Nearly 3,000 Long Islanders took part in the 25th Lustgarten Foundation Walk for Pancreatic Cancer Research at Jones Beach State Park on Sunday, Oct. 5. The annual Walk raised more than $826,000, bringing the cumulative total raised since 2000 to over $21 million. All proceeds supports pancreatic cancer research.
“For 25 years, the Long Island Walk has proven that community is power,” said Linda Tantawi, CEO of the Lustgarten Foundation.
“What began as a local event has become a movement that unites and inspires. We walk to remember those we’ve lost, honor those in the fight, and celebrate the progress made possible by preeminent researchers and the promise of rigorous science,” Tantawi said.
Pancreatic cancer is the third-leading cause of cancer-related deaths in the United States, the Lustgarten Foundation said. The foundation said that this year, nearly 67,440 Americans will be diagnosed and approximately 2,980 New Yorkers will die from the disease.
“This Long Island community walk is a powerful testament of hope–bringing together patients, families, doctors and researchers, united by a single mission to transform pancreatic cancer from a devastating disease to a treatable illness and to finding a cure,” said Richard Barakat, physician-in-chief and executive director of the Northwell Cancer Institute.
