As we rapidly approach the start of our "official" training one week from today, I find this motivation particularly fitting:
However it is that much easier to stay committed when I know that the DFMC supports such ground breaking research. As I share these impact statements each week, keep in mind that research such as this is much like the marathon itself. There are no sprints on the course to new discoveries in the fight against cancer - rather, these investigators must maintain a steady pace and go the distance, no matter the obstacles and no matter how long it takes them to reach the finish line.
Such as Rosalind Segal, MD, PhD, who was supported by the Barr Program in 1998-2000 and 2002-‘04 and worked to discover new pathways in brain cancers. This research led directly to promising new clinical trials for the nearly 23,000 patients who develop these diseases every year.
Brain cancer remains one of the most difficult cancers to treat and is responsible for more
than 13,000 deaths annually. Dr. Segal discovered that a genetic pathway called “Notch” is consistently damaged in brain tumors. Drugs already exist for other diseases to target Notch, and
exciting new clinical trials are now underway to explore opportunities to now use these
drugs for brain cancer patients. This has the potential to significantly improve survival for
this devastating cancer.
I am proud to be supporting investigators such as Dr. Segal, and beyond grateful to those of you who have already helped me reach 28% towards my goal of raising $10,000 to fund this vital research- and all before our official training has even started! There is nothing more motivating than knowing that together, we are helping to change and save lives.