First Grant
For press inquiries please contact:
Jennifer Styles, The Workshop Shannon Price, The Workshop
[email protected] [email protected]
310-995-0942 310-954-7725
Noreen Fraser Foundation Announces its First Grant
LOS ANGELES, March 2009 – The Noreen Fraser Foundation (NFF) has announced that its first translational research grant will be given to Dr. Funmi Olopade at the University of Chicago Cancer Research Center. With the support of NFF, Dr. Olopade will launch a first of its kind genome-wide study to find genes that may be responsible for an aggressive form of breast cancer known as triple negative breast cancer. Triple negative breast cancer is highly aggressive, resistant to treatment and presents with a poor prognosis, and yet it is a breast cancer subtype that has been understudied. Notably, triple negative breast cancer also disproportionately affects women under the age of 40 and women of African and African American ancestry.
Dr. Olopade and her team of researchers will compare the DNA of breast cancer patients to similar people who do not have the disease. Dr. Olopade’s team will use tissue and blood samples from over 4,000 patients. With these samples they will perform whole genome scans that can be shared with the larger cancer research community. The goal is to identify and validate susceptibility genes in early onset ER negative breast cancer and investigate gene-gene interactions.
“A better understanding of the biology of triple negative breast cancer is imperative so that we can find more advanced prevention and treatment options for this aggressive cancer that unfairly targets African American and young women,” says Noreen Fraser, Founder and CEO of the Noreen Fraser Foundation.
Dr. Olopade’s research aims to change the way triple negative breast cancer is treated and screened by uncovering genes, environment, and lifestyle interactions that may affect the progression of the disease.
Dr. Olopade is the recipient of numerous honors and awards including the James S. McDonnell Foundation Scholar award, the Doris Duke Distinguished Clinical Scientist award, and a MacArthur Fellowship “genius” grant. In 2008, she was inducted into the National Academy of Science Institute of Medicine, one of the highest honors in the medical field. Apart from her accomplishments and recognition domestically, Dr. Olopade, originally from Nigeria, heads the University of Chicago’s Global Health initiative and returns frequently to Africa to work with cancer specialists there to encourage early detection and share advances in treatment.
The Noreen Fraser Foundation aims to find cures for women’s cancers by funding the most promising scientists whose translational research is focused on developing new targeted treatments. The Noreen Fraser Foundation utilizes film, television and web technologies to raise money as well as to educate and raise awareness about women’s cancers. Noreen Fraser, a stage IV cancer survivor, has played a pivotal role in raising money and awareness of the importance of translational cancer research as co-creator and co-producer of Stand Up To Cancer, a movement which has raised over 100 million dollars for cancer research to date.
