Natalie Podsedly, of Dover, to participate in Boston Marathon Jimmy Fund Walk

For Natalie Podsedly, 12, of Dover, cancer is a terrible disease that has affected too many of her friends and family members. In 2008, her father, Mark, then 46, succumbed to a brain tumor. Her friend, Rich, beat testicular cancer and another friend, Dan, survived colon cancer. Her friends, Liz and Karen, as well as her grandmother, Nancy, are breast cancer survivors. Now, another dear friend she has known since kindergarten, Kira, is undergoing treatments for pediatric low grade astrocytoma (PLGA), or more simply put, she is battling three brain tumors. Kira is 12-years-old. The majority of Podsedly’s loved ones received treatments at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute.

As way to help current and future cancer patients, Podsedly will lace up her sneakers for the fourth consecutive year to participate in the Boston Marathon® Jimmy Fund Walk presented by Hyundai. On Sunday, Sept. 21, she will be among more than 8,500 people expected to walk in the 26th annual event to collectively raise more than $7.5 million for the Jimmy Fund for lifesaving adult and pediatric patient care and cancer research at Dana-Farber. Podsedly will tackle the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute three-mile route under the umbrella, Kira’s Kruisers, a returning team walking 59 members strong. Their goal is to raise $60,000 for PLGA research at Dana-Farber in honor of Kira.

According to Podsedly, current therapies for PLGA tumors destroy normal healthy cells in addition to cancer cells. The collateral damage to healthy cells in growing young children can be severe and in some cases irreparable. The PLGA research team is dedicated to the discovery of targeted therapeutics that spare normal cells in growing children and kill only the astrocytoma cells. For this reason, she and her team will do what they can to fund research enabling more treatment options to become available and hopefully one day a cure.

On the evening of Sept. 21, the Prudential Center and The Leonard P. Zakim Bunker Hill Bridge will glow in red and yellow to mark the 26th annual Boston Marathon Jimmy Fund Walk.

This year’s event will bring the Boston Marathon Jimmy Fund Walk’s 26-year fundraising total to more than $100 million. To register for the 26th annual Boston Marathon Jimmy Fund Walk presented by Hyundai (#JimmyFundWalk) on Sept. 21, or to support a walker, visit www.JimmyFundWalk.org or call (866) 531-9255. Registration is easy and walkers can enter the discount code NEWS for $5 off.