Pearl River Resident Named Honorary Team New Balance Ambassador for Komen North Jersey Race for the Cure

Laura Mazzella of Pearl River, NY to serve as Honorary Team New Balance Ambassador for the 9th Annual Susan G. Komen North Jersey Race for the Cure on May 1st

April 21, 2016 – Pearl River, NY resident Laura Mazzella will serve as the Honorary Team New Balance Ambassador at the 9th Annual Susan G. Komen North Jersey Race for the Cure on Sunday, May 1st. New Balance, a National Series Sponsor of the Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure®, formed Honorary Team New Balance in 1995 to celebrate stories of survival and recognize those who have made a difference in the fight against breast cancer. These members are honored for their personal perseverance against breast cancer and their dedication to raising breast cancer awareness. Annually, each Affiliate has the opportunity to choose a local survivor and to partner with the local retail New Balance.

Says Larry Gershberg, President of New Balance North Jersey, “For the past several years, New Balance North Jersey in Hasbrouck Heights has partnered with Komen North Jersey to bring greater awareness to the community about the Affiliate’s Race for the Cure, and the great work they are doing right here in our communities. New Balance honors and supports Laura Mazzella and Komen North Jersey in their fight to find a cure.” On Race Day, New Balance store manager Peter Rono, a renowned Kenyan athlete who was a Gold Medalist at the 1988 Summer Olympics, will have the honor of presenting Laura with the “official runner’s baton” (pink, of course) during a special Survivor & Forever Fighter Celebration.

Laura’s story is one that reinforces the message of breast cancer awareness. Because of her history of benign cysts and calcifications, she had been closely monitored since her late 30’s. She was diligent about breast care, and about getting regular mammograms. In November 2014, she noticed a lump while taking a shower. She immediately went to see her doctor, and had a mammogram. And then, Laura got “the phone call” that every survivor can remember with absolute clarity: the one telling her that she had breast cancer. She was 49 years old.

The diagnosis was invasive ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS). She had a lumpectomy and several lymph nodes were also removed. The nodes tested negative, which was some good news. But when the pathology report came back, she learned that they didn’t really “get it all” the first time. She underwent a second surgery, after which, the news was definitely good—she had clear margins—but follow-up treatment was recommended. Laura says she was surprised that the doctor expected her to make decisions about her course of treatment. “I didn’t like when the doctor gave me MY choice on what to do in terms of treatment,” says Laura. “I wanted someone to tell me what to do, not to give me options. But ultimately, you have to decide what is best for you and go with it.”

Laura finished her treatment just days before the May 3, 2015 Komen North Jersey Race for the Cure Her husband’s assistant, also a breast cancer survivor, encouraged Laura to “come out” as a survivor at the Race and be recognized, to be part of the Affiliate’s annual Survivor Celebration. “I thought it was very cool, but very emotional,” Laura said. “It’s a little overwhelming the first time, standing up there with all the survivors...”

Soon after, Laura began volunteering for the Komen North Jersey Affiliate and has become a dedicated worker and a passionate advocate in the fight against breast cancer. “I want women and men to realize that they need to know what’s normal for them,” she says. “And if they find anything different, they need to get checked right away. Don’t wait. It saved my life.”

For additional Race information, to register, volunteer, start a team, or make a donation, visit www.KomenNorthJersey.org/race, or call 908-277-2904. Follow us on Facebook and Twitter.

About the Susan G. Komen North Jersey Race for the Cure

The 2016 Susan G. Komen North Jersey Race for the Cure will be held at the Essex County South Mountain Recreation Complex in West Orange on Sunday, May 1, 2016 beginning at 7:00am. Highlights of Race Day include a 5K Official USATF Run (8:00am), Survivor Celebration (9:30am), 5K Walk, 1.5M Fun Walk (10:00am), exclusive Survivor & Forever Fighter Tent, a Sponsor Expo, Kids for the Cure® Color Run, entertainment, activities, and more. The annual event brings together thousands of people from northern New Jersey and beyond to raise funds that support life-saving breast cancer screening, breast health/breast cancer education, patient navigation, treatment support, and survivorship programs to underserved women and men in the Affiliate’s 9-county service region (Bergen, Essex, Hudson, Morris, Passaic, Somerset, Sussex, Union and Warren counties). Since its founding in 1997, Komen North Jersey has awarded over $16 million in local community grants, and has directed more than $7 million to the national research programs aimed at finding new and better treatment options and, ultimately, the causes and cures to eradicate breast cancer forever.