Checkup

A Race Against Cancer

Mayo Clinic a partner in national marathon for breast cancer

(l-r) Dr. Edith Perez, Jacksonville City Council President Kevin Hyde, Mayor John Peyton, Donna Hicken and marathon planner Jeff Galloway announce the 26.2 with Donna at a news conference in June.

Enlarge

Jacksonville news anchor and author Donna Hicken is an avid marathon runner who never shies away from a challenge. So when she was diagnosed with breast cancer in 1999 and again in 2002, she focused all of her efforts on beating it.

"I set my sights on outrunning the disease," she says. "Facing cancer is a lot like running a marathon — a long, arduous race that challenges the body, mind and spirit."

Her own battle inspired her to form The Donna Hicken Foundation to provide financial assistance to women in need battling breast cancer. To that end, she's partnered with Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville to create 26.2 With Donna: The National Marathon to Fight Breast Cancer. The weekend-long event, which will benefit Mayo Clinic and women living with breast cancer, will be held Feb. 15-17, 2008, and will include a health expo, community celebration, VIP event, marathon, half marathon and fun run. It will be the only marathon in the country dedicated solely to funding breast cancer research and treatment.

"We will raise awareness and funds to fight breast cancer while providing a unique destination marathon in one of the most beautiful places in the country," says Hicken. "I want this to become a pilgrimage for people with a passion for the cause."

The race proceeds will go directly to The Donna Hicken Foundation, which has pledged to donate the majority of the funds raised to Mayo Clinic for research. Mayo's Multidisciplinary Breast Clinic specializes in the detection and treatment of breast cancer.

"Mayo Clinic is pleased to be a part of the 26.2 With Donna, and we're excited about the national awareness and funds this marathon will raise to help us in the fight against breast cancer," says Dr. Edith Perez, a Mayo Clinic oncologist.

Mayo Clinic is leading the fight against breast cancer with researchers like Perez, author of a clinical trial that produced what is arguably the most significant breakthrough in breast cancer in 30 years.

The trial resulted in a 52-percent decrease in the recurrence of breast cancer in those participating.

Each year, about 200,000 women in the United States are diagnosed with breast cancer, and the disease causes about 40,000 deaths annually.

Info
For more on 26.2 With Donna: The National Marathon to Fight Breast Cancer, visit www.breastcancermarathon.com.