Recent Projects Funded

$1,500 CME Conference Sponsorship for Updates on Advanced Breast Cancer: Local Management and Other New Perspectives

Marissa N. Rylander, PhD
at University of Texas

Marissa Nichole Rylander, PhD (PI) and Bisrat Godefay Debeb, DVM, PhD (PI)

Metastatic breast cancer is responsible for over 75% of breast cancer-associated deaths and current treatment options are ineffective when tumors metastasize to the brain (BM). Existing in vitro and in vivo systems are unable to fully dissect the complex mechanisms of BM. In vitro platforms with sufficient physiological fidelity do not exist to capture the spatial and temporal metastatic process and initiators of this complex process. The significant cost associated with the large number of animals needed and inability to capture the dynamics of metastasis by in vivo models limit our understanding. We will address this need by conducting the following specific aims 1) Create a brain bio-tissue to interrogate the breast cancer metastatic progression and vascular disruption of the blood brain barrier by BM and validate the physiologic fidelity of the Breast-BBB-Brain platform and showcase its usefulness by answering a provoking question in 2) Examine the role of soluble E-cadherin (sEcad) on cancer cell vascular adhesion and extravasation when compared to in vivo models. The work will offer novel and customizable platforms for studying metastasis and new biological discoveries that hold therapeutic potential for patients with advanced breast cancer.

The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center

$5,000 matching grant for this annual fundraiser that provides support for patient programs, research, prevention and education at MD Anderson — and 100% of funds raised by participants directly support MD Anderson’s mission to end cancer.

One of the things we wanted to do at the IBC Network Foundation is to cast a wider net of interested parties who might like to conduct IBC research.

So we partnered with AACR (America Association for Cancer Research) to help vet new finding relationships, and fund five up and coming young researchers with an award of a thousand dollars each that will be given out at the San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium.

We know this type of award is an important step in a young researcher’s life. We are looking forward to releasing the names of who YOU (as a donor) helped fund.

Dana Farber Cancer Institute

$5,000 Yearly matching grant for the annual Jimmy Fund Walk to support cancer research at Dana Farber Institute.

The James, The Ohio State University
Dr. Lori Gill-Grennan Inflammatory Breast Cancer Fund

This funding supports education, research, and clinical activities for inflammatory breast cancer and/or program promotion or operational costs related to the inflammatory breast cancer program at Ohio State University. The research funded under this effort is Dr. Daniel Stover.

Dana Farber Cancer Institute

$5,000 matching grant for the annual Jimmy Fund Walk to support cancer care and cancer research at Dana Farber Institute.