Colin Failey, MD, a plastic surgeon with The Peer Group for Plastic Surgery, is the Titanium Sponsor of the 13th Annual Steeplechase Distance Run, which will be held Sunday, Sept. 26 at Amsterdam School in Hillsborough and as a virtual event to raise funds for the Steeplechase Cancer Center at Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital Somerset, an RWJBarnabas Health facility.
Dr. Failey, who is chief of plastic surgery at Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital Somerset and is a member of the Steeplechase Cancer Center’s multidisciplinary breast cancer team, has supported the run for the past five years. Through this year’s sponsorship, patients at the Steeplechase Cancer Center will be able to run or walk at the event free of charge.
“The Steeplechase Cancer Center’s collaborative approach provides an exceptional level of cancer care to our community,” said Dr. Failey. “Having all health care providers in one location who meet to review and discuss new cancer cases ensures the best possible outcomes for patients. I encourage my colleagues and members of the community to join me in supporting the Steeplechase Distance Run to help further advance the services we offer to patients and their families.”
Coordinated by Somerset Health Care Foundation, the Steeplechase Distance Run includes 10K and 5K runs on a USA Track & Field certified course as well as a 2-mile walk and kids’ sprints. Participants can also support the event virtually by running or walking on their own.
Proceeds from the event will benefit educational and support programs and a patient assistance fund at the Steeplechase Cancer Center. The patient assistance fund is used to arrange transportation for cancer patients to get to and from their medical appointments and for cancer patients’ supportive needs, including financial assistance for wigs and prostheses offered at the cancer center’s Sanofi US Wellness Boutique; groceries; medications; house cleaning services and other living expenses.
Together with Rutgers Cancer Institute of New Jersey, the Steeplechase Cancer Center provides the latest cancer treatment options close to home. The three-story, 63,000-square-foot facility, which opened in 2007, houses radiation therapy services, a PET/CT, infusion therapy, breast imaging services, the hospital’s research team, oncologists’ and surgeons’ offices, nutritional counseling, a smoking cessation program, genetic testing services, patient navigator services, a patient resource library, the Sanofi US Wellness Boutique and complementary medicine services, such as yoga, meditation and wellness classes.
On race day, check-in begins at 7:30 a.m. The 10K run starts at 8:45 a.m. followed by the 5K run and 2-Mile Walk at 9:30 a.m. Kids’ sprints are scheduled for 10:45 a.m. The event will be held rain or shine.
Registration for the Steeplechase Distance Run is $30 for adults before Sept. 22. After Sept. 22, registration is $33. Children age 15 and under may register for $15. Entry fee for the kids’ sprints is $10.
Advance registration is required. No registration will be available at the event. To register, go to www.SteeplechaseDistanceRun.com.