Frequently Asked Questions

Cycle for Survival is the movement to beat rare cancers. We are proud to be part of Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center. 100% of every dollar supports pioneering research and lifesaving clinical trials within six months after the close of fundraising each year.

The people of Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSK) are united by a singular mission: ending cancer for life. Our specialized care teams provide personalized, compassionate, expert care to patients of all ages. Informed by basic research done at our Sloan Kettering Institute, scientists across MSK collaborate to conduct innovative translational and clinical research that is driving a revolution in our understanding of cancer as a disease and improving the ability to prevent, diagnose, and treat it. MSK is dedicated to training the next generation of scientists and clinicians, who go on to pursue our mission at MSK and around the globe. One of the world’s most respected comprehensive centers devoted exclusively to cancer, we have been recognized as one of the top two cancer hospitals in the country by U.S. News & World Report for 35 years. 

Cycle for Survival defines a rare cancer as anything other than breast, prostate, lung, or colon cancer. This can include brain, pancreatic, ovarian, and stomach cancers; leukemia and lymphoma; all pediatric cancers; and many others. Based on data from the National Cancer Institute, these account for about half of all cancer diagnoses when combined. Research on rare cancers is underfunded, often leaving patients with limited or no treatment options. 

Since 2007, Cycle for Survival has raised more than $376 million. 100% of all funds raised through Cycle for Survival go directly to rare cancer research at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSK), where world-leading experts in cancer research and clinical care collaborate to advance lifesaving breakthroughs that benefit people not only at MSK but around the world.  

All funding awardees are determined in close partnership with MSK leadership, and funded initiatives represent research priorities with great potential to advance the development of new, more effective treatments for rare cancers. These include several areas of translational research, which brings lab-based findings into the clinic in real time, as well as discovery science, which informs our foundational understanding of rare cancers, down to the individual cell. 

You must be at least 16 years old to participate in a Cycle for Survival signature event and the virtual event. To participate in an MSK Kids ride, you must be 13 years old and over 5 feet tall. 

Online donations are processed automatically and immediately applied to your fundraising total. Gifts made by check or money order are processed and applied to your fundraising total within 5-7 business days of being received by Cycle for Survival. Please allow up to four weeks for matching gifts and gifts made via donor-advised funds to arrive, be processed, and applied to your fundraising total. Gifts made via Benevity can take up to three months to arrive, be processed, and applied to your fundraising total. 

There are many ways to raise funds for Cycle for Survival. Start by logging into your Dashboard to customize your fundraising page. Asking potential donors for support is more effective if they understand why you’re riding, so personalize your page and share your connection to Cycle for Survival.

Join us on Facebook, X(formerly Twitter), Instagram, and LinkedIn to get inspired by your fellow participants! Social media is also a great place to ask for donations and share updates with your friends and family.

We encourage you to aim high with your fundraising goals so you can raise as much as possible. Remember that every dollar goes directly to rare cancer research.

Please note: Funds raised for all Cycle for Survival events must come through your online Cycle for Survival fundraising page or by check/money order payable to Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center. Donations from a third-party fundraising site (e.g., Active, Crowdrise, etc.) cannot be counted towards your fundraising requirement.

Each year, every dollar raised by the Cycle for Survival community is allocated just six months after the close of fundraising. This exceptionally rapid timeline enables the acceleration of progress in discovery science, drug development, and technological innovation, dramatically reducing the time it takes for donations to become discoveries, and ultimately better treatments for people with a rare cancer. 

To find out if you or your donors work for a company with a matching gift program, check out our Matching Gifts page.

Yes. If you work for a company that might be interested in sponsoring Cycle for Survival, please contact us for more information. Custom opportunities and packages are available.

No. If you have made a pledge to Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, the funds you raise through Cycle for Survival may not be applied toward fulfilling that commitment. However, it is possible to establish a pledge through Cycle for Survival. Please contact us at cycleforsurvival@mskcc.org or 888-72-CYCLE for additional information or to discuss your interests.

All 2025 fundraising pages will close on April 15, 2025. 

Yes, you will have access to update your personal and team pages, plus the dashboard, through fundraising close on April 15, 2025. There, you can update your page information, your goal, and track your donations and donors. 

Yes. We would be happy to work with you to create a national team page or an umbrella page that combines multiple teams or individuals to show collective fundraising. Please contact your Cycle for Survival representative to get started. 

Yes. We will launch our leaderboard on cycleforsurvival.org before the first event of the season. We’ll also provide match and challenge opportunities to boost your fundraising efforts and help you reach — and exceed — your goals.  

You can make a secure online donation using a credit card or use our mail-in form to make a gift. Click here to search for the individual or team you wish to support. While your gift will immediately be credited to the individual or team you specify, it may take up to one hour for your online donation to be accurately reflected on the fundraising page. If after one hour you do not see the gift displayed correctly, please contact us.

All checks should be made payable to Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center. Print and fill out our mail-in form, enclose it with your check, and mail it to the appropriate address below, depending on the mailing service.

USPS:
Cycle for Survival
Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center
P.O. Box 27432
New York, NY 10087-7432

FedEx or UPS:
JPMorganChase
Lockbox Processing MSKCC #27432
4 Chase Metrotech Center, 7th Floor
Brooklyn, NY 11245

When sending checks, please specify if the gifts should be counted toward an individual or team. Helpful information to include with any checks includes the participant’s full name, their team name, and the city where they are participating. A check may take up to 14 business days from receipt by Cycle for Survival to be reflected in online fundraising totals.

Please contact us at cycleforsurvival@mskcc.org or 888-72-CYCLE and one of our team members will be able to help you.

Online gifts supporting Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (including Cycle for Survival donations) will appear as “MSK 855-718-4054” or "MSKGiving 855-718-4054" on your credit card statement.

Cycle for Survival is fully owned and operated by Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSK). MSK’s 501c3 tax identification number is 13-1924236. Your gift to Cycle for Survival is 100% tax-deductible. You will receive a confirmation receipt via email after submitting your donation. Please save this email receipt for your tax records. For all gifts made by check, you will receive a written acknowledgment in the mail.  

Please visit our Donor-Advised Funds page for more information. If you have additional questions, please reach out to us at 888-72-CYCLE or cycleforsurvival@mskcc.org.

Double-check that you're entering your username and password correctly. Remember, your password is case-sensitive. If you're having other issues logging in, please check out our troubleshooting page. Contact us if you continue to have trouble.

You can reset your password here.

Customize your team and individual fundraising pages by sharing your story and why you’re raising money to fight rare cancers. This helps boost your fundraising success, showing potential donors why your ride is important to you.

Please note that all customized content, photos, and videos are subject to Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center’s review and approval. If you plan to include personal information about other people on your fundraising page — including family members or friends with cancer — please be sure to consult with them first in case they have concerns about seeing such information made public.

Double-check to make sure that the photo is a jpg file and no larger than 4 MB. All uploaded images will be resized to fit in a 300-x-400-pixel space.

Our website allows an email address to be used only once for each city’s events. If you would like to register for events in more than one city, you will be able to use the same email address across those events.

All dates and locations can be viewed here.

Bathrooms will be available at all locations. Locker rooms and showers vary by location.

We do not anticipate checking COVID-19 vaccination status or requiring a negative test at the 2025 Cycle for Survival events. This is subject to change, and we will continue to communicate requirements with you. 

You must be at least 16 years old to ride at a Cycle for Survival event. For MSK Kids rides, you must be 13 years old and over 5 feet tall to ride.