Mary Bird Perkins Cancer Foundation has received a $100,000 gift from the Mauti Cancer Fund, establishing the Mauti Cancer Endowment Fund. The fund will support Mary Bird Perkins Cancer Center’s ongoing efforts in promoting cancer prevention through a variety of screening events and educational opportunities.
This is the latest support offered by Rich Mauti and the Mauti Cancer Fund. Since 2005, the organization has donated more than $150,000 to support cancer prevention and efforts to educate communities about the importance of early detection.
“Early detection is key to improving survivorship, a pillar of Mary Bird Perkins’ mission,” said Rich Mauti. “By detecting cancers earlier, we can improve outcomes in communities across Louisiana. The more screening events we hold, the more residents we are reaching, meaning the potential for more cases to be detected earlier.”
Rich Mauti, former NFL player and founder of the Mauti Cancer Fund, lost his father to lung cancer in 1979. Shortly after his father’s passing, Mauti began his commitment to fundraising. Throughout his NFL career with the New Orleans Saints and Washington Redskins, Mauti spearheaded various efforts with multiple organizations, raising tens of thousands of dollars for cancer prevention. With his Louisiana roots in mind, Mauti wanted to stay loyal to his home state. In 1981, he started the nonprofit, Rich Mauti Cancer Fund, which has remained 100 percent volunteer-based to this day. In 1989, the Rich Mauti Cancer Fund launched its mobile screening van, which offered cancer screenings and education to people in the community.
Over the past decade, the Mauti Cancer Fund has provided funding and support that have translated into thousands of individual screenings, the vast majority along the Northshore and Bayou Region. These free screenings are open and available to anyone in the community – especially to those who are traditionally underserved or may not have access to health insurance coverage. Community screening events provide an opportunity for early cancer detection, and if an abnormality is found, Mary Bird Perkins navigators guide the patient through next steps.
"Providing cancer screenings to communities that face barriers to healthcare is at the heart of what we do,” said Renea Duffin, vice president, cancer support and outreach, Mary Bird Perkins Cancer Center. “Without supporters like Rich Mauti and the Mauti Cancer Fund, our reach would not cover wide swaths of Louisiana and portions of Mississippi. When a donor understands the critical role of early detection and prevention, our message is made that much stronger.”