"You deserve to celebrate all of your birthdays during your life journey...Be proactive about your own health and schedule your check-up now!"
Nancy Coghlin
HISTORY
The Beginning...
In 2005, Jim Coghlin, Sr., Founder of the 15-40 Connection, sought a way to establish a permanent remembrance in honor of his friend, Mark Ungerer, who had died in 1995 from multiple myeloma. Prior to his death, Mark worked tirelessly to raise funds for cancer research and treatment in memory of his own son, David, who, in 1982 at the age of 16, succumbed to leukemia. Both Mark and David had been treated at Dana Farber Cancer Institute (DFCI) in Boston, MA, so Jim approached DFCI, and together they decided the best vehicle would be to establish an Endowed Fellowship to support the work of the Adolescent & Young Adult (AYA) Research Program created by Dana-Farber in 2004.
The goal of the AYA Program is to improve treatment options and outcomes for the 15-40-year-old age demographic. In just 18 months the Endowment was funded and Ungerer Fellows now work within the AYA Cancer Program at DFCI.
And then...
To help further advance research and care and respond to immediate needs, another account was established to support the AYA Cancer Program at Dana-Farber. This general purpose fund - Closing the AYA Gap Fund - is under the direction of Dr. Stephen Sallan, DFCI's Chief of Staff. When there is a specific need within the program - clinical, educational, or psychosocial - the funds are used.
Now...
Through these efforts and in speaking with medical professionals at DFCI, Jim learned of a shocking gap in survival rates for this particular age group - a gap which he was sure Mark would have taken action to close were he still with us today. Despite all of the cancer research advancements made since 1975, there was very little improvement in adolescent and young adult cancer survival rates. One of the primary reasons for this is a lack of awareness of cancer risk among this age group. This needs to change so now...
The 15-40 Connection is taking action.
