The Local Hero Award was created to honor an individual from the host city of the ASCRS Annual Scientific Meeting who have made an extraordinary impact on colon and rectal disease.  

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Trey Mancini lives in the Tampa Bay Area and has made impactful contributions to and provided inspiration toward colon and rectal cancer awareness, prevention and treatment.

Trey Mancini is an exceptional candidate for the Local Hero award. Just two days after a colonoscopy revealed a malignant tumor, the Mancini’s were meeting with surgeons at Johns Hopkins University Hospital in Baltimore. Trey’s operation occurred four days later, on March 12, the day Major League Baseball shut down Spring Training due to the coronavirus pandemic. The diagnosis came six days after that, on March 18, his 28th birthday: Stage 3 colon cancer, necessary chemotherapy, and no baseball. Trey underwent surgery and chemotherapy in 2020. He began speaking to fellow colon cancer survivors, advocacy groups and medical professionals. The #F16HT shirts spawned from Mancini’s desire to promote colorectal cancer awareness. Those efforts raised more than $80,000 for the Colorectal Cancer Alliance. During and after his recovery, Mancini took every public opportunity he could to stress the importance of early colorectal cancer screening, noting how, if he weren’t a professional athlete with regular access to elite medical care, his may not have been detected until too late. He then came back to baseball in 2021 with an inspirational season, nearly winning the All-Star Home Run Derby and received the 2021 American League Comeback Player of the Year Award, proving that there is more to life after a colon cancer diagnosis. Mancini also participated in Stand Up To Cancer’s annual telecast, and was named the Orioles’ 2021 nominee for the prestigious Roberto Clemente Award, the most prominent individual player award bestowed by MLB.
 

 Additionally, Trey has made significant contributions in fundraising and personal involvement, teaming up with the Colorectal Cancer Alliance (CCA) to raise awareness, provide support and inspire the efforts that fund research to end colorectal cancer. His involvement with CCA, the Never Too Young advisory board, which advocates for all young-onset patients and survivors, and the preeminent fundraising gala, Blue Hope Bash, cannot be overestimated. Additionally, he started The Trey Mancini Foundation, which works to support those who are facing illness, empower those suffering from emotional trauma, and provide assistance to those experiencing hardship. Though cancer awareness was not part of the original mission of The Trey Mancini Foundation, it quickly took on this cause and launched a partnership with CCA.