2016 – A Year of Hope and Progress
Dear Sarcoma Foundation of America Supporter,
As the calendar takes us into the holiday season, we take the time to reflect on the year that has passed. In the sarcoma community, 2016 has been a year of hope and progress. Two new sarcoma drugs have been approved, one drug for Leiomyosarcoma and Liposarcoma patients and another approved broadly for Soft Tissue Sarcoma patients. These new therapeutic options give us continued hope for better patient outcomes and represent the progress that sarcoma researchers have made over the last decade.
The type of hope and progress that the sarcoma community experienced in 2016 does not happen overnight. It takes years of research from dedicated sarcoma doctors and researchers working to understand the disease and identify weaknesses of tumors that can be exploited by new drugs. It takes research funding, like the funding that the Sarcoma Foundation of America provides to researchers across the United States. In fact, since the organization was founded, the SFA has invested more than $7 million in sarcoma research.
Your support of these efforts does make a difference! With support of friends like you, the hope and progress of 2016 may not have happened!
Thanks to you, in 2016 the SFA was able to:
- Fund EIGHT sarcoma research grants in both bone and soft tissue subtypes through our annual Sarcoma Research Grant Program.
- Provide an additional quarter of a million dollars in funds for collaborative, interdisciplinary research through our partnerships with sarcoma research centers.
- Serve as the voice of sarcoma community as a part Vice President Joe Biden’s Cancer Moonshot Initiative.
- Advocate for more Federal resources for cancer patients by urging the passage of the 21st Century Cures Act and the Childhood Cancer STAR Act.
- Grow our patient education conference series to SIX events throughout the country, connecting more patients to leading sarcoma researchers and physicians.
Expand the Race to Cure Sarcoma™ 5K run/walks, bringing the sarcoma community together to raise research funds and sarcoma awareness.
Also notable this year, initial results from the first clinical trial evaluating an Anti-PD1 antibody in sarcoma patients were released. As a funder of this clinical trial, the SFA is excited by the early results as they show some benefit to patients with sarcoma, particularly for patients with undifferentiated pleomorphic sarcoma and dedifferentiated liposarcoma. These results bring hope that more research into immunotherapy will produce better outcomes for sarcoma patients.
While significant progress is being made, we know that there is still much left to do. We need your help to do even more. Your support will help us continue to move closer to more new and better therapies – and ultimately toward the cure. We hope you can continue to support this work by making your most generous tax-deductible gift today by giving online at www.curesarcoma.org/year-end.
As this year draws to a close, please join us in looking forward to the progress that can be made in the year ahead. Together, we can continue to provide hope to the sarcoma patients and families who so desperately need it.
On behalf of the sarcoma patients and families we serve, thank you and Happy Holidays!
Sincerely,
Bert E. Thomas, IV, PhD, MBA
Chief Executive Officer
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