|
Happy New Year!
The PMP/Appendix Cancer Community suffered many great losses in 2014 but we are working hard to find a cure for those afflicted with PMP/Appendix Cancer. We appreciate your continued support and hope you will take the time to read our newsletter.
Wishing everyone a healthy and happy new year!
|
| PMP Research Foundation Grant Program: 2014 Recipients | |
The PMP Research Foundation is pleased to announce the following recipients of our 2014 Research Grant Program. With these grants, PMPRF has now awarded $750,000 in the form of 16 research grants over the past six years. As always, many thanks to our supporters who made these grants possible.
A $50,000, two-year grant has been awarded to Dr. Steven Katz of Roger Williams Medical Center and Dr. Cherif Boutros of the University of Maryland School of Medicine for their project "T cell Immunotheraphy for Pseudomyxoma Peritonei," which will study the intraperitoneal delivery of chimeric antigen receptor modified T cells to develop intraperitoneal immunotherapy for PMP. This grant is awarded in memory of Doug Selmont, Keith Surges, Gail Arakelian, Daniel Cuoco, Robert McGee, Connie Grigsby, Linda Granbois, Kathleen DeFelice, Frances Lewis, and Stephen Costello, all dedicated supporters of the PMP Research Foundation whom we lost to PMP in 2014.
A $50,000, two-year grant has been awarded to Dr. Venkatesh Govindarajan of Creighton University for his project "Targeted Parallel Pathway Blockade as a Treatment Option for Pseudomyxoma Peritonei," which will test the effectiveness of combinatorial targeting of two signaling networks driven by MEK and PI3K in preclinical models of PMP. This grant is awarded in memory of Jim Disney, Barb Serbu, Denise Cannon, Bill Patchak, Patty McGroarty, Vincent Montague, Frank Loughry, George Sheaffer, and Thomas Murphy, whose families have participated in the PMPRF Philadelphia and Delaware PMP fundraising walks over the past several years.
The PMP Research Foundation plans to issue two $50,000 research grants in 2015. The RFP will be available in March.
|
UMass Recap: Fourth Annual UMass/PMPRF Patient-Practitioner Symposium
| |
 The Fourth Annual UMass/PMPRF Patient-Practitioner Symposium was once again a great success. The Keynote Speaker, Dr. Joseph Misdraji of Mass General and Harvard Medical School, gave a fascinating talk on the latest consensus on pathologic stating of appendiceal cancer. Dr. Laura Lambert gave an update on the newest research and trends in the treatment of PMP and appendix cancer, and Drs. Dale Greiner and Bradley Switzer discussed cutting-edge PMP and appendix cancer research projects taking place at UMass. Dr. Mary Sullivan discussed complimentary medicine for patients undergoing treatment, and 13-year PMP survivor Debbie Fager, now with the American Cancer Society, told her inspiring story. You can see full videos of each of these presentations at the PMPRF YouTube Channel.
|
Amsterdam Recap: 9th International Congress on Peritoneal Surface Malignancies
|
The PMP Research Foundation was proud to once again sponsor and present at the 9th International Congress on Peritoneal Surface Malignancies. This year's Congress was held in Amsterdam, Netherlands and hosted by the incomparable Vic Verwaal of the Netherlands Cancer Institute. PMPRF built upon our participation in the 7th Congress in Uppsala, Sweden (2010) and the 8th Congress in Berlin, Germany (2012). To learn more about this Congress and our participation in it, check out the PMP Research Foundation 2014 Congress Report. 
|
|
Stuart Scott
| |
The PMP/Appendix Cancer community was deeply affected by the loss of Stuart Scott to Appendix Cancer on January 4, 2015. The PMP Research Foundation released a statement on his passing and its impact on the appendix cancer community, and the PMP Research Foundation was referenced in a number of articles discussing Stuart's condition ("ESPN anchor Stuart Scott's rare cancer," "Stuart Scott's Death Highlights A Rare And Tragic Form Of Cancer," How Stuart Scott Inspired Millions Battling with Cancer.") 
|
|
|
Want to help?
|
We welcome volunteers who would like to get involved in helping to raise funds for valuable PMP research and education. Want to organize a fundraising event? We can help! Send us an e-mail at info@pmpcure.org.
We are also looking for volunteer committee members! Let us know if you are interested in serving on one of the following committees: Fundraising, Education, Communication and Marketing, Finance, and Research.
|
|
|
|
