted to give things a try in Florida. His treatments had mixed results, and his oncologist referred him to MD Anderson in Texas, where he attempted to join a clinical trial. To his disappointment, there were none available. John and Natalie, meanwhile, had been researching the Arizona oncologist the family friend told them about and decided to pay him a visit. “The moment we walked into the clinic at HonorHealth Research Institute, we immediately knew we had finally come to the right place,” Natalie recalled, noting that another pancreatic cancer patient, Phil Zeblisky, was sitting in the waiting room. “We had been reading about Phil’s success with Dr. Von Hoff, and John’s eyes lit up like a kid in a candy store, introducing himself and asking him so many questions about pancreatic cancer. We were just in awe of Phil.”

Initially, Natalie and John saw Dr. Borazanci, who assured them that nothing happened at the facility without Dr. Von Hoff knowing about it. The doctor affectionately known as “Dr. B” said he believed John might be a candidate for the “Grand Slam,” a five-drug regimen, and he promised the pair they’d meet Dr. Von Hoff one day soon. With renewed hope and energy, John started treatment, and within about three weeks, John and Natalie finally met the “famous doctor.” To their surprise, not only was this world-renowned physician incredibly humble, but he had also somehow amassed an entire staff that had the same drive, compassion and commitment he possessed. At the time, though, John’s health was declining fast, and he ultimately decided he wasn’t going to continue treatment. He wanted to return to his beloved homeland. Cathy Mast, his physician’s assistant, placed a call to Dr. Von Hoff, who was supposed to be traveling to San Francisco with Dr. Borazanci for a conference. Delayed due to weather, Dr. Von Hoff forfeited the trip and promptly appeared at the hospital to see John. The Sabgas realized this gesture was unprecedented, so it was a special moment for John and the family when he arrived. Natalie remembers how he praised John for his strength and courage, reassuring him he made the right decision. “You’ve taught me so much in the short time I’ve known you,” Natalie recalls him saying. “This is when you realize how much empathy this man has for people.” John succumbed to pancreatic cancer Jan. 26, 2017. In the weeks to follow, Natalie returned to Arizona to close their apartment, and she stopped by

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“ ...Natalie believes her dedication to the cause is her subconscious at work. “I think I’m still trying to save my husband — I’m still trying to find that cure,” she said. “Now, I feel like I’m taking care of him through taking care of other people.”

HonorHealth to thank the staff members for their ongoing support. Dr. Von Hoff insisted on seeing her, and his words were some she wouldn’t soon forget. “You did everything right,” he noted, telling her she was a brave woman to walk back in there so soon after John’s passing. “Never second-guess anything you did for your husband.” Natalie knew right then that this was the man who had the best chance of anyone at finding a cure, and she told him she’d dedicate herself to helping him do it. After enlisting the advice of Cathy Mast, the idea for the John E. Sabga Foundation for Pancreatic Cancer came to be in a living room, born amongst family and friends. Natalie set a lofty goal to raise $1 million for Dr. Von Hoff, his research work at TGen and her own husband, who’d lost his own pancreatic cancer battle far too soon. The foundation officially launched November16, 2017. In February 2018, Dr. Von Hoff flew to Trinidad for the foundation’s inaugural gala. While immensely grateful for the funds raised by the John E. Sabga Foundation to further pancreatic cancer research in the United States, he wanted to do more to benefit the island

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directly. “He said, ‘I feel bad that you’re raising all this money and sending it away,’” Natalie recalled, and it was this realization that paved the way for the John E. Sabga Clinical Trial, which, while in effect in Arizona, will be the first clinical trial ever done in Trinidad and Tobago. Through the John E. Sabga Foundation, which has raised more than $600,000 for pancreatic cancer research, to date, and the John E. Sabga Clinical Trial,

Pancreatic Cancer Ambassadors

Natalie and her team hope to raise awareness about pancreatic cancer throughout the United States and Trinidad & Tobago, which has one of the highest rates of diabetes per capita in the world. Diabetes is a risk factor and potential warning sign of pancreatic cancer, so expanding education is especially critical in this region. While many people in Natalie’s shoes might find it difficult to spend so much time focusing on a disease that claimed a loved one’s life, Natalie believes her dedication to the cause is her subconscious at work. “I think I’m still trying to save my husband — I’m still trying to find that cure,” she said. “Now, I feel like I’m taking care of him through taking care of other people.”

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THANKS TO SO MANY

ADVOCATES

After 17 years, we have so many advocates that have supported our cause. Contributors of funds enable more rapid research against pancreatic cancer. Those with strong voices raise awareness, and volunteers give of their time and help in so many ways.

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“NO ONE IS MORE CHERISHED IN THIS WORLD THAN SOMEONE WHO LIGHTENS THE BURDEN OF ANOTHER.”

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Mattress Firm is a proud sponsor of the Seena Magowitz Foundation.

THANK YOU, DR. VON HOFF. We sleep better knowing your breakthroughs in pancreatic cancer research have helped save countless lives.

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WHEN A CURE OF PANCREATIC CANCER IS ULTIMATELY DISCOVERED... We Will All Sleep So Much Better!

Adjusting How The World Sleeps

“Proud Sponsor of The Seena Magowitz Foundation For 10 Years”