Dale Aram Tassbihi is a junior at  University of Maryland, College Park. In the summer of 2018, she will be traveling with a group of college-aged students on a 70-day, 4000+ mile ride from Baltimore, MD to Portland, OR raising money and awareness for the Ulman Cancer Fund for Young Adults.

What is your connection to the cancer community?

Cancer has always indirectly impacted my life because I’ve had distant relatives and family friends who have lost a long and hard battle to cancer before. It wasn’t until this year that someone in my family was diagnosed with cancer, and it changed my life forever. It was then when I truly realized you can’t take anyone or anything for granted. That special person was very lucky and immediately got surgery to remove it, but it was then when I realized how serious cancer is, and how we should not take our health or the people in our lives for granted.

Why are you traveling over 4000 miles this summer with the Ulman Cancer Fund for Young Adults?

I want to help make a difference in people’s lives. I can’t take my health for granted, so I want to use this privilege and help fundraise for and spread awareness about the Ulman Cancer Fund and what it is doing to help young adults fight cancer. I want to ride with the 4K for those who cannot. I also want to spend my summer with other passionate people who are dedicating their time to help those who are fighting cancer.

2018 marks the 17th year of the 4K for Cancer sending young adults on journeys across the country in an effort to inspire hope and unite communities in the fight against cancer. The 4K for Cancer is a program of The Ulman Cancer Fund for Young Adults (UCF). Interested in joining the fight? Apply to be a rider or runner a at www.4kforcancer.org! 

CHALLENGE:

Over 70,000 young adults are diagnosed with cancer every year. Young adults (ages 15-39) face a variety of unique challenges with a cancer diagnosis including fertility preservation, social isolation, lack of insurance, delayed diagnosis, and more. 

SOLUTION:

The Ulman Cancer Fund for Young Adults changes lives by creating a community of support for young adults, and their loved ones, impacted by cancer. With your support, the Ulman Cancer Fund is able to provide free support services and resources for the young adult cancer community including:

Cancer to 5K - a 12-week training program designed to introduce or reintroduce cancer survivors to physical activity.

Patient Navigation - a free program (onsite at cancer centers and remotely through our office) that ensures no young adult ever faces cancer alone. We provide one-on-one support & resources to young adults and their families to help them manage the cancer experience and long-term cancer survival.

Scholarships - a financial assistance program to help young adults continue their education after being affected by cancer through their own diagnosis or the diagnosis of a loved one.

UCF House - This year UCF broke ground on a “home away from home” to provide free housing for young adult cancer patients, and their caregivers, in East Baltimore. 

Your donation will help make these programs and our mission possible!