Happy Halloween!!
From all the volunteers and committee members dedicated to
Lustgarten's Denver Pancreatic Research Walk
Wednesday, October 31, 2012
Is Your Office a Halloween Candy Dumping Ground?
Three Tips to Avoid Halloween Horror at Work
"Research has confirmed what many of us know all too well: When food is available and in sight, we eat it," says AICR Registered Dietitian Alice Bender. "That candy in the break room and on coworkers' desks before and after Halloween means extra calories and weight gain for many Americans."The scary truth is that being overweight or obese increases risk for several common cancers and other diseases like diabetes and heart disease.
Although "fun-size" candies seem innocent enough by themselves, eating just two of those candies per day over two months can lead to a two-pound weight gain, coming just before our major eating holidays.
Bender says there are ways to reduce temptation and minimize the resulting calorie damage from constant exposure to candy. Start by limiting trick-or-treat candy in your home, then take steps to help create a healthier work environment for yourself and others.
TIPS TO AVOID HALLOWEEN HORROR AT WORK
- Lose Your Candy at the Door. This is one time your colleagues are better off if you don't share. Best idea – be honest with yourself and purchase only the amount of candy you'll need. If you do have leftovers, throw them out – does anyone else really need it?
- Hide the Candy. Donate a non-see-through, covered candy dish or container for common spaces where candy is shared. Studies show that keeping treats out of sight helps keep them out-of-mind, out-of-mouth, and off-the-waistline.
- Take Detours. If possible, find alternate routes to meetings that avoid passing by the treats. As a side benefit you may get a bit more physical activity. Not possible? Make sure your hands are full when passing the candy dish, so you can't just grab a treat on the way.
Tuesday, October 30, 2012
Beginning of the end for cancer?
The first results of the most comprehensive genetic survey of cancer ever to be undertaken by an international consortium of researchers have just started to come in. The consortium is mapping mutations of different types of cancers with the aim of better targetting treatment.
The findings for pancreatic cancer were published in the peer-reviewed journal Nature this morning. Professor Andrew Biankin from the Kinghorn Cancer Centre at the Garvan Institute of Medical Research and I led this survey, which sequenced the genomes of 100 pancreatic tumours from Australians and North Americans and compared them to normal tissue.
Pancreatic cancer and genome mapping
Pancreatic cancer is not the most common cancer to afflict
Australians. It’s actually tenth on the list, but it kills more people
than melanoma. And fewer than 5% of patients diagnosed with pancreatic
cancer will survive more than five years. It’s one of the few cancers
for which survival rates have not increased over the past 40 years.The problem is that it’s a complex cancer that usually isn’t detected until it has spread. Clearly, there’s a lot of scope to better understand this disease and how we can treat it more effectively.
Our project is part of the International Cancer Genome Consortium (ICGC), which has brought labs across the world together to sequence the genomes of 50 different types of tumours.
Cancer arises from the accumulation of genetic damage. You can compare it to randomly deleting files from a hard drive. Some files, if deleted, won’t make any difference to the functioning of the computer at all, while others are vital. If these files are deleted, the computer will cease functioning.
The cancer genome consortium is seeking to identify these mutations – the ones that cause a healthy cell to turn cancerous – and make this data freely available to scientists and clinicians. It’s been 12 years since the draft copy of the human genome was made public, and in that time, sequencing technology has made incredible advances.
The Human Genome Project took over a decade and cost over US$2 billion. In our laboratories at the University of Queensland’s Institute for Molecular Bioscience, we can sequence a genome in a matter of days for a few thousand dollars.
Across the 100 pancreatic cancers we studied, we identified over 2,000 mutations, a small number of which appear to be the genes that really drive the formation of tumours. We’ve also learnt that, as with many other types of cancer, pancreatic cancer is actually an umbrella term.
This means there are many sub-types of pancreatic cancer, each with different prognoses and different potential treatments. These differences can’t be seen with a microscope; sequencing is required to pinpoint what sets one tumour apart from the next.
With patients, for patients
This research, indeed that of the whole of the International Cancer Genome Consortium, wouldn’t have been possible without the cancer patients who donated their samples. They did so because they wanted to make a difference, and that’s the overarching aim for this project.Our findings emphasise the importance of treating patients as individuals, because when it comes to cancer types and treatments, one size most definitely does not fit all.
Our research aims to take the guesswork out of chemotherapy by allowing doctors to match the genetics of a person’s tumour with a treatment. We found some patients with mutations in genes that are commonly associated with other types of cancer, such as breast cancer.
The good news for these people is that some of these genes are already treatable with drugs and, in some cases, we were able to direct their doctors to treat them with the correct drug. Next year, we’ll begin clinical trials to assess the benefit of using this method of treating patients versus standard chemotherapy in advanced pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma.
This type of personalised medicine, where the individual is treated rather than the disease, is the future of medicine. It probably won’t be too many years before it will be standard procedure to have your diseased cells sequenced and your genetic make-up examined to determine treatment.
Of course, there’s more work to be done, but we hope our research can make a difference sooner rather than later in the lives of those affected by pancreatic cancer.
And with scientists and clinicians from around the world joining forces through the International Cancer Genome Consortium, we hope that cancer’s reign as one of our most devastating diseases will be over sooner rather than later.
What's your team's name?
It's time to register for the Denver Walk.
Once registered, you will receive a Starter Kit in the mail. The Kit contains materials you need to reach your fundraising goal. Our on-line registration site also provides information on how you can create your own personalized fundraising Web Page, send e-mails to your personal contacts, track donations and send thank-you emails to your walk supporters.
Volunteer at the Walk
Volunteers are among our greatest assets: from venue selection to cheering participants across the finish line, we rely on volunteers to help organize, manage and implement every aspect of our Walks. Simply stated, volunteers make it happen!100% of donations will go directly to pancreatic cancer research. Cablevision Systems Corporation underwrites all of The Lustgarten Foundation's administrative expenses to ensure that 100% of every donation goes directly to pancreatic cancer research.
Monday, October 29, 2012
Surgery vs. alternative medicine to battle cancer
Updated: Wednesday, 26 Oct 2011, 3:49 PM EDT
Published : Wednesday, 26 Oct 2011, 3:49 PM EDT
Published : Wednesday, 26 Oct 2011, 3:49 PM EDT
New Haven, Conn. (WTNH) - Late Apple co-founder Steve Jobs chose alternative therapies to battle cancer.
Jobs chose alternative therapies to battle a neuro-endocrine tumor that started in the pancreas. Surgery is generally recommended, but he delayed that procedure.
Dr. Howard Hochster specializes in gastro-intestinal cancers at Yale Cancer Center.
Dr. Hochster said, "If it's confined to the pancreas, or very localized, then it's removed surgically wherever in the body these tumors arise, a nice percentage of them are curable with surgery alone."
Jobs lived 8 years after his diagnosis.
In Jobs' biography that went on sale Monday, the writer says he tried non-traditional methods.
"I would not necessarily discourage people from taking them, but I don't think they can be used as therapy per say," said Dr. Hochster. "Unfortunately, with these alternative therapies, they are just not cancer treatments, that's why they are alternative, because they have been tried generally for many years, many decades, many centuries sometimes, but we can't show that they actually are therapeutically beneficial in any responsible medical clinical trial."
Dr. Hochster points out cancer treatments are similar to alternative practices in that many are derived from Mother Nature.
"One of the things about cancer treatments is that we get a lot of drugs through plants and many of them started out as plant extracts. The chemotherapy drug Taxol is a good example, it comes from the bark of Yew trees," explained Dr. Hochster.
Maryann Scinto has pancreatic cancer and is undergoing chemo. She chose the targeted therapy program offered at Yale that began with surgery.
"These spots that they found in August were so minute and then the scan beginning in October show them dormant, so this stuff is doing its job," said Scinto.
There are a number of clinical trials at Yale involving new molecular therapies that Dr. Hochster says are designed to help patients live the best for the longest time period possible.
http://www.wtnh.com/dpp/news/health/surgery-vs.-alternative-medicine-to-battle-cancer
Jobs chose alternative therapies to battle a neuro-endocrine tumor that started in the pancreas. Surgery is generally recommended, but he delayed that procedure.
Dr. Howard Hochster specializes in gastro-intestinal cancers at Yale Cancer Center.
Dr. Hochster said, "If it's confined to the pancreas, or very localized, then it's removed surgically wherever in the body these tumors arise, a nice percentage of them are curable with surgery alone."
Jobs lived 8 years after his diagnosis.
In Jobs' biography that went on sale Monday, the writer says he tried non-traditional methods.
"I would not necessarily discourage people from taking them, but I don't think they can be used as therapy per say," said Dr. Hochster. "Unfortunately, with these alternative therapies, they are just not cancer treatments, that's why they are alternative, because they have been tried generally for many years, many decades, many centuries sometimes, but we can't show that they actually are therapeutically beneficial in any responsible medical clinical trial."
Dr. Hochster points out cancer treatments are similar to alternative practices in that many are derived from Mother Nature.
"One of the things about cancer treatments is that we get a lot of drugs through plants and many of them started out as plant extracts. The chemotherapy drug Taxol is a good example, it comes from the bark of Yew trees," explained Dr. Hochster.
Maryann Scinto has pancreatic cancer and is undergoing chemo. She chose the targeted therapy program offered at Yale that began with surgery.
"These spots that they found in August were so minute and then the scan beginning in October show them dormant, so this stuff is doing its job," said Scinto.
There are a number of clinical trials at Yale involving new molecular therapies that Dr. Hochster says are designed to help patients live the best for the longest time period possible.
http://www.wtnh.com/dpp/news/health/surgery-vs.-alternative-medicine-to-battle-cancer
Join Us!
Denver, CO
|
 Pre-Registration Fee $50 Walk-In Registration Fee $60 Registration 9:00 am Walk starts at 10:30 am Join us on Sunday, November 4, 2012 at Sloan's Lake Park, Denver, CO.Pancreatic Cancer Research Events are a great way to increase funding for research and raise awareness for pancreatic cancer. Lustgarten Foundation Events serve as a wonderful celebration of the progress being made in the fight against this disease, and your important participation provides hope for the future. http://www.kintera.org/faf/home/default.asp?ievent=1024884 |
Sunday, October 28, 2012
U.Va. Cancer Initiative Invests $300,000 in Public-Private Research Partnerships
October 25, 2012
The University of Virginia’s Cancer Center Technology Partnership Initiative
has awarded funding to three projects bringing University and industry
researchers together to accelerate treatments for brain, breast and
pancreatic cancers.
Launched earlier this year, the initiative is designed to spur collaboration between U.Va. innovators and Virginia-based technology companies to advance cancer research, treatment and statewide economic development.
“As an engine for scientific discovery, the Cancer Center is working to optimize its dual roles in fostering not only a healthy citizenry, but also a healthy economy,” said Michael J. Weber, director of the U.Va. Cancer Center.
The projects were selected by the initiative’s nine-person review committee, which includes Max Wallace, CEO of Accelerate Brain Cancer Cure Inc., and Bill Wofford, partner at the Hutchison Law Group, and several U.Va. researchers and administrators.
“I am honored to be included as part of the U.Va. Cancer Center Technology Partnership Initiative, a unique and visionary approach to fostering the type of public-private partnerships that can help make our investment in academic research come to life,” Wallace said.
“This program will not only help patients, but it will also drive the growth of the innovation-centered businesses that are so important to our new economy. The proposals and presentations that we saw were truly excellent, and I am pleased that the very best of these will be moved forward even more powerfully with the help of these grants.”
The following public-private collaborations will each receive $90,000 to $100,000 to further their research:
For information about the U.Va. Cancer Center Technology Partnership Initiative, click here.
Launched earlier this year, the initiative is designed to spur collaboration between U.Va. innovators and Virginia-based technology companies to advance cancer research, treatment and statewide economic development.
“As an engine for scientific discovery, the Cancer Center is working to optimize its dual roles in fostering not only a healthy citizenry, but also a healthy economy,” said Michael J. Weber, director of the U.Va. Cancer Center.
The projects were selected by the initiative’s nine-person review committee, which includes Max Wallace, CEO of Accelerate Brain Cancer Cure Inc., and Bill Wofford, partner at the Hutchison Law Group, and several U.Va. researchers and administrators.
“I am honored to be included as part of the U.Va. Cancer Center Technology Partnership Initiative, a unique and visionary approach to fostering the type of public-private partnerships that can help make our investment in academic research come to life,” Wallace said.
“This program will not only help patients, but it will also drive the growth of the innovation-centered businesses that are so important to our new economy. The proposals and presentations that we saw were truly excellent, and I am pleased that the very best of these will be moved forward even more powerfully with the help of these grants.”
The following public-private collaborations will each receive $90,000 to $100,000 to further their research:
- U.Va. surgeon Dr. Todd W. Bauer and biomedical engineer Kimberly A. Kelly are working in partnership with Charlottesville-based biotechnology firm iTi Health Inc. to develop a molecular-based imaging technique to detect liver metastases in pancreatic cancer.
- U.Va. oncologist Dr. Benjamin Purow is partnering with Reston-based nanopharmaceutical company Parabon NanoLabs Inc. to produce and test nano-pharmaceutical P25+Gd as a “plug-and-play” drug for simultaneous treatment and real-time monitoring of glioblastoma multiforme, or brain cancer.
- U.Va.’s Mark B. Williams – professor of radiology and medical imaging, biomedical engineering and physics – and surgeon Dr. Craig L. Slingluff Jr. are partnering with the Newport News-based Jefferson Lab and Dilon Technologies Inc. to improve the speed and accuracy of cancer surgical procedures through the development of advanced imaging tools. The researchers seek to develop a tool for three-dimensional imaging using a new hand-held gamma camera and freehand SPECT, or single photon emission computed tomography.
For information about the U.Va. Cancer Center Technology Partnership Initiative, click here.
We need you! Be a hero!
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Each year, the Pancreatic Cancer Walk in Denver is a huge success -- not just because of those who walk but because of the volunteers. Hundreds come to the event each year just to help out and help make a difference. If you are interested in volunteering contact Kim at kimphillips14@gmail.com to learn more.
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Saturday, October 27, 2012
Pancreatic Cancer Discovery Offers New Hope For Patients
A set of mutated genes responsible for causing pancreatic cancer have
been discovered by Australian researchers and revealed in a new study
published in the journal Nature.
This is the first time a collaboration of the world's best experts has been carried out to determine the genetic factors that influence 50 different types of cancer.
According to the report, pancreatic cancer accounts for more deaths than any other major type of cancer. Survival rates have not improved over the last 40 years, acting as the fourth-leading cause of death from cancer. Common symptoms of pancreatic cancer include:
The international team of more than 100 researchers was led by Professor Sean Grimmon, from the Institute for Molecular Bioscience (IMB) at The University of Queensland, and Professor Andrew Biankin from The Kinghorn Cancer Centre at Garvan Institute of Medical Research / St. Vincent's Hospital in Sydney.
The experts sequenced the genomes from 100 pancreatic tumors and analyzed them in comparison with non-cancerous tissue to discover which genetic alterations may have caused the cancer.
Grimmon said:
Biankin commented that in the future, independent diagnoses and treatment plans for each patient will be the "norm". He said, "In this study, we found a set of genes, the axon guidance pathway, that is frequently damaged in pancreatic cancer patients and is associated with potentially poorer outcomes for those patients. It is a new marker of pancreatic cancer that can be used to direct prognoses and treatments."
Biankin continued: "'Personalized medicine', where the molecular profile of a patient is matched to the best treatment, is the way the world is moving for many diseases, not just cancer. The challenge now will be moving from population healthcare and a 'one drug fits all' model to personalized healthcare. First, we must take the time to develop the necessary genetic knowledge and implement health systems to translate that knowledge effectively."
The Professors noted that the Australian Pancreatic Cancer Genome Initiative, which involves over 20 hospitals and research facilities, of more than 200 nurses, surgeons, pathologists, and experts, played a large part in their study.
Professor Warwick Anderson, from the National Health and Medical Research Council of Australia, which funded the study with a $27.5 million grant, said: "NHMRC is proud to have been the major funding contributor to this research, and I am delighted that breakthroughs have been made in understanding the genetic basis of this disease. This positive outcome is evidence of NHMRC supporting the very best research and researchers, and the importance of our involvement in strong national and international collaborations. The ultimate goal of our funding is healthier citizens, both in Australia and overseas, and this research will certainly lead to a better understand of this issue."
Read more at: http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/252021.php
This is the first time a collaboration of the world's best experts has been carried out to determine the genetic factors that influence 50 different types of cancer.
According to the report, pancreatic cancer accounts for more deaths than any other major type of cancer. Survival rates have not improved over the last 40 years, acting as the fourth-leading cause of death from cancer. Common symptoms of pancreatic cancer include:
- Nausea
- Vomiting
- Appetite Loss
- Pain in the upper part of the stomach (abdomen), which can spread to the back
- Unusual weight loss
- Diabetes mellitus or high levels of blood sugar
- Depression
- Trosseau sign (when blood clots pop up out of nowhere in the deep veins of a person's extremities, superficial veins anywhere on the body, or in the portal blood vessels
The international team of more than 100 researchers was led by Professor Sean Grimmon, from the Institute for Molecular Bioscience (IMB) at The University of Queensland, and Professor Andrew Biankin from The Kinghorn Cancer Centre at Garvan Institute of Medical Research / St. Vincent's Hospital in Sydney.
The experts sequenced the genomes from 100 pancreatic tumors and analyzed them in comparison with non-cancerous tissue to discover which genetic alterations may have caused the cancer.
Grimmon said:
"We found over 2,000 mutated genes in total, ranging from the KRAS gene, which was mutated in about 90 per cent of samples, to hundreds of gene mutations that were only present in 1 or 2 per cent of tumors. So while tumors may look very similar under the microscope, genetic analysis reveals as many variations in each tumor as there are patients. This demonstrates that so-called 'pancreatic cancer' is not one disease, but many, and suggests that people who seemingly have the same cancer might be to be treated quite differently."
Biankin commented that in the future, independent diagnoses and treatment plans for each patient will be the "norm". He said, "In this study, we found a set of genes, the axon guidance pathway, that is frequently damaged in pancreatic cancer patients and is associated with potentially poorer outcomes for those patients. It is a new marker of pancreatic cancer that can be used to direct prognoses and treatments."
Biankin continued: "'Personalized medicine', where the molecular profile of a patient is matched to the best treatment, is the way the world is moving for many diseases, not just cancer. The challenge now will be moving from population healthcare and a 'one drug fits all' model to personalized healthcare. First, we must take the time to develop the necessary genetic knowledge and implement health systems to translate that knowledge effectively."
The Professors noted that the Australian Pancreatic Cancer Genome Initiative, which involves over 20 hospitals and research facilities, of more than 200 nurses, surgeons, pathologists, and experts, played a large part in their study.
Professor Warwick Anderson, from the National Health and Medical Research Council of Australia, which funded the study with a $27.5 million grant, said: "NHMRC is proud to have been the major funding contributor to this research, and I am delighted that breakthroughs have been made in understanding the genetic basis of this disease. This positive outcome is evidence of NHMRC supporting the very best research and researchers, and the importance of our involvement in strong national and international collaborations. The ultimate goal of our funding is healthier citizens, both in Australia and overseas, and this research will certainly lead to a better understand of this issue."
Read more at: http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/252021.php
Pancreatic Cancer Drug Completes Trial, Drug Discovery & Development - October 19, 2011
Infinity Pharmaceuticals, Inc. updated its development program for IPI-926, including completing enrollment of its Phase 2 trial in patients with previously untreated pancreatic cancer.
IPI-926 is a novel, oral, small molecule that inhibits Smoothened, a key component of the Hedgehog pathway. In preclinical models of pancreatic cancer, the Hedgehog pathway signals from the tumor to the surrounding environment to create a thick, fibrous tissue that provides support for tumor growth and prevents chemotherapy from reaching the tumor effectively. Inhibiting Smoothened with IPI-926 may represent a new approach to treating pancreatic cancer by depleting the fibrous tissue and facilitating the delivery of chemotherapy to the tumor.
The double-blind, placebo-controlled trial of 122 randomized patients is designed to compare IPI-926 in combination with gemcitabine (also known as Gemzar) to treatment with placebo and gemcitabine. Infinity initiated this Phase 2 trial in February 2011, with the primary endpoint being overall survival.
“IPI-926 as part of combination therapy may represent a new approach to treating pancreatic cancer by inhibiting the Hedgehog pathway and potentially improving delivery of chemotherapy to the tumor,” says Charles Fuchs, MD, MPH, director, Gastrointestinal Cancer Center at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School. “Clinical trials evaluating possible new treatments for pancreatic cancer, like this study with IPI-926, will hopefully lead to advances with the potential to improve survival for patients.”
In June 2011, researchers presented data from a Phase 1b trial evaluating once daily, oral administration of IPI-926 at escalating doses in combination with the standard dose of gemcitabine administered intravenously once weekly for three weeks with one week of rest in previously untreated patients with metastatic pancreatic cancer. A partial response was observed in five of the 16 patients, for a 31% response rate. The historic overall response rate to gemcitabine is less than 10%. Infinity continues to follow patients still enrolled in the trial and intends to report additional data from the Phase 1b trial at a future medical meeting.
“We look forward to obtaining the results from the ongoing trial in pancreatic cancer, which will inform our Phase 3 development plans,” states Pedro Santabárbara, MD, PhD, chief medical officer at Infinity. “Beyond pancreatic cancer, we are focused on advancing IPI-926 in Phase 2 trials in myelofibrosis and chondrosarcoma, as well as exploring a range of indications through investigator sponsored trials.”
Release Date: Oct. 17, 2011
Source: Infinity Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
http://www.dddmag.com/Pancreatic-Cancer-Drug-Completes-Trial-101911.aspx
IPI-926 is a novel, oral, small molecule that inhibits Smoothened, a key component of the Hedgehog pathway. In preclinical models of pancreatic cancer, the Hedgehog pathway signals from the tumor to the surrounding environment to create a thick, fibrous tissue that provides support for tumor growth and prevents chemotherapy from reaching the tumor effectively. Inhibiting Smoothened with IPI-926 may represent a new approach to treating pancreatic cancer by depleting the fibrous tissue and facilitating the delivery of chemotherapy to the tumor.
The double-blind, placebo-controlled trial of 122 randomized patients is designed to compare IPI-926 in combination with gemcitabine (also known as Gemzar) to treatment with placebo and gemcitabine. Infinity initiated this Phase 2 trial in February 2011, with the primary endpoint being overall survival.
“IPI-926 as part of combination therapy may represent a new approach to treating pancreatic cancer by inhibiting the Hedgehog pathway and potentially improving delivery of chemotherapy to the tumor,” says Charles Fuchs, MD, MPH, director, Gastrointestinal Cancer Center at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School. “Clinical trials evaluating possible new treatments for pancreatic cancer, like this study with IPI-926, will hopefully lead to advances with the potential to improve survival for patients.”
In June 2011, researchers presented data from a Phase 1b trial evaluating once daily, oral administration of IPI-926 at escalating doses in combination with the standard dose of gemcitabine administered intravenously once weekly for three weeks with one week of rest in previously untreated patients with metastatic pancreatic cancer. A partial response was observed in five of the 16 patients, for a 31% response rate. The historic overall response rate to gemcitabine is less than 10%. Infinity continues to follow patients still enrolled in the trial and intends to report additional data from the Phase 1b trial at a future medical meeting.
“We look forward to obtaining the results from the ongoing trial in pancreatic cancer, which will inform our Phase 3 development plans,” states Pedro Santabárbara, MD, PhD, chief medical officer at Infinity. “Beyond pancreatic cancer, we are focused on advancing IPI-926 in Phase 2 trials in myelofibrosis and chondrosarcoma, as well as exploring a range of indications through investigator sponsored trials.”
Release Date: Oct. 17, 2011
Source: Infinity Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
http://www.dddmag.com/Pancreatic-Cancer-Drug-Completes-Trial-101911.aspx
Friday, October 26, 2012
Families carry torch for lost loved ones
Posted: Thursday, October 25, 2012 3:41 pm
A cancer diagnosis by a doctor is often followed by a list of treatment options and a positive look at how medical advancements have improved survivability. That’s not the case with pancreatic cancer.
http://www.ourcoloradonews.com/parker/news/families-carry-torch-for-lost-loved-ones/article_c049bd4e-1eec-11e2-a419-0019bb2963f4.html
A cancer diagnosis by a doctor is often followed by a list of treatment options and a positive look at how medical advancements have improved survivability. That’s not the case with pancreatic cancer.
Perhaps the most devastating of the cancers, it is known as the one that’s typically too advanced for intervention. The survivor rate for late-stage patients is a meager 6 percent.
The available information and statistics didn’t provide much hope for Parker resident Rich Phillips, who was diagnosed in 2004 with stage-4 pancreatic cancer. He knew he was dying, and instead of flowers, asked friends and family to put their money toward research in the hopes that no one else would have to endure the pain of the disease.
His wife, Meg, and their daughters have followed through with his wish, and then some, by creating the Denver version of the Lustgarten Foundation Pancreatic Cancer Research Walk, one of Colorado’s most prominent memorial run/walks and fundraisers for research. The event – this year’s is Nov. 4 at Sloan’s Lake Park in Denver – started in New York and is named for the former chief executive officer of Cablevision, Marc Lustgarten, who lost his battle with pancreatic cancer at age 52.
Through the inspirational event, in which participants share stories and pin photos of departed loved ones on their shirts, Phillips has built a bond with countless women who have lost their husbands, including Highlands Ranch resident Karen Robinson.
Her husband, Stew, was given three months to live after his 2004 diagnosis. The doctors “would not touch him” and told him to quit his job and “go home and die,” Robinson said. But with help from a Houston-based treatment center called MD Anderson Cancer Center, her husband lived for three years.
Meg Phillips met another friend, Carey Lejeune, because Lejeune’s father, Bill, was undergoing treatment at the same time and place as Rich Phillips. The men established an incredible bond, and so, too, have the women as they raise money for intensive research through the Lustgarten Foundation Pancreatic Cancer Research Walk, which is entering its sixth year having raised $286,000 thus far.
Sadly, many of the survivors who participated in previous races have since passed away. Robinson said she has met only one pancreatic cancer survivor, a man at MD Anderson who was diagnosed nearly 15 years ago.
The deaths of Apple co-founder Steve Jobs, astronaut Sally Ride and actor Patrick Swayze have increased awareness about pancreatic cancer in recent years, but Phillips, Robinson and Lejeune, who are part of the research walk’s organizing team, know there is still much work to be done.
Meanwhile, they take heart in promising innovations for early detection, including a camera-scope that reaches deeper into the recesses of internal organs than ultrasounds do. They are also hoping scientists can further define possible dietary factors and genetic links in the existence of pancreatic cancer.
Robinson, whose husband’s life was prolonged enough for him to witness the high school and college graduations of their two sons, is an advocate of regular screenings for relatives of patients.
All of their efforts, from the run/walk to silent auctions, are made in the name of finding a means of effective early diagnosis, treatments and eventually a cure. All proceeds from the race – there are no administrative costs – go toward research. The Lustgarten Foundation funds studies at 40 medical centers around world.
When asked what her husband might say about her diligence in raising awareness and money, Phillips fights off tears.
“I think he would be proud because we’re working with scientists and researchers to help,” the Parker resident said. “He would say ‘good for you, but stop using my name so much.’”
The first run/walk drew 220 walkers and raised $42,000. The goal in 2012 is 700 walkers and $100,000 in donations. Participants are asked to contribute $50 when they register at www.lustgarten.org or call .
Remembering Steve Jobs
Watching Steve Jobs waste away from cancer was tragic for all the reasons expressed by President Obama, Steve Wozniak, Bill Gates and millions of Apple fans online and in moving, impromptu tributes at Apple stores.
One more reason losing Steve Jobs was painful for me personally: He was cut down in the prime of life by pancreatic cancer, which killed my father at 63, despite his finishing four marathons, and my friend's husband at 57, and will mercilessly snuff out 37,000 of the 44,000 Americans diagnosed this year, leaving shell-shocked families behind.
"I didn't even know what a pancreas was," Steve Jobs said in his Stanford commencement address, referring to the day he was diagnosed with his tumor.
To this day, pancreatic cancer remains shrouded in dread and mystery, as it was when Michael Landon went on the "Tonight Show with Johnny Carson" in 1991 and reluctantly named his silent killer, the largely-inoperable cancer that typically offers no symptoms until stage IV. Pancreatic cancer continues its reign of terror as the taboo cancer, mentioned in hushed tones and with a shaking of the head, as CNN's Sanjay Gupta demonstrated the night Steve Jobs died, grimly repeating the American Cancer Society statistics: 20 percent of patients survive one year after detection. Only 4 percent of patients survive five years.
We were met with the same hopeless shaking in 1997 when we sought experts to help my father. "It's an insidious disease," one doctor tsk-tsked, ushering us out of his office with no offer of surgery or treatment to give my father a fighting chance. The doctor didn't say it, no one wanted to say it, but the unspoken message was "go home and die."
Even Steve Job's immense resources were powerless to beat this form of cancer. Even the cutting-edge work of Nobel laureate Dr. Ralph Steinman, who died of pancreatic cancer three days before the prize was awarded, couldn't save him. Amazingly, Dr. Steinman used a new vaccine against cancer, which he was in the midst of developing, to try and fight his own tumor.
It didn't work. But it can, in the future.
Research doctors like Ralph Steinman, who demonstrate the revolutionary vision that Steve Jobs is hailed for, need more support. Pancreatic cancer continues to be a death sentence partly because it is the least funded of all cancers: Of the five leading cancer killers, pancreatic cancer receives the last amount of federal funding, according to Pancreatic Cancer Action Network. And it's not a rare disease: It's the fourth leading cause of cancer death in the U.S. Recently, Patrick Swayze, Randy Pausch and Luciano Pavarotti succumbed to it.
Where there is money, however, there is progress toward early detection, treatment and a cure. Dr. Christine Iacobuzio-Donahue made national headlines in 2010, with fellow doctors at Johns Hopkins (and England's Sanger Institute), for a breakthrough toward early detection. The George Rubis Endowment, founded in memory of my father, was credited as a supporter of the study. My family's annual grassroots fundraiser, Run for George, which has raised $420,000 to date, has directly supported Dr. Iacobuzio-Donahue's efforts over the last seven years.
I'll be honest: When touring Dr. Iacobuzio-Donahue's lab at Johns Hopkins, I didn't imagine that such leaps toward understanding pancreatic cancer would be made in my lifetime. When we received news of her breakthrough, we knew: Fundraising works. Pancreatic cancer need not rob us of loved ones, need not to be a scourge on our children's generation. Just a few decades ago, breast, prostate and colon cancers must have seemed so scary and so daunting. There is reason to be optimistic.
There is also far to go.
I hope that the grief over losing Steve Jobs will transform into activism, as it did when Marc Lustgarten, an executive of Cablevision, died in 1998. Cablevision helped establish The Lustgarten Foundation to defeat pancreatic cancer: It has become the largest private foundation dedicated solely to funding pancreatic cancer research, with $38 million going to research to date. The foundation has also launched curePC, a public service campaign to raise awareness, featuring Danny Aiello, William Hurt, Jai Pausch and Matthew Modine, all of whom have lost loved ones to pancreatic cancer.
Last year at Run for George we raffled off an iPad to raise research dollars. How else to excite the crowds? This year on Nov. 20th, we'll raffle off an iPad2. This one's for you, Steve.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/anastasia-rubis/steve-jobs-pancreatic-cancer_b_1029621.html
One more reason losing Steve Jobs was painful for me personally: He was cut down in the prime of life by pancreatic cancer, which killed my father at 63, despite his finishing four marathons, and my friend's husband at 57, and will mercilessly snuff out 37,000 of the 44,000 Americans diagnosed this year, leaving shell-shocked families behind.
"I didn't even know what a pancreas was," Steve Jobs said in his Stanford commencement address, referring to the day he was diagnosed with his tumor.
To this day, pancreatic cancer remains shrouded in dread and mystery, as it was when Michael Landon went on the "Tonight Show with Johnny Carson" in 1991 and reluctantly named his silent killer, the largely-inoperable cancer that typically offers no symptoms until stage IV. Pancreatic cancer continues its reign of terror as the taboo cancer, mentioned in hushed tones and with a shaking of the head, as CNN's Sanjay Gupta demonstrated the night Steve Jobs died, grimly repeating the American Cancer Society statistics: 20 percent of patients survive one year after detection. Only 4 percent of patients survive five years.
We were met with the same hopeless shaking in 1997 when we sought experts to help my father. "It's an insidious disease," one doctor tsk-tsked, ushering us out of his office with no offer of surgery or treatment to give my father a fighting chance. The doctor didn't say it, no one wanted to say it, but the unspoken message was "go home and die."
Even Steve Job's immense resources were powerless to beat this form of cancer. Even the cutting-edge work of Nobel laureate Dr. Ralph Steinman, who died of pancreatic cancer three days before the prize was awarded, couldn't save him. Amazingly, Dr. Steinman used a new vaccine against cancer, which he was in the midst of developing, to try and fight his own tumor.
It didn't work. But it can, in the future.
Research doctors like Ralph Steinman, who demonstrate the revolutionary vision that Steve Jobs is hailed for, need more support. Pancreatic cancer continues to be a death sentence partly because it is the least funded of all cancers: Of the five leading cancer killers, pancreatic cancer receives the last amount of federal funding, according to Pancreatic Cancer Action Network. And it's not a rare disease: It's the fourth leading cause of cancer death in the U.S. Recently, Patrick Swayze, Randy Pausch and Luciano Pavarotti succumbed to it.
Where there is money, however, there is progress toward early detection, treatment and a cure. Dr. Christine Iacobuzio-Donahue made national headlines in 2010, with fellow doctors at Johns Hopkins (and England's Sanger Institute), for a breakthrough toward early detection. The George Rubis Endowment, founded in memory of my father, was credited as a supporter of the study. My family's annual grassroots fundraiser, Run for George, which has raised $420,000 to date, has directly supported Dr. Iacobuzio-Donahue's efforts over the last seven years.
I'll be honest: When touring Dr. Iacobuzio-Donahue's lab at Johns Hopkins, I didn't imagine that such leaps toward understanding pancreatic cancer would be made in my lifetime. When we received news of her breakthrough, we knew: Fundraising works. Pancreatic cancer need not rob us of loved ones, need not to be a scourge on our children's generation. Just a few decades ago, breast, prostate and colon cancers must have seemed so scary and so daunting. There is reason to be optimistic.
There is also far to go.
I hope that the grief over losing Steve Jobs will transform into activism, as it did when Marc Lustgarten, an executive of Cablevision, died in 1998. Cablevision helped establish The Lustgarten Foundation to defeat pancreatic cancer: It has become the largest private foundation dedicated solely to funding pancreatic cancer research, with $38 million going to research to date. The foundation has also launched curePC, a public service campaign to raise awareness, featuring Danny Aiello, William Hurt, Jai Pausch and Matthew Modine, all of whom have lost loved ones to pancreatic cancer.
Last year at Run for George we raffled off an iPad to raise research dollars. How else to excite the crowds? This year on Nov. 20th, we'll raffle off an iPad2. This one's for you, Steve.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/anastasia-rubis/steve-jobs-pancreatic-cancer_b_1029621.html
Thursday, October 25, 2012
Who are you walking for?
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Wednesday, October 24, 2012
Walk hopes to raise awareness, support for pancreatic cancer research
DENVER - Have you or a loved one been affected by pancreatic cancer? Show your support by walking in the annual Rich Phillips Memorial Pancreatic Cancer Research Walk on Sunday at Sloan's Lake Park.
Meg, Kim and Kara Phillips lost their husband and father, Rich, to pancreatic cancer in 2005. They wanted to honor Rich Phillips in some way, as well as raise money for research for the disease. The Phillips family became inspired by the Lustgarten Foundation Pancreatic Cancer Research Walk that took place in Boston and decided to bring it to Denver. Now, four years later, the Phillips family has made a difference by raising $200,000 since 2007 and has brought together the Denver community.
Pancreatic cancer is hard to detect in the early stages, which in turn leads to the deaths of almost 38,000 people a year. Risk factors include family history, smoking, age and diabetes. Symptoms are usually vague and life expectancy after diagnosis is just 3 to 6 months. Steve Jobs, co-founder and CEO of Apple, was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in October 2003 and recently passed away in early October of 2011.
The Lustgarten Foundation ensures that 100 percent of every donation given goes directly to pancreatic cancer research. Pre-registration is $50 and the walk-in registration fee is $60. Registration begins at 9 a.m. Sunday and the walk starts at 10:30 a.m. For more information, visit http://2011denverwalk.kintera.org.
Alanna Eaton contributed to this report.
(KUSA-TV © 2011 Multimedia Holdings Corporation)
Meg, Kim and Kara Phillips lost their husband and father, Rich, to pancreatic cancer in 2005. They wanted to honor Rich Phillips in some way, as well as raise money for research for the disease. The Phillips family became inspired by the Lustgarten Foundation Pancreatic Cancer Research Walk that took place in Boston and decided to bring it to Denver. Now, four years later, the Phillips family has made a difference by raising $200,000 since 2007 and has brought together the Denver community.
Pancreatic cancer is hard to detect in the early stages, which in turn leads to the deaths of almost 38,000 people a year. Risk factors include family history, smoking, age and diabetes. Symptoms are usually vague and life expectancy after diagnosis is just 3 to 6 months. Steve Jobs, co-founder and CEO of Apple, was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in October 2003 and recently passed away in early October of 2011.
The Lustgarten Foundation ensures that 100 percent of every donation given goes directly to pancreatic cancer research. Pre-registration is $50 and the walk-in registration fee is $60. Registration begins at 9 a.m. Sunday and the walk starts at 10:30 a.m. For more information, visit http://2011denverwalk.kintera.org.
Alanna Eaton contributed to this report.
(KUSA-TV © 2011 Multimedia Holdings Corporation)
Tuesday, October 23, 2012
Monday, October 22, 2012
Help us make a difference!
Each year, the Pancreatic Cancer Walk in Denver is a huge success -- not just because of those who walk but because of the volunteers. Hundreds come to the event each year just to help out and help make a difference. If you are interested in volunteering contact Kim at kimphillips14@gmail.com to learn more.
Sunday, October 21, 2012
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