On the 25th of July Tom Peled will land in LA and start the bike journey that will end on October 21st in NYC. Throughout the 3000 miles of the journey he’ll pass through Jewish communities, Campuses and Sporting events and hold fundraising events-all for the benefit of the Israel Cancer Research Fund.
Prof. Eshel Ben-Jacob, a Tel Aviv University Physics researcher, suggests to use the cyber zone in the battle against one of the body's deadliest enemies — cancer. Like bacteria, cancer cells rely on communication and "social networking" to become powerful entities within the body, and the study of this cell-to-cell communication can pave the way for the development of novel therapeutic approaches
By Lesley Lanir
Bike For the Fight (BFF) CEO, Tom Peled has arrived in Los Angeles to begin his last preparations before he starts his 3000 mile bike journey across the US. He’ll be accompanied by Eran Rozen, 24, who will be driving, Roey Peleg, 27, a medic and professional athlete - also riding, and film student Luca Seres, 23, who will be making a documentary about the trip.
Chatting with Abbanibi.com before he left, Tom said his last few days in Israel were hectic but amazing and they included a party of over 300 people in Tel Aviv attended by David Broza and Daniel Salomon and finished off with a bike ride on Tuesday afternoon with a 100 young people in Israel on the Taglit Birthright Israel program. The group cycled from Ben Gurion’s tomb to his house in Sede Boker where Tom gave a talk about his journey and reasons for arranging this fund raising trip.
Monies raised so far have reached around US$40,000 almost enough to fund two young cancer research scientists.
When asked what his hopes are for the trip Tom said: "For people to get involved, get active, support us in any way they can by donating and attending our events. No matter how little, every bit counts."
So check out Tom’s route on Abbanibi.com and Facebook, keep up with his Bike for the Fight against cancer and try to pop into any of the events that’ll be happening on his way.
Updated news will be posted here frequently and you can catch up with Tom and his team on Facebook.
Jeffrey Halpern, a post-doctoral student at Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland, believes catching cancer in its early stages could be as simple as breathing into a tube, and intends to spend 20 months in Israel starting January 2013, to prove it
Prof. Asaf Friedler and other cientists in Jerusalem's Hebrew University's Institute of Chemistry have come up with a way to trigger the death of human cancer cells, raising the possibility that the technique might one day be used to treat cancer, by causing cancer cells to disassemble (and kill) themselves
Israeli scientists collaborated on the research that may bring about advancement in cancer treatment. The findings, which were led by Chen Hener-Katz, a Hebrew University graduate student, included the discovery of a protein (MTCH2) that is key to delaying cell death. According to the Weizmann Institute Update on Cancer Research "scientists can use this newly gained knowledge to devise novel therapeutic methods"
An Israeli biomedical company, IceCure Medical recently announced the first four breast cancer patients treated with the IceSense3 Cryoablation Procedure, which freezes the tumor to death, in Japan. The IceSense3 System was used to treat small breast cancer tumors in a minimally invasive procedure using ultrasound guidance and local anesthesia
My father, Ramy Peled, was an incredible and extraordinary person, admired by everyone he met; he had an exuberant and optimistic personality. Tragedy fell on our family when in 2002 my father was diagnosed with an incurable and rare cancer of the stomach membrane. In Israel only 5 people are diagnosed with this type of cancer each year and the average lifespan is only a few months. My father was not ready to give up- and even during the most difficult periods, he did not lose hope, maintaining constant faith that he could overcome the disease. He bravely battled the disease, enduring several extensive surgeries and hospitalizations.
Sadly, after 8 long years of struggle, his body simply did not have any more power to go on and In January 2011 my father passed away.
You can imagine that after my father's passing I went through a very hard time- unsure of how to move forward in a world without my father.
I felt the only way I could get out of the bad situation I was in and channel my despair into something positive was by undertaking a mental and physical challenge, and in the summer of 2011, I decided to bike solo across Europe, without any sort of predefined route, This journey took me 3 months through 6 countries and across more than 3000 miles.
Throughout the trip, I was surrounded by constant love and encouragement from my friends and family. However, what I found to be truly remarkable and unexpected was the warm and enthusiastic response of local residents who I met along the way. These strangers became fast friends, assisting me in completing my challenge.
As my journey through Europe came to a close, I felt - this can't be the end! The strong feeling of accomplishment and help in overcoming my loss that the journey gave me couldn't be kept to myself! I wanted to challenge myself again, but this time for a higher purpose with personal significance - something that would benefit the community.
I came back to Israel and started the BIKE FOR THE FIGHT project, with the objective being to bike across the USA from Los Angeles to New York(August 1st untill October 24th) to raise money for cancer research in Israel. During the bike ride, I will be passing through Jewish communities, summer camps, and major sporting events and by telling people my personal story I hope to encourage others to join my cause by donating money or joining a part of my trip across America.
It is important to mention that ALL the money that I will collect will be donated to the ICRF-the Israel Cancer Research Fund, an organization whose sole purpose is to support cancer research in Israel for the benefit of Israelis and all mankind. Since 1975 ICRF has donated more than $40 million to support innovative studies by Israeli scientists, with many lifesaving achievements being made in all fields of cancer research.
I'm currently working endlessly to make BIKE FOR THE FIGHT a truly huge success and the progress that has been made so far Is truly extraordinary. I have made strong partnerships and received a lot of help from organizations such as Macabi World Organization,(coordinating and helping plan events) Hillel(planning events on campuses)the Israeli Embassy(publicity in Israeli and American media) ELAL(flight tickets and publicity), Microsoft Israel(developing a BFF APP for smartphones) just to name a few. I have also met with President Shimon Peres and got his blessing for the project! My journey and fundraising efforts will commence with a bike trip in Israel where riders will kick-start the "Save A Life Day" events, hosted by the Rothschild Foundation on June 4th 2012.
I know my father is watching over me with this project, and knowing the man he was, he would say that if through his death and sacrifice other people will be saved from this horrible disease it was worth it. I hope you can find a way to take part in my journey and bring BIKE FOR THE FIGHT into your community.
Thank you,
Tom Peled
Prof. Rony Seger of the Weizmann Institute's Biological Regulation Department have managed to decipher and block one type of molecular message that prompts unbridled cellular growth that occurs in a numerous types of cancer. Seger's findings are currently being considered for future biotechnological applications
A new research led by Weizmann Institute scientists may have found the answer to the question why cancer can return long after all tumors have been defeated - at least for one type of blood cancer.
A study has found that Treanda, a cancer drug of the Israeli Teva Pharmaceutical Industries worked better than a standard therapy to slow the growth of immune system tumors, and had fewer side effects, according to results released at the American Society of Clinical Oncology meeting in Chicago
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