About 120 of Steve Kelly’s closest friends honored his legacy March 24 at the 3rd Annual Kelly’s Heroes St. Patrick’s Day Party in East Windsor, N.J., raising $8,000 to support cancer research.

The money will support patient clinical trials and research into early detection and improved treatments at the Sidney Kimmel Comprehensive Cancer Center at Johns Hopkins, where Steve Kelly was a patient and a clinical trial hero.

“Steve would be humbled to know what he has inspired,” said his wife Kerry McKean Kelly. “Pancreatic cancer has a five-year survival rate of just 9 percent and is projected to become the second leading cause of cancer death by 2020. The standard of care for pancreatic cancer just isn’t good enough. We need to do better, we need to demand better, and we can’t do it without you.”

The fund raiser carries on a Steve Kelly tradition, whose annual St. Patrick’s Day parties featured Irish music and dancing, a golf contest and March Madness on TV for more than 20 years. Joining the festivities this year were dancers from the Denogla-Ardmore School of Irish Dance and the band Ballycastle.

A portion of the proceeds will also provide two $500 scholarships for graduating seniors at Hightstown High School and Notre Dame High School who plan to pursue nursing or other healthcare studies. Visit the Photos page to view a photo gallery of this year’s event. 

Join the Kelly’s Heroes March Madness pool – it’s fun and it’s free! Who needs cash winnings when you could nab a Kelly’s Heroes prize pack and a year of bragging rights?

The reigning champ is Steve Kelly protégé Kacey Kelly. Who’s in this year? To join the fun, go to http://games.espn.com/tournament-challenge-bracket/2018/en/groupfind, search All Groups for Kellys Heroes. Our password is “HOPE.”

Be sure to track the standings throughout the tourney on Facebook at www.facebook.com/1kellysheroes .

Discounted pricing ends March 14 for the 3rd Annual Kelly’s Heroes St. Patrick’s Day, being held March 24 at the Hightstown American Legion. It’s a party with a purpose – your support benefits clinical trials for patients facing pancreatic cancer and scholarships for local students pursuing healthcare careers.

Brand new this year is live music from Ballycastle, plus we’re bringing back the ever-popular Irish buffet catered by Killarney’s, cash bar, Irish dancers, raffle baskets and March Madness on TV.

Date: March 24, 7 – 11 p.m.

Place: Hightstown American Legion, 895 Route 130

Registration: $30 if purchased by March 14, $35 after that date. Go to our Join Us page to print our mail-in flier or register securely online via PayPal

Here’s the exciting research under way from Kelly’s Heroes-funded cancer researchers, as reported in Pillars of Progress, the 2017 Year in Review from the Sidney Kimmel Comprehensive Cancer Center at Johns Hopkins:

• Lei Zhang, MD, PhD, collaborated with colleagues on a new treatment approach which aims to make currently incurable pancreatic cancer curable. About 40 percent of pancreatic cancer patients are diagnosed when the cancer has begun to attach itself to tissue and vessels around the pancreas, often removing surgery as an option. Dr. Zheng’s research involved standard anticancer drugs to stabilize the cancer, followed by a pancreatic cancer vaccine and an immune checkpoint inhibitor. Patients also will receive radiation therapy. The investigators believe the combined therapy will kill cancer cells outright and also awaken the immune system to attack the cancer, making surgery possible, followed by chemotherapy and more immunotherapy.
• Dung Le, MD, led a clinical trial that resulted in FDA approval of the drug pembrolizumab. Dr. Le and investigators linked a DNA spell-check-like error, known as mismatch repair deficiency, to response to immunotherapy. The new drug is used to treat patients whose cancers contain this genetic repair defect.
• Bert Vogelstein, MD, is part of a team of researchers that invented a new type of cancer drug called MANAbodies. Although still experimental, this first-of-its kind immunotherapy targets the proteins from the abnormal gene mutations that drive cancer growth. It’s a mix of cancer immunology and cancer genetics in which the researchers take the cancer-specific genetic mistakes that “hide” within cancer cells and transform them into red flags that can be recognized by the MANAbodies.

Slainte! That’s Irish for good health, and that’s the hope we hold for anyone facing pancreatic cancer. Kelly’s Heroes’ 3rd Annual St. Patrick’s Day Party March 24 benefits clinical trials for patients facing pancreatic cancer and scholarships for local students pursuing healthcare careers.

Brand new this year is live music from Ballycastle, plus we’re bringing back the ever-popular Irish buffet catered by Killarney’s, cash bar, Irish dancers, raffle baskets and March Madness on TV. Go Green with us!

Date: March 24, 7 – 11 p.m.

Place: Hightstown American Legion, 895 Route 130

Registration: $30 if purchased by March 14, $35 after that date. Go to our Join Us page to print our mail-in flier or register securely online via PayPal

Thank you for waging hope with us! To learn more about how your support helps increase awareness and funds research for greater survival, check out our 2017 Year in Review.

What can a band of motivated people inspired by the cancer fight of one individual accomplish together? Find out in Thanks to Your Support…our 2017 year-in-review.

Kelly’s Heroes along with its donors, volunteers and sponsors raised thousands of dollars for cancer research, increased awareness of pancreatic cancer and its symptoms and donated to worthy local causes, carrying on Steve Kelly’s fierce hope for better outcomes for those facing pancreatic cancer.

With your help, our efforts this year included:

• Gathering for good, with our annual St. Patrick’s Day Party and Teed Off! Golf Outing raising more than $20,000. We also fielded two teams at PurpleStride in support of the Pancreatic Cancer Action Network.
• Supporting research, with our fund-raising efforts donated to patient clinical trials and research at the Sidney Kimmel Comprehensive Cancer Center at Johns Hopkins, where Steve Kelly participated in two clinical trials. Kelly’s Heroes-supported researchers Bert Vogelstein, Dung Le, MD, and Lei Zheng, MD, are leading efforts in areas such as introduction of Keytruda, the first immunotherapy drug accepted to the mass market for several types of cancer including a specific type of pancreatic cancer, and development of a liquid biopsy to increase early detection.
• Joining a global effort, through our membership in the World Pancreatic Cancer Coalition. Kelly’s Heroes attended the annual conference of this global partnership of nonprofits and joined in the planning and execution of World Pancreatic Cancer Day to raise awareness of the third leading cause of cancer death and educate people about its symptoms.
• Engaging our local community, with donations of gift cards for cancer patients in need at Rutgers Cancer Institute of New Jersey and scholarships to local high school students pursuing healthcare careers.

Thank you for waging hope with us!

Many cancer patients face financial troubles as they battle their illness through long treatment regimens. Kelly’s Heroes is doing its small part to help this holiday season by donating $500 in gift cards to the Rutgers Cancer Institute of New Jersey. The gift cards will be distributed to cancer patients in need to help them defray expenses like meals and gas.

“I can’t thank you enough for your generous support of our program,” said social worker Lauren Kriegel. “Your donation will help to brighten the holidays of our patients.”

Nov. 16 is World Pancreatic Cancer Day, and Kelly’s Heroes is raising awareness along with our fellow members of the World Pancreatic Cancer Coalition.

Pancreatic cancer is the third leading cause of cancer death, with a five-year survival rate of just 9 percent in the United States. Each day an average of 1,000 people are diagnosed with pancreatic cancer, and 985 of them will die. With statistics like those, this year’s theme for World Pancreatic Cancer Day is “Demand Better.”

How can you help?

• Wear purple Nov. 16 to show your support, and if you get the opportunity, tell people that you’re wearing purple to increase awareness of the deadliest of all major cancers. Take a photo of yourself in purple and post it to Kelly’s Heroes on Twitter @1kellysheroes or on Facebook at Kelly’s Heroes: Fighting Pancreatic Cancer, and Kerry Kelly will donate $5 for every photo.
• Learn about the symptoms and risk factors of pancreatic cancer. We need more people to be “pancreatic cancer aware” to improve early detection. The symptoms of pancreatic cancer include abdominal or back pain, sudden weight loss, jaundice, bloating, indigestion and new onset diabetes. Risk factors can include obesity, smoking and family history. Be your own advocate and push for answers if you are ill and experience these symptoms. People diagnosed early, before the cancer has spread, are candidates for surgery which greatly increases the chances for survival.
• Spread the word. Despite the great toll pancreatic cancer takes — more than 40,000 deaths in the United States each year — it’s often one of the overlooked cancers in terms of awareness and research funding. Visit worldpancreaticcancerday.org to learn more about the global effort to demand better, for patients, for survival.

November is Pancreatic Cancer Awareness Month, and we’re waging hope with the help of local restaurants in Hightstown and East Windsor, N.J. In Our Dine Out for Early Detection event, just enjoy a great meal at participating restaurants, show our flier, and a portion of your dinner tab will be donated to Kelly’s Heroes to promote pancreatic cancer research.

[Download our Dine Out for Early Detection flier]

All proceeds will be devoted to research at academic medical centers working to develop an early detection test. Pancreatic cancer is the third leading cause of cancer death, with a five-year survival rate of just 9 percent. The chances of survival increase dramatically if the cancer is caught early, but unfortunately there is no reliable screening test for pancreatic cancer.

Following are the locations and dates of the generous, community-minded restaurants that are participating:

• Nov. 2, 5-9 p.m., 12 Farms, 120 N. Main Street, Hightstown
• Nov. 7, 7 a.m.-4 p.m., Byrnes Deli, 117 W. Ward Street, Hightstown
• Nov. 8, Charlie Browns, 60 Princeton-Hightstown Road, East Windsor
• Nov. 19, TGIFridays, 319 US Route 130, East Windsor

Kelly’s Heroes is an East Windsor-based 501c3 inspired by Steve Kelly, who participated in two clinical trials to advance pancreatic cancer research. His cancer fight provides a legacy of hope for others facing this deadly disease.

Kelly’s Heroes Teed Off! Golf Outing Oct. 16 raised more than $11,000 to support pancreatic cancer research, thanks to the generous support of golfers, sponsors, donors and others who continue to wage hope in Steve Kelly’s memory.

This year’s total, along with the 85 golfers, marks a new high for the Teed Off! Golf Outing, now in its third year at Mercer Oaks in Princeton Junction, N.J.

Congratulations to the winning foursome of Bob Sobkowiak, Charles Spencer, Mike Reardon and Rich Puntillo, along with Kelly’s Heroes Board member Rich Harbison who kept the tradition alive by winning Steve Kelly’s famous green jacket for coming closest to the pin on hole eight.

Thanks also to our Ace sponsors Blue Rock Construction and Pennsylvania Steel Co., along with Birdie sponsors Habib Law and Bob and Lauren Cottone, for their generous support.

Kelly’s Heroes’ is an all-volunteer organization, and 100 percent of the proceeds will benefit pancreatic cancer research led by Drs. Bert Vogelstein, Dung Le and Lei Zheng, Steve Kelly’s physician team at the Sidney Kimmel Comprehensive Cancer Center at Johns Hopkins, among the world’s preeminent cancer researchers.