A Sweet Escape: Turning Grief Into Support for Cancer Research at Sylvester

By: Stacey Bomser | March 31, 2026 | 6 min. read |

Mourning the loss of her mother, a patient’s daughter channeled her grief into candy making to support Sylvester cancer research and global oncology.

Gilberto Lopes, M.D., chief of the Division of Medical Oncology at the Miller School and associate director for global oncology at Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center

Many of Samantha Richter’s fondest childhood memories are of time spent in the family’s kitchen helping make chocolates for her mother’s candy business.

After losing her mother in 2024, Richter found solace in the kitchen, channeling her grief into recreating her mother’s famous recipes. The process became even sweeter after deciding to donate all proceeds from the sale of her chocolates at a local festival to philanthropically support her mother’s oncologist, Gilberto Lopes, M.D., professor and chief of the Division of Medical Oncology at Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center, part of the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine, and the region’s only National Cancer Institute-designated cancer center.

“I truly believe we were afforded two more years with my mom because of Dr. Lopes,” said Richter. “It meant we could sit together and laugh and reminisce, eat her favorite foods together and celebrate two more years of birthdays and holidays. That meant everything and I am forever grateful.”

A Lung Cancer Diagnosis That Changed Everything

Richter’s mother, Janet Kreindel, was living in Cleveland, Ohio, when she was diagnosed in 2022 with non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). The diagnosis came as a complete shock, as Kreindel had been healthy her whole life and was not a smoker.

Not wanting Kreindel to go through this journey alone, Richter and her brother, Eric Kreindel, decided to bring their mother to South Florida, where they both live. This also meant she could be treated by Dr. Lopes, a world-renowned cancer researcher who served as principal investigator of KEYNOTE-042, the trial that supported FDA first-line approval of pembrolizumab in PD-L1–positive advanced NSCLC.

A market booth display for Fifi’s premier handmade chocolates, featuring boxed chocolates and gift baskets arranged beneath a branded blue banner. — Samantha Richter donated proceeds from the sale of her chocolates to support Dr. Lopes.

“I’ll never forget our first interaction with Dr. Lopes. He exceeded all of our expectations,” said Richter. “He spent nearly three hours explaining NSCLC, patiently answering all of our questions. He told us our options and included us in decision making, laying out a clear treatment plan that we all agreed upon and in which he felt very confident.”

Finding Hope Through Immunotherapy and Expert Care

Dr. Lopes prescribed immunotherapy (pembrolizumab infusions). Janet Kreindel experienced a remarkable improvement after the first infusion. After the second, Richter says her mother was back to being her old self, “energetic, sociable and hilarious.”

Unfortunately, in the middle of treatment, Janet Kreindel suffered a series of strokes. She never regained the strength to return to immunotherapy and passed away two years to the day of her diagnosis.

Honoring a Legacy Through Philanthropy

Grateful for the time they had with her, Richter and her family have committed to supporting Dr. Lopes’ work focusing on the development of new drugs to treat lung cancer, like the one her mother was taking, and making sure they are available to all who can benefit from them.

“While advances in targeted therapy, immunotherapy and diagnostics have transformed outcomes in high-income countries, most patients worldwide still lack access to these tools,” said Dr. Lopes, who also serves as associate director of global oncology at Sylvester. “Sylvester’s global oncology program is grounded in a simple but urgent premise: scientific breakthroughs only matter if patients can access them.”

Dr. Lopes explained how philanthropic support allows Sylvester to advance those efforts.

“Thanks to this generosity, Sylvester’s global oncology program demonstrates what is possible when philanthropy aligns science, policy and compassion,” he said. “Mrs. Richter’s support has helped transform access to cancer care from an aspiration into a reality for thousands of patients worldwide and continues to shape a more equitable future for oncology.”