Hillman Cancer Center Annual Gala Goes Green and Raises Green

Destination Hope A Future Without Cancer Expected to Yield $6 Million for Patient Care and Cancer Research

PITTSBURGH, October 2, 2007 – The annual gala to support the Hillman Cancer Center is going green this year to emphasize the links between the environment and cancer, and the importance of cancer prevention. This year’s gala, Destination Hope A Future Without Cancer, will be held at 6 p.m., Thursday, Oct. 4, at Atlantic Aviation’s new hanger, formerly the FBO AvCenter, in Moon Township. The event will include 800 of Pittsburgh’s most influential community leaders, Broadway performers and a special performance by pop, jazz and blues singer Nancy Wilson, and will feature an organic menu and environmentally friendly and recycled products. The event is expected to raise $6 million in sponsorships and contributions for patient care and cancer research at the Hillman Cancer Center. Presenting sponsors are PNC and UPMC.

“The Heinz Endowments is proud that Pittsburgh is a leader in green thinking and design and that the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center and the University of Pittsburgh Cancer Institute are extending that leadership into the realm of environmental health,” said Teresa Heinz, philanthropist and honorary chair for this year’s gala. “Together, we are giving Pittsburgh some muscle to go with our highest hopes of arriving at the ultimate destination – a cancer-free world.”

The funds to be raised by the event include more than $1 million from Teresa Heinz and The Heinz Endowments for the University of Pittsburgh Cancer Institute’s Center for Environmental Oncology, $1 million from Harriett and Ronald B. Herberman, M.D., director, University of Pittsburgh Cancer Institute and UPMC Cancer Centers, $1 million from Elsie and Henry Hillman and the Hillman Foundations to fund innovative cancer research and $1 million from The David S. and Karen A. Shapira Foundation to establish the Frieda G. and Saul F. Shapira BRCA-Associated Cancer Research Program and Endowment.

The event’s general co-chairs are Susan and Michael Boyle and Bonnie and Tom VanKirk. Other long-time contributors to the Hillman Cancer Center who will join the event include UPMC President and CEO Jeffrey Romoff, University of Pittsburgh Cancer Institute Council Chairman Sy Holzer of PNC Financial Services Group and University of Pittsburgh Chancellor Mark Nordenberg.

Corporations offering support include Wheeler Brothers Inc., Buchanan Ingersoll & Rooney, Highmark Corp., United States Steel Corp. and Wabtec Corp.

World-renowned for innovative approaches to cancer prevention, detection and diagnosis, the Hillman Cancer Center is the flagship facility for both the University of Pittsburgh Cancer Institute and the UPMC Cancer Centers – a network of 43 office-based medical oncology practices and regional cancer centers that provide the highest standard of care for patients throughout western Pennsylvania.

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