The Request
More than 20,000 new cases of ovarian cancer are diagnosed in the U.S. each year. Ovarian cancer is a lethal disease with an inadequate array of treatment options for the patient. The Ovarian Cancer Vaccine Initiative (OCVI) needs your help in raising tax-deductible support for an advanced therapeutic ovarian cancer vaccine currently undergoing FDA-mandated clinical trials at The University of Pennsylvania (Abramson Cancer Center).
The Disease
More than 100,000 women worldwide are expected to die from ovarian cancer during 2007. Despite advances in surgery and chemotherapy, the mortality rate for ovarian cancer has not changed materially in the last forty years. 75% of initial ovarian cancer diagnoses reveal late-stage disease (Stages III/IV). 80% of these patients will face disease recurrence following their initial treatment, typically within two years. Recurrent ovarian cancer cannot be cured with existing therapies.
The Funding Challenge
In addition to being a difficult disease to treat, ovarian cancer suffers from “poor demographics”. Lung, breast, prostate, and colorectal cancers each strike between five and ten times more people than does ovarian cancer. These more prevalent cancers naturally attract the vast majority of corporate research dollars. As a consequence, many of the most promising therapies for ovarian cancer must be funded philanthropically.
Therapeutic Hope
One of the brightest hopes for treating ovarian cancer involves so-called “autologous” therapeutic vaccines. Autologous vaccines use a patient's own, unique tumor to guide his or her immune system. These vaccines substantially increase the percentage of the patient's immune system focused on fighting the cancer. Vaccine immunotherapy is a natural, supportive complement to other existing treatments such as surgery and chemotherapy.
Origins of this Initiative
In identifying this particular vaccine for philanthropic support, the founders of OCVI sought advice from more than a dozen prominent cancer centers in the U.S. and abroad. Many of the thought-leaders in the cancer research community highlighted the immunotherapy work being conducted by the gynecologic oncology team at The University of Pennsylvania (Abramson Family Cancer Research Institute). The two most frequently referenced names were Dr. George Coukos (bio; photo, right) and Dr. Carl June (bio; photo, below).
Over the past 18 months, a close collaboration between Drs. Coukos/June from The University of Pennsylvania and Northwest Biotherapeutics, a publicly-traded cancer vaccine company, has sought to design a cutting-edge ovarian cancer immunotherapeutic vaccine. This task has now been successfully accomplished. A Phase I/II clinical trial to treat recurrent ovarian cancer patients with this vaccine commenced on December 6th, 2007, at The University of Pennsylvania Hospital in Philadelphia. Within a few months, it is expected that a west coast site for this clinical trial will be opened.
Philanthropic Funding
Now that this ovarian cancer vaccine clinical trial is officially underway, Patricia Dunn (a recurrent ovarian cancer patient) and her husband, Bill Jahnke, have agreed to chair a philanthropic fund-raising initiative to support this currently unfunded clinical trial. Randall Caudill (whose wife, Lee, is an ovarian cancer patient) has agreed to join them in co-sponsoring this fund-raising endeavor. Together, they have established a funding vehicle titled “The Ovarian Cancer Vaccine Initiative” to enable tax-deductible support for this project.
The estimated total cost of this clinical trial and related research is approximately $5mm, of which The University of Pennsylvania’s Abramson Cancer Center, Northwest Biotherapeutics, and Cognate Bioservices, will contribute more than $1.5mm of in-kind services. The remaining philanthropic fund-raising target is $3.3mm. The co-founders of the Ovarian Cancer Vaccine Initiative have each made substantial six-figure initial funding commitments which, in aggregate, represent approximately 25% of this philanthropic goal.
Donation Details
Tax-deductible donations in cash or stock should be made out to:
Schwab Charitable Fund
Ovarian Cancer Vaccine Initiative
Account #9078-6137
Mailing Address:
101 Montgomery Street
San Francisco, CA 94104
Other Contact Information:
1-800-746-6137http://www.schwabcharitable.org
Detailed Trial Information
For those with further interest in this program, see “Program Details” in the “Reference Section” provided below. The information referenced in that section describes the design of this vaccine, its underlying science, the clinical trial protocol, and the team behind it.
Reference
I) Program Details
- Penn's Center for Research on Early Detection and Cure of Ovarian Cancer and Abramson Cancer Center, with Northwest Biotherapeutics Conduct Ovarian Cancer Clinical Trial With DCVax®-L - The University of Pennsylvania press release describing trial commencement. (December 28, 2007)
- Northwest Biotherapeutics Conducting Ovarian Cancer Trial With DCVax®-L at The University of Pennsylvania - Press release announcing trial commencement. Includes description of Northwest Biotherapeutics and lead doctors behind this trial at The University of Pennsylvania. (December 28, 2007)
- Ovarian Cancer Vaccine Initiative - A layman’s description of the vaccine-based ovarian cancer immunotherapy currently in clinical trials at The University of Pennsylvania.
- Dendritic Cell Immunology Platform: DCVax - Website publication by Northwest Biotherapeutics describing how their DCVax (dendritic cell vaccine) platform technology can be applied to multiple cancers.
II) General Information Sources
Clinical Trial Inquiries
Established in 1997 by the Abramson Family Foundation, the Abramson Family Cancer Research Institute serves as the forum and inspiration for integrating innovative cancer research, education, and comprehensive patient care at The University of Pennsylvania. For more information about this ovarian cancer vaccine trial, under the direction of Dr. George Coukos, call 215-662-3316 or 800-789-PENN (7366).