Anyone who has faced a devastating diagnosis such as cancer well knows that life is too short.

At Hartford HealthCare, we believe every patient is a survivor from the moment of diagnosis, even as they battle through any needed treatment or surgery. To celebrate survival and recognize National Cancer Survivors Day in June, hospitals across the system orchestrated sweet and joyous celebrations.

  • The Hospital of Central Connecticut celebrated with a breakfast on June 1 at the Aqua Turf in Plantsville. Guests spent the morning catching up with old friends, making new acquaintances and being inspired by guest speaker Paul Long, whose philosophy of “Fundamism” is based on F.U.N., an acronym for “foundation, understanding and next steps,” injected generous doses of humor and positivity.

  • Windham Hospital’s boxing themed event “Get Your Fight On” on Saturday, June 8, was held at Eastern Connecticut State University. With songs from the movie “Rocky” playing in the background, Rocky impersonator John Monforto from Philadelphia made the rounds of tables and posed for pictures. Medical oncologist Dr. Rawad Ellis spoke about advances in cancer treatment and survivor Maurice “Bill” Weinberg gave a great message of hope.
Sporting a boxing-themed message for the fight against cancer, Windham Hospital’s “Get Your Fight On” Cancer Survivors Day was a great day of fun, entertainment and learning for those who attended. With songs from the movie “Rocky” playng in the background, Rocky Balboa impersonator John Monforto made the rounds of the tables and posed for photos.
  • Backus Hospital’s Cancer Survivors Day celebration took place Saturday, June 22, at the Hartford HealthCare East Region System Support Office in Norwich. Cancer survivors and their family members, friends and caregivers were recognized at the event, which featured music by the Quiet Corner Fiddlers and speeches by survivors. The day wrapped with a round of applause for the recently diagnosed to a 72-year survivor.
Dinesh Kapur, MD, left, Medical Director of Cancer Services at Backus, poses for a photo with 72-year cancer survivor Nancy Witt. Cancer survivors, families, friends and caregivers were recognized during Backus Hospital’s 2019 Cancer Survivors Day that took place Saturday, June 22 at the Hartford HealthCare East Region System Support Office in Norwich. The event, which featured music by the Quiet Corner Fiddlers and speeches from cancer survivors, concluded on a celebratory note as those patients who were recently diagnosed to a 72-year survivor received a huge round of applause.

Hartford Hospital will host its Cancer Survivors Day event in the fall.