Please help me reach my finish line in honor of people battling blood cancers . . .

Last June, as I was in the final weeks of training for my first triathlon, I lost a close family member to a rare blood cancer. During the next few days, I learned two long-time family friends had been diagnosed with Lymphoma. As hard as my training seemed, I knew it was nothing compared to the battles faced by these three remarkable people. I kept each of them in mind as I struggled through the last few miles of the race. Their race is clearly more difficult and their finish line more elusive.

This year, as I completed the St. Anthony's triathlon, a race twice as long as the one I did last summer, they have been a constant source of inspiration. Please help me reach an additional finish line of raising $4,200 in memory of my mother-in-law and in honor of those who face a tremendously daunting fight against blood cancers. Donations benefit the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society as it searches for a cure to blood cancer and supports those battling these difficult diseases.

Online donations are accepted through May 25. For more information about the training process, please see my training journal (updated weekly) below.

Thank You,

Hannah Kraushaar

Training Journal

Friday, May 7

Two weeks ago this Sunday, I finished the race. Looking back on the months of training and over 3 1/2 hours of racing, it was one of the most incredible experiences I've ever had. Thank you so much to everyone who supported me in so many ways. I have posted a full race report on my blog. Please click here to check it out.

Your Donation Makes a Difference!!

$10 provides two hours of microscope use to determine if a new medicine will stop a life-threatening lung infection in a bone marrow transplant patient.

$20 pays for a bottle of nutrients that will nourish 10 million leukemia cells grown in the laboratory for a week, enabling scientists to test whether a new anti-cancer drug halts their growth.

$40 purchases enough razor-sharp blades to prepare bone-marrow biopsy samples from 200 patients, enabling doctors to make accurate cancer diagnoses.

$100 pays for the cost of an antibody used to determine the precise characteristics of lymphoma cells, allowing doctors to determine the best treatment for a patient.

$250 buys an instrument to measure tiny volumes of liquid, which allows scientists to accurately measure the solutions needed to prepare a patient sample for a diagnostic test.

$500 purchases 10 hours of time on a flow cytometer, a machine that reveals a multitude of characteristics of blood cancer cells that could be developed into effective diagnostic tests.

$1,000 covers the cost of one thirtieth of a pilot study to examine whether certain drugs influence the growth of lymphoma or myeloma cells in the laboratory. Results from the analysis could be used to launch large-scale studies to test new lymphoma and myeloma treatment strategies.

Personal Checks:

Personal checks should be made out to the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society with "Hannah Kraushaar, St. Anthony's Triathlon" written in the memo line. Please send all personal checks directly to me at my home address. For more information, please email me at hannah.kraushaar@gmail.com.

Questions?

To contact me directly, please email me at hannah.kraushaar@gmail.com.