Record crowd attends Bassett Cancer Survivors' Day

Cooperstown, N.Y. – A record crowd turned out for the twelfth annual Cancer Survivors’ Day celebration at the Bassett Medical Center in Cooperstown. Around 340 cancer survivors, their families and friends celebrated life on National Cancer Survivors’ Day, held locally on Sunday, June 6 at a family-style barbecue held in their honor at the Bassett Clinic building on River St. in Cooperstown. Balloon Extravaganza and face painting delighted children and adults alike. 

“Every year the event has grown, and it’s an acknowledgement that we are winning the war on cancer,” James Leonardo, M.D., Ph.D., division chief hematology/oncology at Bassett, told the attendees. “And the fact that you’re all here is another acknowledgement we’re winning the war on cancer.”

“This is my first time attending and it’s great to see so many people here,” said photographer Brandy Brodie, 22, who is living with liver cancer caused by Von Hippel-Lindau Syndrome, a rare blood disorder. “I would like to encourage people, when they are able, to participate in clinical trials to help fight cancer.”

Every attending cancer survivor received give aways or gift certificates from the following sponsors:
The American Hotel, Bristol-Myers Squibb, CVS/pharmacy and Mohican Flowers.

Cancer Survivors’ Day is important as it highlights that living a fulfilling life after receiving a diagnosis of cancer is possible and that there is support for cancer survivors and the people that care about them.