Hard Rock Pinktober campaign helps fund ultrasound purchase for Sutter Medical Foundation

Shamaya Sutton, Appeal-Democrat, Marysville, Calif.
Updated ·3 min read

Nov. 8—Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Sacramento at Fire Mountain in Wheatland just recently finished up its annual Pinktober campaign which resulted in a $160,000 donation to the Sutter Medical Foundation in Yuba City.

These efforts were supported through the Hard Rock Heals Foundation, the charitable arm of Hard Rock, as well as the Enterprise Community Fund. Each year, Hard Rock international raises money for breast cancer awareness and research by organizing local events and offering limited-edition merchandise, food, and beverage items at participating units.

Last year, Hard Rock and the Enterprise Community Fund made a joint donation of $100,000 to the Adventist Health Rideout Cancer Center in Marysville with the goal of improving the patient experience. These funds enabled the clinic to purchase new furniture for comfort during treatment and included software updates meant to enhance the doctor/patient relationship.

This year, these organizations chose to donate to the Sutter Medical Foundation, which resulted in new ultrasound units, an electric cautery machine, and electric beds for patient ease of access.

"Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Sacramento at Fire Mountain is committed to supporting Breast Cancer Awareness Month, and we are honored this year to be partnering with Sutter Medical Foundation," said Mark Birtha, president of Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Sacramento. "It's a privilege to bring our guests and community members together through our various Pinktober fundraising events to deliver a unifying message of strength, hope, and awareness for those affected by this disease."

Dr. Ashraf Ekdawy, a surgeon at Sutter North Medical Group, sees around 300 to 400 patients per month with approximately 30% of those being related to breast cancer. He believes having ultrasound units specific to his department will help expedite diagnostic and treatment time by several weeks while reducing the need for multiple appointments. Additionally, getting answers sooner can potentially increase the efficiency of treatment while reducing excess stress in patients.

"This is definitely one of those things where if you catch it early, you have a good chance of getting cured from it," said Ekdawy. "If a patient receives a mammogram and the results are abnormal, an ultrasound can be used by a surgeon to assist with identifying a solid mass versus a cyst within the breast tissue. A cyst is a sack filled with fluid and it's not typically concerning, but a solid mass can be because it could be a malignant tumor. An ultrasound can also help guide surgeons when performing needle biopsies, which often enables them to make a timely diagnosis, report back to the patient sooner and craft an expedited treatment plan if necessary."

Ekdawy also stressed the importance of maintaining regular appointments and mammograms with one's doctor and learning how to examine breasts at home on a monthly basis.

"A lot of people have this misconception that 'well if I don't have pain, then I'm good,' but we want to get the message out there that most breast cancers are not painful and you need to have exams once a year," said Ekdawy.