Fifth Annual “5K Run for the Future” Raises More Than $70,000 for ROI

Newswise — Fairfax, Va., October 16, 2014 – The fifth annual “5K Run for the Future” set new records during the September 15, 2014 event held at Golden Gate Park in San Francisco—220 runners participated, including six teams from academic institutions, and more than $70,000 was raised to support the Radiation Oncology Institute (ROI). The 2014 total is nearly triple 2013’s record of $24,000. Donations were generated through runners’ registration fees and fundraising, as well as corporate sponsorships. The five-year total (2010-2014) raised for the ROI by the Race now stands at more than $150,000.

The 2014 Race included a new “Academic Team Challenge,” whereby institutional teams competed for a $1,000 academic scholarship. Each team’s top three runners’ times were averaged for a Total Team Time. Team Mayo Clinic won the challenge with the fastest Total Team Time of 20:35.

The top two 2014 individual winners, male and female, were Matt McCurdy, MD, PhD, of the Marshfield Clinic in Marshfield, Wisconsin, with a time of 15:52, and Megan Daly, MD, of the UC Davis Comprehensive Cancer Center in Davis, California, with a time of 18:55.

Held each year on the Monday of the Annual Meeting of the American Society for Radiation Oncology (ASTRO) in the Meeting’s host city, the “5K Run for the Future” was held previously in Atlanta (2013), Boston (2012), Miami (2011) and San Diego (2010). Runners include radiation oncology physicians, medical students and other members of the radiation oncology treatment team, as well as radiation oncology industry leaders.

“Thank you to all of the runners, supporters and sponsors of this fun and exciting race, particularly Radiation Business Solutions for their leadership of this event,” said Theodore S. Lawrence, MD, PhD, FASTRO, president of the ROI Board of Trustees. “It is extraordinary to witness the growth of the race this year, and we appreciate the generous support it generates for the ROI. Each dollar raised for the ROI strengthens our ability to support critical radiation oncology research that will improve patient outcomes and sustain the specialty for years to come.”

The “5K Run for the Future” is hosted and organized each year by Radiation Business Solutions, and all proceeds from the Race are donated to the ROI. The 2014 event was also sponsored by Elekta Inc., Varian Medical Systems, AE Design and Northwest Medical Physics Center. ABOUT ROIThe Radiation Oncology Institute (ROI) is a non-profit, 501 (c)(3) foundation created in 2006 by the American Society for Radiation Oncology (ASTRO) Board of Directors to support research and education efforts around the world that enhance and confirm the critical role of radiation therapy in improving cancer treatment. ROI strategically funds research on new and existing radiation therapy treatments to identify links between best practices and improved outcomes, to evaluate the efficacy and cost-benefit of radiation therapy and to foster multi-institutional research in radiation oncology. For more information, visit www.roinstitute.org. ###