The Multiple Myeloma Research Foundation (MMRF) was founded in 1998 by identical twin sisters Kathy Giusti and Karen Andrews shortly following Kathy’s diagnosis with multiple myeloma, an incurable blood cancer. The mission of the MMRF is to urgently and aggressively fund research that will lead to the development of new treatments for multiple myeloma.
As the world’s number-one funder of multiple myeloma research, the MMRF has raised more than $120 million to fund 100 laboratories worldwide. The payback on its investment has been significant:
• Four new treatments—Thalomid, Velcade, Revlimid and Doxil—approved in the past five years alone when it usually takes nearly 10 years to bring a single treatment to market. These breakthrough treatments are extending the lives of myeloma patients worldwide and are now being explored in a range of other cancers, including ovarian cancer, breast cancer, prostate cancer, leukemia, and Non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma
• Eight clinical trials of novel and combination treatments facilitated by our sister organization, the Multiple Myeloma Research Consortium (MMRC)
• 30 MMRF-supported compounds now in pre-clinical studies and clinical trials
The MMRF is one of the most effective and efficient organizations of its kind, as evidenced by our exceptional accreditations. In 2009, nearly 93% of every dollar of revenue raised was directed toward myeloma research and related educational programs. The MMRF’s approach, with a focus on speed, innovation, and results, is widely recognized across the medical and scientific communities, as well as by several prominent publications, as an optimal model to accelerate medical research and drug development across various cancers and diseases. For more information about the MMRF, visit www.multiplemyeloma.org.