Ahmet Karacaoglu’s mother was a cancer survivor who never gave up hope. She bravely fought ovarian cancer for six years, always eager to learn about and try any possible new treatments. “You don’t know what tomorrow is going to bring,” Semiha Karacaoglu resolutely said.

Semiha died in 2004, secure in the wisdom that her son would carry on her legacy of hope by inspiring others with her courageous story. Ahmet has done just that, especially in his native Turkey, where Semiha’s open attitude about cancer was unique. Fear prevents people from learning about cancer treatment, he says, and clinical trials are not widely available. Cancer patients in Turkey are often not made aware of their specific condition or are afraid to admit to it.

“In sharing my mother’s story, I try to explain that there are treatments and hope, and that it is important to keep fighting and to get as much information as possible,” Ahmet says.

The summer of Semiha’s diagnosis, Ahmet organized a swim meet in Turkey to raise cancer awareness among his fellow Turks. She watched proudly as he spoke about her experience to help destigmatize cancer and encourage the large crowd gathered to view it as a treatable illness.

His mother was particularly thrilled when Ahmet got a job at Bristol-Myers Squibb. Though Ahmet does not work on the clinical side of the company, Semiha routinely asked him about new treatments or clinical trials in the United States. “I was often devastated that I could not give her any good news about new treatments available to her in Turkey,” he says.

For Ahmet, the Bristol-Myers Squibb Tour of Hope™ is the way to convey the promise of cancer research to people in Turkey and the global community. “I would like to open the discussion and help people to seek all forms of treatment available to them, including clinical trials,” he says. “Cancer is a disease that is not country-specific.