Thousands of Hospital Employees Celebrate Renowned Cancer Researcher

Tuesday, June 03, 2008

Annual Gala Raises $4 Million to Support Hospital Programs

Flushing, New York - Last night, New York Hospital Queens, one of the largest medical institutions in the borough of Queens, raised $4 million with its 13th annual A Spring Night Gala, which took place at the New York State Theater at Lincoln Center.  The evening included a private performance by 12-time Grammy Award winner Diana Ross.

More than 2,600 of New York Hospital Queens’ employees, family, and friends joined together to celebrate the late Judah Folkman, M.D., a towering figure in medical history and one of this century’s greatest cancer warriors. Dr. Folkman was posthumously awarded the Pacesetter Award, the hospital’s highest honor, for his extraordinary scientific contributions to cancer research.

Dr. Folkman’s involvement in cancer research began in the 1960s, when he observed that cancer tumors appeared to be surrounded by blood vessels that nourish their growth. The entire medical community thought the secrets to understanding cancer lay within the cancer cell itself. Dr. Folkman continued to look outside the cell and argued that it was possible to starve cancer cells to death by stopping blood vessel growth. Over the next 30 years, Dr. Folkman succeeded in identifying several proteins like the drug endostatin that inhibits blood vessel growth.  Today, there is new hope for managing cancer and extending life.

Past winners of this award include Patricia Meili, known as “the Central Park jogger” who overcame a horrific assault and now dedicates her life to helping others. Father Mychal Judge, O.F.M. chaplain to the New York City Fire Department and a priest at St. Francis of Assisi Church, the first official casualty of the attack on the World Trade Center on September 11, 2001, was honored posthumously.

New York Hospital Queens is devoted to providing comprehensive healthcare services for the Queens community by offering patients cutting-edge treatments and technology drawn from around the country and the world.  All proceeds from A Spring Night Gala are allocated to capital improvement projects and continuing research and education at New York Hospital Queens.

New York Hospital Queens is a member of the NewYork-Presbyterian Healthcare System and is an affiliate of the Weill Medical College of Cornell University.

A Spring Night Gala Raises $4 Million for New York Hospital Queens
A Spring Night Gala Committee Co-Chairs present $4,008,000 check to New York Hospital Queens’ Chairman of the Board, George Heinrich, M.D. (left), and President and Chief Executive Officer, Stephen S. Mills (second from left).
 

Diana Ross Performs for New York Hospital Gala 
Twelve-time Grammy winner Diana Ross (second from right) performed a concert for employees and physicians from New York Hospital Queens following the presentation of the Pacesetter Award in honor of renowned cancer researcher, Judah Folkman, M.D., who was awarded the honor posthumously. Dr. Folkman’s daughter, Marjorie (left), and wife, Paula (second from left), are pictured with Stephen S. Mills, President and Chief Executive Officer, Ms. Ross, and George Heinrich, MD, Chairman of the Board.