Thank you for joining the team!

More than two years cancer-free from Hodgkin’s lymphoma, I'm excited to fundraise for LRF again this year — this time by swimming 30 miles in 60 days in my local community pool May 9 - July 8, 2018. Please join us by donating (click on DONATE) or creating your own fundraiser (click on JOIN TEAM) to support this great organization and celebrate my recovery! Any amount will go a long way. If you work for a company that matches donations, this is a great way to double your impact.

Why me? I was diagnosed with Hodgkin's lymphoma in the fall of 2014. After a year and a half of treatments, I am now more than 2 years cancer-free and doing great! This is thanks to an excellent oncology team at MGH, amazing support from family and friends and colleagues, and innovations in Hodgkin's lymphoma treatment. With the failure of first-line chemotherapy and radiation, I had to undergo treatment with high dose chemotherapy and autologous bone marrow transplant, followed by an immunotherapy clinical trial. We need more research into effective and less intensive treatments for Hodgkin's.

Why swimming? Swimming is my favorite form of exercise, and in the wake of cancer treatment, it's what I turned to in order to regain strength and to stay healthy. However, it's been hard to maintain a regular swim schedule or to push myself to swim many laps, and I'm using this fundraiser as a personal challenge to swim longer and more regularly. I'm trying to swim a mile each time I get in the pool. (See updates below for how much I swam so far!)

Why LRF? Lymphoma Research Foundation (LRF) is the biggest non-profit in the U.S. dedicated specifically to lymphoma research and education. They were an important and positive part of my cancer process from the very first day when the oncologist recommended the LRF site as the best source of information on this disease. Team Vera blew me away in 2016 and 2017 by raising more than $10,000 each year for the cause! The fundraising process has been a powerful healing experience and helped me turn a very tough period of my life into something positive.

Thank you!!!

Vera

WEEKLY UPDATES:

Week 1 (May 9-15): VERY slow start... just 1.5 miles

Week 2 (May 16-22): a bit better... 3.5 miles

Total of 5 miles in the first 2 weeks... Important fact: every 5 minutes, someone in the US is diagnosed with lymphoma.

Week 3 (May 23-29): 4 miles

Week 4 (May 30-June 5): 2 miles

Week 5 (June 6-June 12): 3 miles

Week 6 (June 13-19): 1 mile

Week 7 (June 20-26): 2 miles

Week 8 (June 27-July 3): 3 miles

Week 9 (July 4-10): 3 miles

Unfortunately, at 60 days in, I've only completed 23 miles, so I am extending the swim-a-thon through July 22 to finish the last 7 miles. 

Week 10 (July 11-17): 4.5 miles

Week 11 (July 18-22): 2.5 miles

DONE!!!