This month, Sanfilippo wrote a check for $1 million to the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society to help fund a $6.25 million research grant to a team of Stanford University researchers. The research team, led by Dr. Ronald Levy, professor of medicine and chief of the Division of Oncology, are working on a cure for lymphoma. The grant was made as part of the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society's Specialized Center of Research program.

For Sanfilippo, giving away $1 million wasn't a decision that came lightly. In an eight-month span, she watched leukemia take the lives of her father and husband. Since then she has been a determined supporter of the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society and its efforts to find a cure for blood cancers.

Sanfilippo, who received a Ph.D. in education from Stanford, trusts the university to put her money to good use. "It's a local research project. For, me that means I can make sure there's more accountability. And it supports our local economy. I'm hoping that it will cure lymphoma and they will understand the process enough to apply it to other cancers, which I'm confident they'll be able to do."

A devastating disease

Back in the 1980s and early '90s, Sanfilippo's life was going well. Her husband, Joseph, was a successful attorney. The couple was working 80-hour weeks while building a comfortable life together. A hot economy had made their real estate investments increasingly lucrative.

But things took a turn for the worse. In 1992, Sanfilippo's father, Leo, was diagnosed with leukemia and given six weeks to live. He was a healthy 68-year old who had retired only two weeks before. While stuck in traffic on her way to the Stanford University Medical Center, Sanfilippo learned that her father had been given a zero percent chance of survival.

"That was the most horrible day of my life," she said.

In a terrible twist of fate, two weeks later her husband was diagnosed with the same disease.

A search for a reason why two healthy men had contracted the same deadly blood cancer at nearly the same time turned up no answers other than tragic coincidence.

"Both were perfectly healthy people," Sanfilippo said.

Great headway has been made in increasing survival rates for childhood leukemia. In 1960, the survival rate for children was 4 percent. That rate is now 80 percent.

But the same cannot be said for adults. "People are not aware of how devastating this disease is for people over 18," Sanfilippo said. Adults diagnosed with leukemia face a life and death battle often involving the traumatic effects of chemotherapy.

Sanfilippo's father passed away four weeks after Joseph was diagnosed. Eight months later, at age 47, Joseph succumbed to the disease.

"I don't even know how I lived through it," she said. "When I think back now I have no clue how I lived through it."

Since 1993, Sanfilippo has been involved in a long-term relationship with the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. She has answered phones and helped out in fundraisers. When she learned of promising advances being made at Stanford, she decided that's where her money could do some good.

Levy's Stanford research team is attempting to better understand lymphoma at the most detailed molecular level. The team hopes to develop a vaccine customized for each lymphoma patient. A vaccine would avoid the devastating side effects patients experience with radiation and other traditional treatments. Clinical trials of a vaccine have had promising results.

Sanfilippo said the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society had a rigorous review process and would give 100 percent of her money to the researchers at Stanford. "They look for results-oriented research. They want to get the most for the money."

A vaccine offers hope

Saratogan Tom Berthold was diagnosed in 1996 with non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, which is a cancer of the lymph system. As part of a clinical trial at Stanford, he received an early version of one of Dr. Levy's customized vaccines.

"I think it's wonderful," Berthold said of Sanfilippo's donation. "Back in 1997, it took six months to make the vaccine. It's very expensive. The purpose of the research is to improve the process for making the vaccine and make the process less expensive and less time-consuming."

Berthold said the vaccine he received in clinical trials saved his life. "Because I developed an immune response, I've been cancer free since 1997," he said. "Stanford is a tremendous place. It's money well spent."

This is the first time the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society has established a Specialized Center of Research program at Stanford University. The Stanford SCOR involves researchers in the departments of medicine, division of oncology, molecular pharmacology, health research and policy, chemical engineering and the Stanford Genome Center.

"Every doctor who works in that field should be hugged every day," Sanfilippo said. "I'm fortunate. It's the economy of the Valley that allowed me to get that money. I just want to see a cure for this horrid disease in my lifetime."

To make a donation to the Stanford SCOR through the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society, call Dwane Anderson at 408.271.8333.