Marc Lustgarten Pancreatic Cancer Foundation

The Lustgarten Foundation funds the world's preeminent pancreatic cancer researchers, driving the pursuit of bold and innovative science toward earlier detection and better treatments and transforming pancreatic cancer into a curable disease. Our mission is to cure pancreatic cancer by funding scientific and clinical research related to the diagnosis, treatment and prevention of pancreatic cancer; providing research information and clinical support services to patients, caregivers and individuals at high risk; and increasing public awareness and hope for those dealing with the disease. To date, the Foundation has invested more than $250 million in more than 300 pancreatic cancer research projects, amounting to approximately two-thirds of the world's private funding for pancreatic cancer research from organizations solely focused on this disease. The Foundation invests in pancreatic cancer research targeted on three key research areas: early detection, personalized medicine and new drug development. Projects are prioritized based on need and impact and focus on programs advancing discoveries to the clinic.

With our approach to research, we have three overarching strategies: 1. Ensure all research we fund will impact patients directly, either now or in the future. 2. Form vital collaborations with leading research organizations, such as Stand Up To Cancer, to leverage our funding and to jointly support innovative and groundbreaking research with multi-disciplinary teams of experts across multiple institutions. 3. Fund the best researchers in pancreatic cancer who are pursuing high-risk, high-reward science and who are committed to advancing the best science to transform pancreatic cancer into a curable disease.

For fundraising, we conduct multiple Lustgarten Walks for Research annually throughout the country and several large fundraisers, all designed to raise awareness, increase research funding and provide a voice and a place for the pancreatic cancer community to join and create hope, together. We also support approximately 200 community events annually, ranging from bake sales to golf outings to college campus fundraisers. We cultivate relationships with donors, patients and survivors by mail, email and in person and share their stories on our website, in emails and on our social media channels to inspire others.

Our strategies for achieving our goals tie into one of our four overarching pillars:
-Research is Fundamental: Research produces real results. It is the only way to fundamentally improve pancreatic cancer outcomes.
-Time is Everything: Pancreatic cancer research is advancing faster than ever before, driving ne breakthroughs in early detection, drug development and precision medicine, giving patients the best chance for survival and quality of life.
-Progress is Paramount: Pancreatic cancer represents only 3% of all cancers diagnosed in the U.S. each year, yet it is the third leading cause of cancer deaths. The Foundation ushered in a new era in pancreatic cancer research to achieve breakthroughs and improve survival.
-Community is Power: We help survivors, patients and families find community, raise awareness and drive funds to research, ultimately transforming fear into action.

The Lustgarten Foundation is a catalyst in the field of pancreatic cancer research and is uniquely positioned to fulfill our mission for several reasons. 1. 100% of donations fund lifesaving pancreatic cancer research. We can allocate every dollar of every donation we receive to urgently-needed research funding. 2. Our Scientific Advisory Board is comprised of renowned scientists at the top of their fields who employ a rigorous review process to determine what projects we will fund, based on our three areas of focus: early detection, personalized medicine and new treatments. 3. We require yearly progress reports to ensure projects are meeting goals and deadlines, and we hold an annual scientific meeting to collaborate, share ideas and research progress and brainstorm new directions for research. 4. The Foundation has established five dedicated pancreatic cancer research laboratories at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory (Long Island, NY), Dana-Farber Cancer Institute (Boston), two labs at Johns Hopkins (Baltimore) and Massachusetts Institute of Technology (Boston). Together, these facilities position the Foundation as the only non-profit in the country to have five labs dedicated to pancreatic cancer research. These labs are strategically aligned to dramatically shift the pancreatic cancer research landscape, from diagnosis to treatment to higher survival rates.

6. Together with Stand Up To Cancer, the Foundation established the Pancreatic Cancer Collective, dedicated to improving patient outcomes for pancreatic cancer patients. To date, the Collective has conducted 30 clinical trials led by more than 400 research investigators at 70 institutions. 7. The Foundation has established new grant programs to build on our research momentum. These grants include the Lustgarten Foundation-AACR Career Development Awards for Pancreatic Cancer Research in honor of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Congressman John Robert Lewis, who both died of pancreatic cancer in 2020. We established two three-year, $300,000 career development awards to address the need for greater gender and racial diversity within the pancreatic cancer research community. The Therapeutics-Focused Research Program fosters collaboration and enables researchers to identify new therapeutic approaches and/or drug targets. The program ensures there is a robust pipeline of potential treatments targeted at four key areas of pancreatic cancer biology. 8. The Foundation is boldly advancing research from the lab to the clinic, a process known as translational research, by conducting clinical trials under the umbrella of the Foundation's Clinical Accelerator Initiative. The CAI is shortening the time from clinical trial concept to launch and allowing researchers to develop new clinical trials based on the best available science employing cutting-edge biomarkers. These smarter clinical trials are generating large volumes of data scientists can use to expedite new treatments.

Lustgarten-funded research is a force for progress in the scientific community, where creative risks yield high rewards in the pursuit of accelerating and expanding treatment options to provide hope and save lives. Lustgarten-funded science has been a driving force in every major advancement in pancreatic cancer research. When the Foundation was established in 1998, public funding for pancreatic cancer was less than 1% of available funding for cancer research. Over 20 years later, our leadership in driving funding to pancreatic cancer research has stimulated the National Cancer Institute to triple its funding to more than $182 million in 2018. The Foundation has committed $24 million to research in 2021 to advance progress toward transforming pancreatic cancer into a curable disease.

Lustgarten-funded advancements include sequencing the pancreatic cancer genome; funding studies around Abraxane, which remains the standard of care for many patients; adding Keytruda, the first FDA-approved immunotherapy for advanced pancreatic cancer patients with a specific mutation, to the growing list of treatment options; developing a personalized medicine model; working to develop CancerSEEK, an early detection blood test; harnessing the body's own immune system to fight the disease; developing a deeper understanding of the molecular biology underlying pancreatic cancer; and establishing five dedicated Pancreatic Cancer Research Laboratories.

These initiatives are leading to major breakthroughs, such as the creation of the organoid (a revolutionary 3D cell culture of a patient's specific tumor), offering hope to patients for dramatically improving their care and prognosis. Researchers are now using the organoid in a clinical trial to analyze the tumor's biology and drug sensitivity and apply this data to determine if organoids can predict the most effective treatment for each patient. If successful, this trial can pave the way for organoids to personalize therapies for metastatic pancreatic cancer patients. Three other clinical studies are exploring the use of vaccines to treat pancreatic cancer and testing a new combination of drugs designed to simultaneously activate the T cells (in immune system cell) and block the inhibitory signals from the pancreatic tumor.

In early detection, there is work being done on a liquid biopsy. From a simple vial of blood, researchers are finding the telltale genetic material that comes from the pancreatic cancer well before symptoms appear. Researchers are also using artificial intelligence to improve the detection of pancreas abnormalities that are currently missed by our present-day technology. Moreover, Lustgarten-funded researchers have developed a Comprehensive Cyst (CompCyst) test, which combines clinical, radiological, genetic and protein marker information to distinguish if pancreatic cysts, which can be common amongst the general population, can develop into pancreatic cancer or remain as benign cysts.