Ninth Annual ‘Swing Pink’ Supports Specialty and Cancer Care Pavilion

Breast Cancer Patient Shares Her Journey 'with a Grateful Heart'

Middletown, NJ, September 27, 2024 -The ninth annual Swing Pink fund-raiser held September 16^th at Navesink Country Club in Middletown raised more than $125,000 to benefit cancer services at Monmouth Medical Center's (MMC)Vogel Medical Campus in Tinton Falls. The five-story, 150,000-square-foot Specialty and Cancer Care Pavilion, located at the historic Fort Monmouth Myer Center site, is set to open in 2026.

Gathering at the Swing Pink luncheon from left are event Co-Chair Terry Ingram, Foundation Board Chair Claire Knopf, Medical Director of Breast Surgery Dr. Manpreet Kohli, keynote speaker Christy Mendes, Regional Vice President of Development Caitlin Olson, and President and CEO Eric Carney. Terry and Claire are also co-chairs of the Leon Hess Cancer Center Council.

Swing Pink, led by co-chairs Terry Ingram and Debbie O'Donoghue, and supported by the Leon Hess Cancer Center Council, was a day filled with activity, lunch, and celebration. An enthusiastic group of more than 175 attendees joined hospital leadership for the luncheon, which featured an update on MMC cancer services by Julie Chaudhuri, Vice President of Oncology Services for the RWJBarnabas Health Southern Region, which in addition to MMC includes Monmouth Medical Center Southern Campus in Lakewood and Community Medical Center in Toms River.

Highlighting a host of new offerings, Chaudhuri noted that "these advances are a direct result of the talent and attentiveness of our clinical staff and are a testament to the strength of our partnership with Rutgers Cancer Institute, New Jersey's only NCI-designated Comprehensive Cancer Center."

Members of the Swing Pink Committee gather for a group photo.

"We are now offering patients Bispecific Antibodies, an immunotherapy that helps the immune system beat cancer by recognizing and eliminating cancer cells, and the treatment PLUVICTO, the first and only Radioligand Therapy for patients with a specific kind of metastatic prostate cancer," she said. "This year we are also establishing a Breast Survivorship Clinic tailored to patients who have completed treatment. This service will provide patients with a holistic approach to address all long-term effects they may experience after their chemotherapy journey has ended."

Guest speaker for the event was grateful patient Christy Mendes, who shared her breast cancer journey, which included a double mastectomy and breast reconstruction surgery, since being diagnosed with breast cancer nine months ago. The 50-year-old mother to two teenage children, was referred by friends to MMC Medical Director of Breast Surgery Dr. Manpreet Kohli, who introduced Christy, noting: "Her positive attitude, kindheartedness and love of life and family have inspired me."

"We are so fortunate to have the best of the best right here, and you all are helping keep that alive," Christy. "Thank you all so much for supporting events like this because without your help the new facility wouldn't be underway."

Together with Rutgers Cancer Institute, MMC provides close-to-home access to the most advanced treatments, including clinical trials. To schedule an appointment or learn more, call 844-CANCERNJ. To learn more about giving opportunities at MMC, visit rwjbh.org/monmouth-medical-center/giving.

CONTACTS:

Elizabeth Brennan
732-923-5005
[email protected]

Kathy Horan
732-923-6632
[email protected]