The late Kate Gates Falaschi, with Onyx.
The legacy of Kate Gates Falaschi, who died at age 32 of colon cancer, has led to three groundbreaking cancer treatments and nearly $6 million in grants for the UW Carbone Cancer Center.
“It is a sad story, but Kate was definitely a ‘there’s no crying in baseball’ kind of girl,” says her widower, Al Falaschi. The event started in 2009, the same year Kate died. “As she knew she was going to lose her battle, she, as a young-30s vibrant woman, wanted everyone to have a party and raise money.”
The party became a biennial benefit. Funk Out Cancer is scheduled for 7 p.m. on Nov. 2, at the Orpheum Theater, with performances by Phat Phunktion, a longtime band where Falaschi plays saxophone and sings; Mama Digdown’s Brass Band; and Smokin’ with Superman, which reunited for the show. The proceeds from Funk Out Cancer have been used to conduct pilot studies that were the basis for large grant proposals.
In 2006, when Kate and Al, who were recently engaged, visited UW’s oncology clinic to begin treatment for Stage 4 colon cancer, Dr. Dusty Deming, a resident at the time, was on rotation. Three years later, he was meeting with Al to discuss how to best use donations from Funk Out Cancer.
“When we sat down, all of the flashbacks of our prior meeting and being in the room with him and Kate all came storming back,” Deming says.
Deming has used nearly $200,000 of funding from Funk Out Cancer events to create studies that were essential to landing larger grants, according to a news release. Deming has identified a new subtype of colon cancer and suggested an FDA-approved drug to treat it. He’s also personalized cancer treatment based on patient genetics by examining changes in cancerous cells and targeting those abnormalities with drugs. Deming pioneered a method of growing cancer cells to predict patient responses to chemo and radiation, with a $4 million grant from the National Cancer Institute. He’s currently overseeing national trials that use immunotherapy — boosting the immune system — in conjunction with surgery, chemo and radiation to improve colon cancer recovery rates.
“Without [Funk Out Cancer], the work that we are doing wouldn’t be possible, and it’s so exciting to see all of their hard work benefiting patients here,” Deming says.
Though Kate will remain forever 32 in the memories of her loved ones, her influence continues in perpetuity through Deming’s research.
“[Deming]’s providing years and years of quality life for those patients,” Falaschi says. “Kate’s legacy is that she is affecting people’s lives through his work now.”
