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Albany Medical Center’s Annual Dancing in the Woods Raises $400,000

ALBANY, N.Y., December 20, 2007 — The 24th annual “Dancing in the Woods” black tie event raised approximately $400,000 to benefit the Center for Childhood Cancer and Blood Disorders at the Children’s Hospital at Albany Medical Center. More than 1,200 people attended the event, held on Friday, Dec. 7, in Building 3 of the W.A. Harriman State Office Building Campus.

This year’s total exceeded the amount raised in 2006 by $45,000. For the seventh consecutive year, Capital District Physicians’ Health Plan (CDPHP) was the lead sponsor.

“I am astonished each year by the incredible contributions of the volunteers, corporations, donors and attendees,” said Joanne Porter, M.D., associate professor of pediatrics and co-director of the division of hematology/oncology and the Center for Childhood Cancer and Blood Disorders. “The funds raised at this event are vital to ensuring that our patients and their families continue to receive the best possible care while staying so close to home. On behalf of the physicians, nurses, and staff at the Center for Childhood Cancer and Blood Disorders, and most importantly, the patients and their families, thank you for your unwavering support. The ongoing financial commitment to this program is a crucial component to our overall success.”

The Center for Childhood Cancer and Blood Disorders is the only one of its kind in the region. The Center sees more than 6,000 outpatient visits annually, with more than 200 patients in active therapy and more than 500 families being monitored following treatment. In addition, each year approximately 75 new children enter the program because of a cancer diagnosis and another 50 because of a blood disorder diagnosis. The Center is staffed by four full-time hematology/oncology physicians, nine nurses, child life specialists and social workers.

Albany Medical Center is northeastern New York’s only academic health sciences center. It consists of Albany Medical College, Albany Medical Center Hospital and the Albany Medical Center Foundation, Inc. Additional information about Albany Medical Center can be found at www.amc.edu.
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