Lustgarten walk for pancreatic cancer at Jones Beach inspires hope for a cure

When Janice Canfield was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer, her mind was racing, she recalled.

It was September 2022, and the nurse practitioner had started building her dream house in East Hampton.

"It felt like a cruel joke," Canfield, 58, remembered.

Two years later, Canfield is now in remission and participates in fundraisers for pancreatic cancer. On Sunday, she was among 2,000 who attended the 24th annual Long Island Walk for Pancreatic Cancer Research at Jones Beach State Park that is organized by the Uniondale-based Lustgarten Foundation. 

On Sunday, Canfield stood on a stage looking out over a sea of purple — the color associated with fighting pancreatic cancer. 

To the thousands of supporters standing before her, she said: "Cancer is strong, but I am stronger."

More than 2,000 people attended Sunday's walk. There are now more than 25 Lustgarten walks across the country. The Long Island walk, which is the largest of the year, raised at least $680,000, officials said Sunday afternoon.

The Lustgarten Foundation was established in 1998 to advance pancreatic cancer research after Marc Lustgarten, a 51-year-old vice chairman of Cablevision, was diagnosed with the disease. He died in 1999.

"The walk was organized to raise money for research in the hope that no other family would have to go through what the Lustgartens went through," said Linda Tantawi, CEO of the Lustgarten Foundation. "At the time, there was so little work being done in pancreas cancer research that we, the foundation, really did need to raise awareness of the disease and of the need to fund research."

The foundation raises over $20 million for pancreatic cancer research each year, Tantawi said.

Pancreatic cancer forms in the tissue of the pancreas, a thin pear-shaped gland about 6 inches long that lies between the stomach and the spine. It can cause symptoms such as jaundice, pain and weight loss.

About 66,440 people in the U.S. will likely be diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in 2024, according to the American Cancer Society, and about 51,750 will die of the disease.

Pancreatic cancer is the third-leading cause of cancer-related death in the United States, according to the National Cancer Institute. The 5-year relative survival rate for pancreatic cancer is 13%.

For Robert Bedford, 45, of Garden City, the Lustgarten walk gives him and his family "an opportunity to do something to try and give back, and try to come up with a solution." He has been participating in the walk since 2011, the year his brother Brian, who was 36, died of pancreatic cancer.

It helps the Bedfords "feel like we're doing something in response to losing Brian," he said.

Robert Maloney, 81, of Floral Park, has also been attending the Lustgarten walk for years. He carried a tattered sign Sunday, with lower numbers crossed off, indicating he's been cancer-free for 15 years. 

The support at these events is significant, he said.

"It brings you hope," he said.

On Sunday, Canfield reflected on the last two years. Her family stood nearby, in matching purple shirts with penguins — a reference to a trip she took with her daughter to Antarctica earlier this year. They were supposed to visit the continent in January 2023, but they had to postpone so Janice Canfield could undergo treatment.

"If there's one message I could get out to anybody who's going through this diagnosis ... you have to really fight this disease with everything you've got," she said in an interview. "You just have to fight, because no one's going to fight harder for you than you."

By Brianne Ledda

brianne.ledda@newsday.com@brianne_ledda

Brianne Ledda covers the Town of Islip for Newsday. She previously covered Southold and Greenport for The Suffolk Times and is a graduate of Stony Brook University.