As a father, Dr. Bill Noyes has become the champion for a charitable cause now close to his heart.

Dr. Noyes is encouraging dentists throughout New England to donate their proceeds from a day's work to help support research and treatment for children with brain tumors.

	Best friends: Matt Noyes and Lizzie Dorschel, both brain tumor patients, forged a fast friendship while being treated at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital. Lizzie, who was diagnosed at age 8, is now a 13-year-old fifth-grader in Suffolk, Va.

In June 2002, his son Matt, a college freshman, began complaining of headaches and blurred vision. He was diagnosed with an anaplastic astrocytoma — a very aggressive, stage III brain tumor.  Brain Tumor Facts

The next day, Matt had surgery to successfully remove the entire visible tumor. Dr. Noyes' wife Nancy, a nurse practitioner, sent Matt's pathology report to a colleague at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital in Memphis, an institution that sees more childhood brain tumors than any other cancer center in the United States. Matt's type of cancer generally has a very poor prognosis, says Dr. Noyes, but St. Jude is a pioneer in brain tumor research and treatment.  St. Jude Facts

Within one week of Matt's surgery, he and his mom packed up and headed for Memphis, where they spent 10 weeks as Matt underwent chemotherapy and radiation treatments. What impressed the family, explains Dr. Noyes, is that St. Jude provided airfare, lodging and meals, in addition to treatment, at no cost to his family. Although insurance payments are accepted at St. Jude, no one is turned away for their medical care because of the inability to pay for treatment.

Another Set back

Now 24 years old and working as a merchandising manager at PETCO, Matt remains tumor-free and returns to St. Jude for checkups every six months.

Today

We are excited to announce that in 2007, Matt Noyes & his Family has now started an independent not-for-profit foundation, The Noyes Brain Tumor Foundation and Dentists with a Dream.

"We are so grateful," says Dr. Noyes. "The hospital offered us tremendous comfort, allowing us to concentrate on Matt's recovery instead of the tremendous financial burdens that families face when they have a child with cancer."

Matt wanted to find a way to express his gratitude, to give back and to help continue in the effort to find better treatments and even a cure for brain tumors. He began by donating the proceeds from a normal day's work to the brain tumor program three years ago. All of our proceeds go to the Noyes Brain Tumor Foundation at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital.

Several Maine dentists have now joined in Dr. Noyes' fundraising program as well as dentists throughout the United States.  Last year, Dr. Noyes raised over $75,000. This year, Dr. & Mrs. Noyes will host "Cooking with a Cure" at the Holiday Inn by the Bay in Portland, Maine on Wednesday, October 24th 2007.  Several area restaurants will serve food and there will also be a silent auction and entertainment which will be provided by Vicky Lee, a popular country western singer and "The World's Funniest Mom."

Although the money donated so far doesn't even cover Matt's initial treatment costs, which reached hundreds of thousands of dollars, Dr. Noyes is determined to keep expanding his efforts, this year in New England, and then further expanding this to dentists in the United States in 2007.

"St. Jude was the first pediatric institution to place doctors, scientists and patients all under one roof, thus creating a worldwide model for bench to bedside research and treatment of cancers and other life-threatening diseases in children," he says. "The hospital has a daily budget of nearly $1 million. Because of generous donations to the hospital, doctors don't have to worry about insurance constraints or budget concerns when they develop treatment plans and they can spend quality time with their patients. They can provide the very best for every child, no matter what the cost."

Dr. Noyes' program could not have been successful without the gracious donation by Nancy Dennis, whose husband Kenny, the chief executive officer of On the Border Restaurants, died of a brain tumor three years ago. She developed the Kenny Can Foundation in honor of her husband to provide support for families who have lost their loved ones to brain tumors and volunteered to become a corporate sponsor for Dr. Noyes' fundraiser.

"I just would like all the dentists to know that one day of their proceeds can make a large difference in saving a child's life," he says.  

 If you would like to visit an article about our fundraising that was published by the American Dental Association, please visit their web site, click here.