Gastric Cancer Foundation Closes in on Fundraising Goal to Permanently Endow Research Scholar Award
Looks to Giving Tuesday and Year-end Donations to Fund Research Award Program
San Francisco, CA—During Stomach Cancer Awareness Month this November, the Gastric Cancer Foundation hosted its CAUSE FOR HOPE Annual Event, which raised more than $100,000. With these funds, the Foundation reached the 90% mark to permanently endow a Research Scholar Award to improve treatments and ultimately find a cure for stomach cancer.
Stomach Cancer is the third leading cause of cancer deaths in the world, and is increasingly affecting young people. It is also three times as prevalent among Asian nationalities as others in the United States. However, gastriccancer receives less than half of one percent (.4%) of all federal cancer funding.
Funds raised at the CAUSE FOR HOPE event will support the $2.25 million Research Scholar Award for gastric cancer in collaboration with the American Gastroenterological Association. “Earlier this decade, the two organizations established this research award program, each pledging $1.125 million, to ensure outstanding young researchers would stay focused on gastric cancer rather than pivot to other areas of cancer study where funding is more plentiful,” explained Wayne Feinstein, Foundation Chairman.
The first award-winner, Dr. Mohamad El-Zataari of University of Michigan, is in the third year of his $270,000 ($90,000 annually) research grant. His work has produced important discoveries about the role of the immune system in gastric cancer. A second Research Scholar will be announced in early 2017, and continuously every three years with additional contributions from donors this year. To help raise the final 10% needed for the Research Scholar Award, donors may go online at gastriccancer.org this Tuesday or any time before the end of the year.
Key sponsors of the November event included Lilly Oncology and Capital Group Companies. Earlier this year, the Foundation raised another $100,000 through a Spring Fundraiser in New York City.
The Gastric Cancer Foundation has also collaborated with Stanford Cancer Institute to create the first HIPAA compliant database that is actively collecting both patient data and blood and tissue samples. This Gastric Cancer Registry provides scientists the genomic tools they need to develop better therapies for this underserved population of cancer patients. Patients are urged to set up profiles with their histories and tissue samples by contacting gastricregistry@stanford.edu. More information on the Registry is available here.
About the Gastric Cancer Foundation
In 2009, JP Gallagher, a San Francisco Bay Area professional, founded the Gastric Cancer Foundation after stomach cancer diagnoses at age 37. Since then, the Foundation has contributed $2 million to support stomach cancer research. Through education, research and advocacy, the Foundation is dedicated to improving the lives of people affected by stomach cancer and to working with leading researchers to find a cure. Find more at GastricCancer.org, through the monthly newsletter and on facebook.com/GastricCancerFoundation and Twitter@GastricCancerFD.
