Help Kevin raise money

On May 1st, I will be running my first marathon in the 31st annual Pittsburgh Marathon in honor of my grandmother who passed away in December. If you know me, you know that I like to set the bar high for myself and chase after my ambitions and goals like there's no tomorrow. It has always been a dream of mine to run a marathon. This was the perfect opportunity to do so, but I am not running for myself.

For this race, I have joined The American Cancer Society DetermiNation Team. This incredible team is comprised of people across the country who are devoted to becoming part of the driving force behind the fight against cancer. My ultimate goal is to bring hope and joy to the lives of cancer patients. I want to give them time to fulfill their aspirations, play a part in alleviating the financial burden of cancer-associated medical care, and give these individuals a chance to live their lives to the fullest. While I will be running for everyone, the fight against cancer also has a personal meaning to me.

In December, my grandmother passed away after a long battle with cancer. She played an important part in raising me, and she is the only grandparent I ever had the opportunity to truly get to know. Because of medical school and residency, I didn't have the chance to travel back to Taiwan and hadn't seen her in person in several years. She was one of the strongest people I know, having fought her way through metastatic lung cancer and gastric cancer.

This past June, I started my pediatrics residency at The Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh. In my time working to learn, grow, and become the best pediatrician I can be, I have had the privilege to care for and learn from the incredible children and families that we care for on our Oncology unit. Of the projected 1.9 million people in the U.S. who will be diagnosed with cancer in 2022 alone, around 15,000 are children. No child deserves to be given a diagnosis of cancer. These precious children are our past, present, and future. They should have the opportunity to celebrate countless birthdays, grow up, and pursue their own passions and desires.

The American Cancer Society is about more than just research towards a cure. It's about providing patient support, delivering invaluable education, funding treatments, alleviating general and medical expenses of families, and supporting continued efforts to bring more funding in to help these patients and their families.

Friends and family, you can truly make a difference. I ask that you please consider joining me in contributing to a cause bigger than ourselves to help those with cancer who are running their own marathons achieve their dreams.

You can find out more about The American Cancer Society DetermiNation Team here: https://www.cancer.org/involved/fundraise/determination.html