If there is one theme that runs throughout each patient’s story when they talk about City of Hope, it is that we did more than just treat their disease — we also treated them as people with unique needs.

Michael A. Friedman, M.D. President and C.E.O.

Take Stephanie, the brave young woman who battled breast cancer while being pregnant, or Maria, whose 7-year-old daughter has spent the last five years of her childhood fighting leukemia. Both say that City of Hope listened to them, cared for them and treated them in a way that made City of Hope feel like family.

Too many patients today are left to fend for themselves after they have been diagnosed with cancer or another life-threatening disease. They are expected to ask all the right questions and find all the right answers themselves. That is unacceptable to us.

That is why our staff — from administrators to surgeons to doctors to nurses — come together to embrace each patient and their family. To show them where to go and help them find out what they need to do.

As a friend of City of Hope, I know you understand what I am talking about. That compassionate care, along with the innovative research that we conduct to bring new treatments to our patients faster, is why I believe you support City of Hope. Thank you for everything you do.