CHAPEL HILL – On Thursday the Peter Michael Foundation held a Southern Stars dinner and auction at Fearrington House in Pittsboro to support the fight against prostate cancer.
“Peter Michael Foundation’s mission is to find and underwrite, fund, promising research and treatments for diagnosis, management, and care of men who have prostate cancer,” says volunteer organizer Ron Coulson.
Coulson says prostate cancer is the second leading form of cancer in men – around 1 in 6 will be diagnosed with it at some point in their lifetimes – and some of the research the foundation has supported could enable earlier, more accurate diagnosis.
“The director of Peter Michael Foundation, Walter Manzel, has been going to these institutions for years – Stanford, Sloan-Kettering, Washington – and talking to the doctors about ideas for diagnosis (and) treatment…and Washington (University in St. Louis) has come up with this phenomenal idea of getting a urine test that will test for prostate cancer,” says Coulson.
The Peter Michael Foundation began in 2004 and holds national events to raise money for their cause.
“The formula is that we partner with fantastic chefs including Thomas Keller – Michelin three star chefs – and we invite guests who obviously are passionate about their food and wine, but also passionate about our cause,” says volunteer organizer Barb White. “So at these events we have a lot of guests who are repeat donors and just love the intimacy of our events.”
Even though the Foundation is national, all of the money raised at Thursday’s event will support prostate research locally, at Duke and UNC. For more information you can click here.
