THIS IS WHAT YOU’RE FUNDING!!
2019 & 2020 Update
The Cancer Couch Foundation Research Difference:
Our founder, Dr. Rebecca Timlin-Scalera, who lost her MBC battle in December 2019, was known for her analytical skills and her efficient approach to problem solving. First she secured a 100% match for all donations received. Then she concentrated all that TCCF funding in two of the world’s most innovative MBC research labs. And today thanks to the generous on-going support of our donors around the world, The Cancer Couch Foundation is the number one philanthropic funding source at the MBC research labs we fund:
In order to compete for large-scale, long-term federal, pharma or foundation grants, these labs must present detailed preliminary data supporting their innovative hypotheses. However, they can only advance to the large-scale funding stage with the unique type of seed funding that TCCF provides. Our reduced administrative burdens and rapid funding approach enables new hypotheses to be tested, and critical data to be collected that is essential to publishing research papers and securing large-scale funding. Some recent examples of how this TCCF seed funding approach has blossomed into large-scale funded projects and other critical advances is provided below.
The Cancer Couch Foundation Research Results:
At Memorial Sloan Kettering:
The Cancer Couch Foundation’s seed funding helped to produce 2 multi-year federal NIH grants in 2019 to advance critical research topics:
Based on the results generated during the TCCF supported seed funding stage, in 2019 the MSK lab received
5 years of Federal NIH funding of $1.7 Million.
At Dana-Farber:
TCCF supported seed funding research that recently produced seven publications in high-impact journals and over $1.5 Million in NIH, Pharma and Foundation Funding to advance 6 different studies. These advances shed new light on how ER+ metastatic breast cancer (MBC) develops resistance to endocrine therapies, CDK4/6 inhibitors, and other therapies.
TCCF Research Reach: Utthara Nayar, PhD, a postdoctoral fellow in Nick’s lab that worked on TCCF supported research on HER2 mutations (published in Nature Genetics) will begin a faculty position at Johns Hopkins in 2021 where she will run a lab continuing to investigate resistance in breast cancer, based on the TCCF-supported work she did at Dana-Farber.
All of these tremendous scientific discoveries and developments in therapies were all made possible by the generosity of all TCCF donors that continue to support Rebecca’s highly efficient and effective approach to MBC funding. Thanks to you The Cancer Couch Foundation Difference is making a huge difference in fighting Metastatic Breast Cancer!
The Cancer Couch Foundation Research Difference:
Our founder, Dr. Rebecca Timlin-Scalera, who lost her MBC battle in December 2019, was known for her analytical skills and her efficient approach to problem solving. First she secured a 100% match for all donations received. Then she concentrated all that TCCF funding in two of the world’s most innovative MBC research labs. And today thanks to the generous on-going support of our donors around the world, The Cancer Couch Foundation is the number one philanthropic funding source at the MBC research labs we fund:
- Dana-Farber: Nikhil Wagle, MD
- Memorial Sloan Kettering: Sarat Chandarlapaty, MD, PhD
In order to compete for large-scale, long-term federal, pharma or foundation grants, these labs must present detailed preliminary data supporting their innovative hypotheses. However, they can only advance to the large-scale funding stage with the unique type of seed funding that TCCF provides. Our reduced administrative burdens and rapid funding approach enables new hypotheses to be tested, and critical data to be collected that is essential to publishing research papers and securing large-scale funding. Some recent examples of how this TCCF seed funding approach has blossomed into large-scale funded projects and other critical advances is provided below.
The Cancer Couch Foundation Research Results:
At Memorial Sloan Kettering:
The Cancer Couch Foundation’s seed funding helped to produce 2 multi-year federal NIH grants in 2019 to advance critical research topics:
- Adaptation and Evolution: A core problem with MBC is that most cancers evolve during therapy and acquire traits that lead to resistance. Using seed funding from TCCF, the research team at MSK investigated these mutation processes using breast cancer samples. This study was focused on two key areas:
- Developing tools to identify the mutation in time to intervene
- Testing strategies to stop mutation & allow current therapies to work longer
Based on the results generated during the TCCF supported seed funding stage, in 2019 the MSK lab received
5 years of Federal NIH funding of $1.7 Million.
- Polyclonal Resistance & Blood Biomarkers: A key problem in understanding drug resistance is determining why only some cells respond to therapies. Researchers at MSK determined that better tools are needed to characterize cell diversity to develop more effective therapies. The MSK team studied certain cell resistance to hormonal therapy using circulating tumor DNA. Through seed funding from TCCF, in 2019 the MSK team received Federal NIH funding of $2.1 Million to further study the prevalence of this problem, develop assays to detect it, and develop models to help treat these cancers.
At Dana-Farber:
TCCF supported seed funding research that recently produced seven publications in high-impact journals and over $1.5 Million in NIH, Pharma and Foundation Funding to advance 6 different studies. These advances shed new light on how ER+ metastatic breast cancer (MBC) develops resistance to endocrine therapies, CDK4/6 inhibitors, and other therapies.
- These TCCF-supported research findings have clinical implications for MBC patients, including new strategies to prevent or overcome resistance.
- At least one clinical trial for patients with resistant ER+ MBC based on this work is now under development.
TCCF Research Reach: Utthara Nayar, PhD, a postdoctoral fellow in Nick’s lab that worked on TCCF supported research on HER2 mutations (published in Nature Genetics) will begin a faculty position at Johns Hopkins in 2021 where she will run a lab continuing to investigate resistance in breast cancer, based on the TCCF-supported work she did at Dana-Farber.
All of these tremendous scientific discoveries and developments in therapies were all made possible by the generosity of all TCCF donors that continue to support Rebecca’s highly efficient and effective approach to MBC funding. Thanks to you The Cancer Couch Foundation Difference is making a huge difference in fighting Metastatic Breast Cancer!
2018 Update
As promised, when I started this foundation, my goal is to keep our donors as well informed as possible so you can feel completely connected to the research and know EXACTLY where your hard earned dollars – that you have so generously donated – are going!I have been busy traveling around to visit our wonderful doctors and their labs to learn about the amazing work they have been doing since we started funding them last year.
One of the many things that makes The Cancer Couch Foundation different is that we have cultivated such strong personal relationships with the carefully chosen researchers, labs, development teams, and institutions we fund. Trust and good communication are core values we hold strongly and these personal visits help strengthen and foster these vital relationships. Just as one cancer cell alone can’t kill us, one person alone can’t cure cancer.
Without further adieu, it is my pleasure to provide an update on the incredible work being done at
As promised, when I started this foundation, my goal is to keep our donors as well informed as possible so you can feel completely connected to the research and know EXACTLY where your hard earned dollars – that you have so generously donated – are going!I have been busy traveling around to visit our wonderful doctors and their labs to learn about the amazing work they have been doing since we started funding them last year.
One of the many things that makes The Cancer Couch Foundation different is that we have cultivated such strong personal relationships with the carefully chosen researchers, labs, development teams, and institutions we fund. Trust and good communication are core values we hold strongly and these personal visits help strengthen and foster these vital relationships. Just as one cancer cell alone can’t kill us, one person alone can’t cure cancer.
Without further adieu, it is my pleasure to provide an update on the incredible work being done at
Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in NYC,
by the elite Metastatic Breast Cancer research team of Dr. Sarat Chandarlapaty’s lab…
by the elite Metastatic Breast Cancer research team of Dr. Sarat Chandarlapaty’s lab…
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In less than one year since we have funded his lab, Dr. Chandarlapaty and his team of researchers have found a discovery that will enable them to write a paper and seek long-term funding from the government to fund research on next generation therapies for ER+ MBC. That is the whole idea behind why we fund the way we do. We are supporting the best and the brightest in this basic science so they can get results for work that would not otherwise receive funding and help them get to the next level where federal funding and big pharmaceutical funding will help them get their work turned into a medication on the market – or new insurance approved blood tests that can have vital clinical implications for MBC patients! Their work compliments what Dr. Wagle and his team are researching at Dana-Farber, but they are looking at it from a different angle (as there are almost endless angles to metastatic cancer!).
Identifying Causes of Resistance to Hormone Therapy and Palbociclib Combination Treatment:
Specifically, this team is looking at patients with MBC whose cancers don’t respond as well to the now fairly common (for ER+ Her2- MBC) treatment combination of hormone therapy and Palbociclib. They are trying to find commonalities amongst those who stop responding to the drug before the median timeframe of two years so that this can lead to more effective treatments. Well, by looking not just at biopsies of metastatic lesions – but also at their plasma (simple blood samples) they actually found a rare mutation many of these patients had that seems to be responsible for outsmarting this treatment combo and leading to progression of the disease.
See, the way estrogen causes cancer is to tell this guardian of cell division, known as Rb, to step aside and allow the cancer cell to grow and divide – so these drugs inhibit that process….the drugs restore the guardian’s function. However, they found an unexpected pathway when they looked at samples in the petri dish and through both tumor biopsies and blood samples showing that in patients with two particular gene mutations – the guardian, Rb, was again deactivated despite the ongoing presence of the drugs. This now paves the way for the development of new drugs to overcome these mutations.
What they found – is like finding a needle in a haystack – but because we gave them $125,000 in 2016, which was then matched to put $250,000 directly to this lab – that covered the cost of a fellow, some of Sarat’s salary, and the equipment and supplies need to conduct this study. WE DID THAT! YOU DID THAT!! Every kid that ate ice cream for us, every ticket you bought to The Cancer Beat or a PINK GAME – every donation you sent in. Every single dollar was matched and led to this. THIS IS HUGE! This is literally going to save the lives of countless people in years to come – us – our kids, their kids, etc.
Thank you thank you thank you from the bottom of my heart to every single person who supports TCCF and what we do in any way big or small. It’s all BIG actually. Thank you to these elite research teams who are dedicating their lives to helping us find a cure and extend lives. WE ARE MAKING THIS HAPPEN TOGETHER! WE ARE MOVING THE NEEDLE FOR MBC AND ALL CANCERS !
Read below and just imagine where we will be in the next ten years with more awareness and funds being directed to MBC!!! Incredible! Stay with us and help us keep supporting this amazing lab doing this life-saving work so they can take it to the next level this year! Update on Dr. Nik Wagle’s work to come…
See, the way estrogen causes cancer is to tell this guardian of cell division, known as Rb, to step aside and allow the cancer cell to grow and divide – so these drugs inhibit that process….the drugs restore the guardian’s function. However, they found an unexpected pathway when they looked at samples in the petri dish and through both tumor biopsies and blood samples showing that in patients with two particular gene mutations – the guardian, Rb, was again deactivated despite the ongoing presence of the drugs. This now paves the way for the development of new drugs to overcome these mutations.
What they found – is like finding a needle in a haystack – but because we gave them $125,000 in 2016, which was then matched to put $250,000 directly to this lab – that covered the cost of a fellow, some of Sarat’s salary, and the equipment and supplies need to conduct this study. WE DID THAT! YOU DID THAT!! Every kid that ate ice cream for us, every ticket you bought to The Cancer Beat or a PINK GAME – every donation you sent in. Every single dollar was matched and led to this. THIS IS HUGE! This is literally going to save the lives of countless people in years to come – us – our kids, their kids, etc.
Thank you thank you thank you from the bottom of my heart to every single person who supports TCCF and what we do in any way big or small. It’s all BIG actually. Thank you to these elite research teams who are dedicating their lives to helping us find a cure and extend lives. WE ARE MAKING THIS HAPPEN TOGETHER! WE ARE MOVING THE NEEDLE FOR MBC AND ALL CANCERS !
Read below and just imagine where we will be in the next ten years with more awareness and funds being directed to MBC!!! Incredible! Stay with us and help us keep supporting this amazing lab doing this life-saving work so they can take it to the next level this year! Update on Dr. Nik Wagle’s work to come…