Cancer Has No Curve

In a matter of days, our entire reality has changed. Our routines are gone, many are working full-time at home while trying to juggle homeschooling and entertaining their children. There is fear, lots of fear about COVID-19 and the impact it is having on all our systems – government, health, financial, small businesses and non-profits.

My family and I are in the same boat. Trying each day to figure out what is going to change and how we are going to have to adapt to it, trying to find another show for my four-year-old to watch while I take a conference call. At the Melanoma Research Foundation (MRF), we too, are trying to adapt to what is happening and how to best provide daily support to YOU, our diverse community of patients, caregivers and MRF-funded researchers. It’s tough. Patients are scared and unsure of what medical services they can receive, or which clinical trials are still available, or if they can even see their doctor face-to-face. Caregivers are worried about their loved ones as their ability to afford necessary medicine becomes increasingly difficult. Our grantees are reaching out to us panicked because their labs are being shut down, rendering them unable to progress with the critical research funded by the MRF.

But the reality is, cancer was here before, cancer is here now, and cancer will be here when this crisis subsides. CANCER HAS NO CURVE. The need for patient resources remains high; researchers still need funding and we are at a pivotal moment where we can’t let them down. We can’t let YOU down. The MRF does not receive government grants. We rely on the community we serve—YOU. Our community is national and even in this crisis, they are continuing to educate those around them about melanoma, people all over this country are working to create awareness in their communities, because awareness and early detection save lives.

So, I am asking you to please stay in the fight. Stay for our melanoma patients. Stay for your loved ones. Stay for yourself. The MRF is working hard and developing new online resources for our community. On Tuesday, March 31^st we hosted a free LIVE webinar to answer your questions about how the current situation impacts melanoma patients and caregivers, which is now available on our Webinars page. Many additional resources will soon follow. We will not stop but our work can’t continue without your help. If you can, please consider making a tax-deductible gift to the MRF. Any amount of support will help us fund the most promising melanoma research and offer the best support resources to our community, always completely free of charge. This April, the MRF team introduced a campaign called “30 in 30” with a goal of raising $30,000 in 30 days. This month-long program of fun activities features virtual events that bring our community together, wherever they may be. Events include educational lunch and learns, various fitness classes and cooking classes hosted by the MRF, local businesses and MRF supporters. The funds raised will support research grants for ten innovative medical students to help them advance in the melanoma research field. We believe that by supporting young investigators we can help advance the field for generations to come.

Join us, get involved and stay positive. We are all in this together and we can break the curve, but together, we can also cure melanoma.

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Sincerely,

Kyleigh LiPira, MBA
CEO, Melanoma Research Foundation