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 Cancer ResearchSince the inception of My Blue Dots we have supported a number of care and research programs. We believe cancer research is essential to finding a cure for cancer in our lifetime. In 2012 there were more than 13.7 million cancer warriors living in the United States. More than 1.6 millions Americans will be diagnosed with cancer this year which makes it imperative for us to continue funding cancer research. Research support is a key part of My Blue Dot’s mission. With the advances in cancer prevention and therapy, one in twenty-three Americans is a cancer survivor; in 1971, just one in sixty-nine Americans survived. Since 1990, over 1 million lives have been saved. It is critical that we continue to support cancer research so doctors have the ability to save more lives. Dr. Albert Koong, M.D., PhD Vice Chair for Clinical Operations
Dr. Erinn Rankin, PhD Assistant Professor
During her postdoctoral work with Dr. Amato Giaccia in the Department of Radiation Oncology at Stanford, Dr. Rankin discovered that tumor cells become dependent on a protein, AXL, to establish disease at distant sites. Once the activity of AXL is blocked, tumor cells are no longer able to establish metastatic disease at distant sites. In collaboration with Drs. Amato Giaccia and Jennifer Cochran, Dr. Rankin developed a novel therapy to safely and effectively block AXL in preclinical models of cancer. Efforts are currently ongoing to develop this therapy for clinical trials in patients with metastatic disease. Dr. Rankin joined the Departments of Radiation Oncology and Obstetrics and Gynecology as an Assistant Professor in October 2014 where her research continues to focus on the development of novel therapies for the treatment of metastatic disease. Dr. Ferenc Scheeren Amsterdam, Netherlands
As well as supporting cancer research, we have gifted mammogram grants to St. Luke’s Regional Medical Center in Ketchum, Idaho, supported cancer programs at the Stanford Cancer Care Center in Palo Alto, and worked with Palo Alto Medical Foundation. Please help us continue to support these important cancer research and care programs. Make a difference by donating or purchasing a My Blue Dots product. Thank you for your support.
“The annual payout from the My Blue Dots Fund has been instrumental for Dr. Koong to establish a robust translational research program in GI Oncology…that has allowed him to pursue ‘high-risk, high-reward’ projects that would not normally be supported by traditional mechanisms.”
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We have supported Dr. Koong’s work for fifteen years and he is now well established and highly regarded regarding his research around the world, so at the request of Dr. Koong, we are passing the My Blue Dots Fund to a young woman, Dr. Erinn Rankin PhD to encourage and support her work. Dr. Rankin’s research focuses on developing therapies to prevent and treat the leading cause of cancer related deaths – tumor metastasis. Solid tumors begin as a mass of cells that proliferate and grow within a single localized area. For these tumors, surgery and chemo-radiation are highly effective therapies. However, as the disease progresses, the tumor evolves and permits cancer cells to leave the primary tumor and metastasize or establish disease in other parts of the body. Current therapies have limited efficacy in the treatment of metastatic disease. Therefore, in order to have the biggest impact on patient survival, Dr. Rankin focuses on developing new therapeutic strategies to prevent and treat metastatic disease.