North Texas TNT Dallas Rock N Roll TEAM Race Morning

February 25th, 2012 the folks in the photo you see above lined up at the starting line and ran 13.1 miles from Dallas Convention Center to Fair Park and crossed the finish line thus ending our spring season as runners and fundraisers. Collectively this team $106,000 to fund research in the battle against blood and lymph cancers and patient services for those affected. I personally raised $1050 of that and completed the Dallas Rock N Roll Half Marathon in 2:18:38.

But, I am not done. I have moved on to fundraising for another season, again in Mavrick's Memory. Cancer does not take a season off and I'm not either. This time it's another full marathon and this time it''s in San Diego at a Rock N Roll event that benefits LLS in its entirety. Please help me in the battle by donating at this link: http://pages.teamintraining.org/ntx/rnr12/mavricksmusketeers

Thank you for your support these first two seasons. We haven't won the battle against cancer and that battle is not a cheap one.

Noah Kiser

acute lymphoblastic leukemia

March 16th, our TEAM in Training friend and TEAM mentor, Pam Reding's nephew Noah Kiser lost the battle with ALL. Noah is amongst our TEAM's Honored Heroes and we have spent this past season training in his honor. To say that we are saddened by this loss is an understatement and there truly are no words that are fitting of the grief we are individually and collectively as TEAM struggling with today.

As recently as only 20 years ago survival for ALL was unheard of. Today, the remission rate for those diagnosed with ALL is around 80%. But sadly, about half experience at least one relapse of the cancer. But, the loss of even one life to leukemia is not acceptable. The mission of the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society does not include any acceptable loss percentages. The cure for leukemia and lymphoma will only be found through funded research and the lives of of those living with these diseases made better through advanced treatments and care. And the LLS needs my help, your help, all of our help.

Our family remembers the pain, the grief, and the sorrow of the loss of Mavrick. And our hearts, love, and deepest sympathy goes out to the family of Noah Kiser.

“Blood cancer research has always been a gateway to new therapies for all cancers. Of 39 new cancer drugs approved by the FDA in the past decade, almost half (19) were approved for patients with blood cancers. Five have already been approved and 13 are commonly used as treatments for other cancer patients. All 19 drugs are being tested for patients beyond those for whom they were first developed, including 11 that show promise for patients with solid tumors and non-malignant diseases. An investment in blood cancer research is an investment in all cancer.”

Another year has nearly come and gone. As we reflect back on 2011 and the patients and families that LLS has helped, there is much to be done to achieve our goal: creating a world without blood cancers.

Here are twelve reasons to support the patient programs, research initiatives, and advocacy efforts of LLS in 2012!

Donate today. Your gift will help LLS...

1. Ease the fears and give hope to newly diagnosed patients by linking them with others who have been through the same diagnosis or treatment.

2. Extend remissions with a new immunotherapy for CLL patients for whom standard chemotherapies do not work.

3. Predict and prevent serious bone damage that can occur after lymphoid cancer patients receive high steroid doses. A clinical trial is already testing one prevention strategy in young ALL patients.

4. Advocate on behalf of blood cancer patients to ensure that oral anti-cancer medications are covered under the same "medical benefit" provision as injected drugs rather than the less generous "pharmacy benefit."

5. Complete a Phase III clinical trial initiated by Onconova Therapeutics, Inc. that could lead to the FDA-approval of a new targeted drug for patients with myelodysplastic syndromes.

6. Continue investing in partnerships with commercial enterprises to move promising new therapies more quickly toward F.D.A. approval such as one currently being tested by Acetylon Pharmaceuticals for myeloma patients.

7. Develop state-of-the-art tests that measure the activities of various blood cancers, so that new therapies can be identified for patients who do not respond to standard treatments.

8. Advance clinical testing of a new drug that inhibits a molecule involved in certain aggressive lymphomas as well as leukemias that are particularly difficult to cure.

9. Sustain an alliance with Epizyme to develop a new targeted drug for patients with mixed lineage leukemia (MLL) against which today's standard therapies are largely ineffective.

10. Provide the most current, comprehensive disease information and treatment options to North Americans who receive the alarming news of a blood cancer diagnosis.

11. Ensure co-payment and financial assistance to patients who would be forced to choose between expensive treatments and essential needs when health insurance doesn't cover their therapies.

12. Partner with Avila Therapeutics on a clinical trial that advances a drug for B-cell leukemia and lymphoma patients that was originally developed for arthritis patients.

Donate today and help to create a world without blood cancers.

As we wrap up 2011 I have to say that it's been a fantastic year for me. Few years in my life have been filled with as much significant and beneficial change as has 2011. In 1982 I graduated high school and joined the USAF. In 1990 I became the father of a 3 year old baby girl named Tranette. In 1993 I married my soulmate, Dione. In 1997 and again in 2005 I became a new father. And then there's 2011.

There are three 2011 dates that will ever be etched in gold. January 7th. June 11th. December 4th.

January 7th, Abel Berry and I walked into a gym together for the first time. Abel had challenged me to go to the gym with him 3 days a week and just keep up with his work outs, though with lighter weights. This challenge was the catalyst that brought about the 2011 Word of the Year for me: Fitness. Less than a year later, and as most of you know, I'm 75 pounds lighter and no longer taking any meds for diabetes, blood pressure, or cholesterol. Less than a year later and I have accomplished fitness goals that far exceeded anything I set out to do. As strange as this may sound, that one small challenge from a guy I consider to be one of my best friends, quite literally saved my life.

June 11th, I visited my great-nephew in the hospital where he was fighting but ultimately losing the battle with leukemia. I resolved to become a fundraiser for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society and to run a half marathon in his honor/memory just as my dear friend Bea McKnight had done the week before with TEAM in Training in San Diego.

December 4th, I completed a 26.2 mile full marathon with TEAM in Training at the Dallas White Rock Marathon. Along the way I became a runner, developed cardiovascular and muscular endurance while completing 5K's, 10K's, a half marathon, but more importantly raising close to $5K to fund research and care for blood and lymph cancers. I befriended some of the most awesome people in the world and was inspired by their stories, their resolve, their strength, and their commitment to this cause. And I learned how many of us have been touched by these awful diseases.

To say 2011 was a banner year is an understatement. Never in my entire life did I want to run a marathon. And never would have I thought I could and would reclaim my youth and my health with a common sense diet and exercise. But I'm living proof that the human body is resilient and that the human will is strong.

As we close out 2011 I would be truly remiss if I didn't thank each and every one of you who contributed to my fundraising campaigns, who cheered me on along the way, and who simply cared enough to offer the kind words, the support, and the friendship.

Onward, upward - faster and further in 2012.

GO TEAM!!