Kristian Cibulskis with his children Emma and Jack at the 2010 PMC finish line.

By Krysia Wazny

When Kristian Cibulskis agreed to participate in the Pan-Massachusetts Challenge last year, he didn’t really know what he was getting himself into. As a cancer researcher with the Broad Institute, Cibulskis was already familiar with the importance of fundraising in his work, but he had yet to experience the rigors and rewards of participation in that process. As his second challenge approaches, he is now better able to reflect upon the impact of this incredible event for the state of cancer research and himself personally.

For over twenty years the Pan-Mass Challenge has been a fixture of cancer research fundraising in Massachusetts. It has consistently raised more money than any other athletic fundraiser nationwide, with a goal of $34 million this year alone. One hundred percent of that money will go directly to the Jimmy Fund, making the PMC Dana-Farber Cancer Institute’s largest contributor. The “seed money” that is generated by this mega-fundraiser is then available to researchers and doctors working to find a cure for this deadly disease. One of those researchers is Kristian Cibulskis.

“The fundraiser itself is really just unbelievable. I learned more and more in the course of doing my own fundraising just how much good the Pan-Mass Challenge does for the Jimmy Fund, and what the Jimmy Fund does funding all kinds of cancer research,” commented Cibulskis. In fact, some of that money has gone to help his own research. “I actually learned that some of the processes that we work on were funded through the Jimmy Fund, and so in turn through the Pan-Mass Challenge,” he said.

This fundraising takes hard work, a reality that Cibulskis quickly understood during his first year of participation. While enduring the trial of fulfilling a pledge for $4,200, Cibulskis questioned whether he would be back for more in the future. “I felt like this is so much work, I can’t imagine doing this again,” he remembered, but the course of the ride changed his mind.

“The ride itself is fantastic,” he said, “It’s beautiful, it’s amazing, and the people there are fantastic, too.” Doctors, patients, survivors, researchers, and loved ones ride together all with the unified aim to release the grip that cancer has on society. “It was really such a powerful experience that when this year came around, even with all the misgivings I had last year, I felt I absolutely had to do it again.”

Many people seem to feel the same way, and the nature of the challenge allows “anyone with a will” to participate, as Cibulskis phrased it. “It’s nice that it’s not a race, but rather a challenge,” he said. The goal isn’t to win, it’s just to finish, and with a good cause behind them, even the less than athletically inclined manage to finish.

Cibulskis’ experiences in the Pan-Mass Challenge are also evidence of the bike-a-thon’s self-perpetuating network, fueled by the enthusiasm of its participants. He’s made many friends among riders in the community, and he tells anyone he meets who rides bikes about the event. There are 33 PMC participants from Somerville this year. Together they are spreading the word and helping the already huge network of riders to grow.

A background in software engineering led Kristian Cibulskis to his current position working with data analysis on the DNA sequencing of cancer. More than many, he can see the direct correlation between a fundraiser like the Pan-Mass Challenge and the tangible good it does for cancer research. “This work that we do is so close,” he said, “we’re maybe ten or twenty years from unlocking the real cause and, therefore, good treatments of cancer.”

With an uncle and grandparents lost to cancer, and a two-time survivor mother, Cibulskis already well understood the importance of the quest for improved cancer treatment. In the coming weeks he will ride almost 190 miles to provide even more support for that cause. “It just feels really good to actually do something, and not just talk about doing something, and it’s easier than you think to get involved and to help,” he said.

For more information about the Pan-Massachusetts challenge, visit www.pmc.org. To support Kristian and the PMC, please visit http://www.pmc.org/egifts/KC0230.