Happy February! I hope this post finds you well in the New Year, maybe still strong in your commitment to your New Year’s resolution…or perhaps in the process of adopting a new one.

It’s been a couple months since the Running for Nana: Round Two races – a 10-mile, a 10K, and a half marathon. We truly couldn’t have crossed the finish lines without your energetic and loving support. We are so humbled by your extraordinary generosity in the fight against C. difficile, which continued throughout the holiday season.

I am so honored today to share with you the final results from the Running for Nana: Round Two adventure. You may remember that our goal for this race was to raise $10,000 for Achieving Cures Together (ACT). Well, get ready. [insert drumroll here]

Thanks to over 35 individual/family donations, WE MET OUR GOAL!! We cannot tell you how grateful we are to each of you for continuing to help make this dream come true.

But wait, there’s more. [insert second drumroll here, if you’ve got it].

Thanks to an incredibly generous family donation, that goal was matched…TWICE. That means that together in Running for Nana: Round Two, we raised $30,000 for the ACT Team and the fight against C. diff and other awful diseases. Honestly, typing this still feels very surreal. We truly could not have done this without you.

And the best part? These donations have already made a difference. Here are a couple of highlights from 2017 and a look at 2018 opportunities, shared by Dr. Khoruts, Professor of Medicine at the University of Minnesota and Clinical Director of the Microbiota Therapeutics Program:

• The team at the University of Minnesota has now successfully treated over 100 patients suffering with recurrent C. difficile infection with the encapsulated microbiota that could not be cured with standard antibiotics. And, it was done at no cost to the patient.
• The team published in the American Journal of Gastroenterology on the oral capsule preparation of the human gut microbiota.
• In 2018, the team will be providing the capsule treatment to the Veterans Administration to carry out a multi-center, placebo-controlled trial to treat C. difficile. Through partnership with ACT and donors like you, the hope is that they will be able to make the treatment widely available to similar patients across the country.
• Also in 2018, the team hopes to start a microbiome study for ulcerative colitis and cancer patients receiving immunotherapy – additional areas where this technology has the potential to make a huge difference.

As we wrap Running for Nana: Round Two, all we can say is thank you. Thank you for believing in the fight against C. difficile, in ACT and the University of Minnesota, and in my mom and me. We are so passionate about this endeavor and truly believe there will be a day when no one suffers from C. difficile the way Nana did. Thank you so much for helping us move closer – one day at a time.

And finally, stay tuned to this space in the coming weeks, as Running for Nana: Round Three is right around the corner! Spoiler alert – we might be asking you to pick up your running (or walking) shoes this year…more to come very soon!

As always, this one’s for you, Nan – we love you more!