Supporting a Sylvester All-Star
The Anthony Rizzo Family Foundation funds research to strike out cancer
By Stacey Bomser
Photographs courtesy of Anthony Rizzo Family Foundation
Anthony Rizzo
A
nthony Rizzo’s dreams of playing Major League Baseball were nearly cut short in 2008. The World Series champion and three-time All-Star first baseman was diagnosed with Hodgkin’s lymphoma while playing in the Gulf Coast League just months after being drafted by the Boston Red Sox. He was only 18 years old at the time, and doctors recommended that Rizzo return home to South Florida for treatment so his family could help support and care for him. They referred him to Izidore Lossos, M.D., director of the Lymphoma Program at Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center and professor of medicine at the Miller School.
After six months of chemotherapy, Dr. Lossos declared Rizzo in remission and cleared him to return to baseball. Grateful for the expert medical care he received, Rizzo vowed that when he became well-established in the major leagues, he would do whatever he could to support cancer, as well as patients and their families. In 2012, he founded the Anthony Rizzo Family Foundation.
“To be able to give back and do this type of work is so much bigger than winning the World Series or doing anything on the baseball field,” said Rizzo, who returns to his hometown of Parkland, Florida, each year to attend Walk Off for Cancer, the foundation’s 5K fundraiser.
Rizzo, now with the New York Yankees, and his family are proud of the ongoing financial support they have provided Dr. Lossos. The foundation recently pledged $900,000 to support his research fund. This is in addition to two previous philanthropic donations totaling more than $1 million. In recognition of the foundation’s gift, a chemotherapy unit in Alex’s Place at Sylvester will be named in its honor.
“Dr. Lossos helped save our son’s life and showed such compassion and care for us during the toughest time in our life,” said Anthony’s mother, Laurie Rizzo. “He was always there for us whenever we had questions, was easy to talk to and share our concerns with, and always had time to listen. We are forever grateful and will always support Dr. Lossos and his groundbreaking research.”
Dr. Lossos says the Rizzos’ philanthropy will further advance the critical investigations he is conducting into lymphoma.
“The generous funds provided by the Anthony Rizzo Family Foundation will continue to support clinical basic and translational research funding to understand the pathogenesis of diseases and to understand many of the genetic abnormalities in these diseases and design specific therapies,” said Dr. Lossos, a renowned physician-scientist who has authored more than 300 peer-reviewed articles on this topic.
For the latest on Dr. Lossos’s work in lymphoma, click here. 
