When Melissa Eleey crosses the Pan-Mass Challenge (PMC) finish line each August, it is not just the end of a bike ride. It is a milestone in her ongoing fight with cancer.
Even after being diagnosed with Stage 4 metastatic breast cancer in November 2023, Eleey, a Hanover resident and mother of two, remains committed to riding and fundraising for Dana-Farber Cancer Institute.
In a recent conversation with the South Shore Times, Eleey shared how the Pan-Mass Challenge has become her personal and public way to push back against cancer and give others hope.
From Diagnosis to Determination
Eleey was first diagnosed with Stage 2B breast cancer in 2017. She underwent chemotherapy, radiation, and a double mastectomy with reconstruction, all while raising two young children.
“I was cancer free for seven years,” Eleey said. “And during that time I was trying to figure out how do I give back?”
That search led her to the PMC, thanks to a friend and fellow breast cancer survivor who introduced her to cycling.
“At first I literally could not clip in. I kind of forgot how to even ride a bike at this point, and my poor husband had to hold it up,” Eleey said. “I went from that to being able to do the second day of the PMC no problem.”
Her first full two-day ride came in 2023, from Sturbridge to Provincetown. That summer, despite feeling unusually exhausted, she completed the grueling ride. It wasn’t until November that she learned why.
“They did a scan and it showed that I had multiple liver tumors, one being 14.7 centimeters large,” she said. “So it makes sense of how exhausted I was from that whole summer, and I just can't even believe that my body let me do that.”
The Power of the PMC
The Pan-Mass Challenge, founded in 1980, is the nation’s top athletic fundraiser. It donates 100 percent of rider-raised funds directly to cancer research and patient care at Dana-Farber.
“It’s all about raising money for Dana-Farber,” Eleey said. “The special thing about the PMC is that every rider-raised donation goes directly to patient care or research, and you can specify directly where you want your funds to go.”
For Eleey, that means directing donations to Stage 4 metastatic breast cancer research in young people.
“All the money that I raised goes directly to me in hoping to preserve my life longer,” she said.
In 2024, just months after her Stage 4 diagnosis, she rode again, logging 60 miles with her team, Forza G.
“My friend Nicole and I started at mile 20, and we rode the rest of the way, and I felt really good, which was just also awesome,” Eleey said.
“Living Proof”
As a cancer patient, Eleey participates in a special part of the PMC known as “Living Proof,” a community of riders and volunteers who have experienced cancer firsthand.
“Everyone there is riding or volunteering for the cause. Many have gone through the same things as I have,” Eleey said. “It's just a very moving time.”
On the back of each rider’s bike, tags display the number of years they’ve participated. Riders like Eleey receive an additional “Living Proof” designation.
“There’s such a special distinction for the people that have had cancer,” she said. “It just gives hope, for sure. The whole thing gives hope.”
Community that Carries On
Eleey rides with Forza G, a team of over 100 cyclists, that, in the past, has raised the most money of any non-sponsored group.
“We don't get money from any major corporation. It's all just really grassroots. Just you guys,” she said.
Beyond riding, Forza G provides emotional support and fundraising help. When Eleey was diagnosed, team members delivered meals, raised funds, and showed up in person.
“They collect the Sunshine fund for each other, so in case something happens, we can send a really nice basket of things or meals,” she said. “And I received that when I first got diagnosed too.”
Her husband Eric will ride with her for the first time this year. Their children, now 11 and 9, participated in the PMC Kids Ride in Hingham.
“They were just so excited that they were able to contribute too, because they know how much joy it brings me and how important it's to me,” Eleey said. “And therefore, they find it super important as well.”
More Than a Ride
Each year, the fans along the PMC’s route hold signs that offer physical and emotional reminders of the event’s deeper meaning.
“There’s a kid that's holding a sign that says, ‘Because of you, I am,’ and it crosses off all the years that he's still alive after receiving cancer treatment, which obviously gets me every time,” Eleey said.
At a stretch near Provincetown, flags honoring the riders flutter in the wind.
“All these people that are passing through this point are thinking about myself and other people that are going through the same thing, and how we can change the trajectory of this,” she said. “It was just such a moving moment.”
The Finish Line and Beyond
Crossing the finish line brings a wave of emotions.
“It’s just unbelievable pride that I was able to do that,” Eleey said. “And then just the love of my friends all being with me at the finish line, my husband, my kids… It feels like a big win every time.”
Her goal for this year: 40 miles.
“I intend on doing it as long as I'm physically able, even if that literally means biking a foot, like having somebody sit me on top of the bike and roll me across the finish line,” she said. “Because the most important thing isn't the ride. It's what we're doing for people at Dana-Farber.”
A Life Full of Motion
Outside the PMC, Eleey’s life is full of travel and family time. Her diagnosis has only intensified that focus.
“We were traveling quite a bit anyway, maybe once or twice a year,” she said. “But then since I got diagnosed, we’re going everywhere.”
As for the ride and the fight, it continues.
“At the end of the day, we could raise money for my family and I, we could do all these different things,” she said. “But the thing that's really going to help is research and getting new drugs in the market so that people can extend their lives… so that it can be more of a chronic disease and not a terminal disease.”
To hear more from Eleey in her own words, visit her "Why I Ride" page.