Asante Foundation to host Walk for Hope on October 5

Asante Foundation will host the third annual Walk for Hope, a community event to honor and celebrate cancer survivors, caregivers and families, on Saturday, Oct. 5 at the Mary and Dick Heimann Cancer Center in Medford.

This event is free for participants; all are welcome to join in a 1.5-mile walk around Asante Rogue Regional Medical Center's campus. The day begins with registration at 9:30 a.m., followed by an opening ceremony at 11 a.m. and concludes with a finish line celebration featuring music by Rogue Suspects, local food trucks and fun activities for the entire family.

"We are grateful to our sponsors for making this event a reality. Your support brings us together, creating a vibrant and engaged community united by a shared purpose. This is more than just an event—it's a celebration of what we can achieve together. We hope you'll join us," said Andrea Reeder, Asante's Senior Vice President and Chief Philanthropy Officer.

Because of philanthropy, Mary and Dick Heimann Cancer Center and the expanded the Helen K. Spears Cancer Center in Grants Pass opened in 2022. Since then, patients have visited the facilities more than 400,000 times. These cancer centers provide comprehensive services - imaging, labs, pharmacy, doctors' offices and treatments, along with support like social work, nutrition, massage and palliative care - all in one convenient location.

Asante's services continue to grow, serving a nine-county region in southern Oregon and northern California.

• Heimann Medical Chair Dr. Mujahid Rizvi was recently published in American Cancer Society's Cancer and ASCO's Journal of Clinical Oncology for efforts in clinical research for rural communities. With community support, Asante is increasing access to clinical trials for patients in our region.

• A new PSMA PET scan has allowed more than 300 prostate cancer patients to get their scan done locally, saving them a trip to Eugene or San Francisco.

• Pluvicto targets PSMA+ prostate cancer cells in men with advanced cancer. Asante is the only facility to offer this treatment south of Eugene and north of Napa, Calif.

• A new, organ-sparing option for treatment is available to some rectal cancer patients. Thanks to donations and additional training, staff can monitor them with MRI scans and frequent colonoscopies instead of surgery.

• The Heimann Cancer Center's new TrueBeam linear accelerator targets cancer in the brain, spine and elsewhere using highly precise radiation, saving healthy tissue. Thanks to community support, a second TrueBeam device will be added to the Spears Cancer Center in Grants Pass later this year.

• Asante is also the region's home for pediatric cancer treatment in the new Olsrud family Women's and Children's Hospital at Asante Rogue Regional.

Walk for Hope sponsorships and donations directly support cancer services, helping provide critical support and resources to those who are facing cancer. For more information or to register, visit www.asantefoundation.org/walk-for-hope/ or call (541) 789-5025.

About Asante Foundation

For more than 60 years, philanthropy has helped Asante provide and enhance health care for communities throughout Southern Oregon and Northern California. Asante Foundation, the philanthropic arm of Asante, a local, community-owned and governed not-for-profit health system, is an integral partner in Asante's vision to be your trusted health partner for life - every person, every time. In 2019, Asante Foundation embarked on the largest philanthropic endeavor attempted in our region called AsanteForward. With an original goal of $50 million, the campaign has surpassed $67 million thanks to nearly 10,000 community members who contributed, donating their hard-earned money to strengthen their local, nonprofit health system. The transformation continues through an expansion of the campaign—AsanteForward2030. AsanteForward2030 is a comprehensive campaign, with three main initiatives and several other ongoing opportunities. To learn more, please visit asantefoundation.org.

Asante is a local, community-owned and governed not-for-profit organization with nearly 6,000 employees who provide medical care to nearly 600,000 people in a nine-county area of Southern Oregon and Northern California. It includes Asante Ashland Community Hospital, Asante Physician Partners, Asante Rogue Regional Medical Center in Medford, Asante Three Rivers Medical Center in Grants Pass, and additional health care partnerships throughout the region.