On October 15 th , 700 of Chicago’s business and civic leaders gathered at the Hilton Chicago for the Harold E. Eisenberg Foundation’s 21st Annual Dinner. The event raised $490,000 to benefit the foundation’s two-pronged mission of funding gastrointestinal (GI) cancer research and advancing real estate education.
The Foundation celebrated GI cancer survivors who have benefitted from the Foundation’s $1.5 million commitment to fund the Harold E. Eisenberg Foundation GI Cancer OncoSET program and other research initiatives at the Robert H. Lurie Comprehensive Cancer Center at Northwestern University. The OncoSET program is an unprecedented initiative to deliver personalized cancer treatments to patients with very limited options.
One of these survivors, Kyle Davis, shared his personal journey with GI cancer. Nearly one year ago to the date, Kyle was diagnosed with stage IV pancreatic cancer that had spread to his liver. Working with the doctors at Lurie Comprehensive Cancer Center at Northwestern and learning about the genetic makeup of his specific tumor, Kyle was able to discover a treatment plan that has given him options that were never before possible.
On the real estate education side, the Eisenberg Foundation offers 15 education programs, has impacted thousands of students and invested nearly $500,000 in scholarships and programming to advance the careers of young real estate talent. This year’s deserving student scholarship winners were recognized and congratulated by the Foundation’s first ever scholarship recipient 19 years ago.
“We are so grateful for the support of our board members, sponsors and the commercial real estate industry who continue to push us forward in our work to fight GI cancer through cutting-edge personalized medicine,” said executive director, Katie Wales. “The reality is that one in five people who receive a cancer diagnosis will learn that it is categorized as a GI cancer. This means that there is still so much work to do. The Harold E. Eisenberg Foundation and it’s supporters are determined to push forward in the world of cancer research, providing patients with new and more effective treatment options.”
The Harold E. Eisenberg Foundation, along with event chair, Kevin Wolfberg and vice-chair, Elizabeth O-Brien, would like to thank the evening’s presenting sponsor, Wintrust, as well as premier sponsors, NARE and Old Second Bank.
