2016 Conquer Cancer Foundation Grants and Awards recipient receiving his award plaque during the 2016 Conquer Cancer Foundation Grants and Awards Ceremony. Left to right: ASCO CEO Clifford Hudis, MD, FACP, FASCO; Inaugural Jane C. Wright, MD, Endowed Young Investigator Award recipient Srinivas Viswanathan, MD, PhD; and Conquer Cancer Foundation Board of Directors Chair Thomas G. Roberts, Jr, MD.
Dear Friends:
Each year, the Conquer Cancer Foundation of ASCO (CCF) Grants and Awards Ceremony is one of the highlights of the ASCO Annual Meeting. While most of the week in Chicago is packed with meetings, events, and presentations, the Grants and Awards Ceremony is a time for everyone to stop, celebrate, and reflect. We celebrate the brightest minds in cancer research and the strides these researchers are making to conquer cancer. It is a day of hope and appreciation.
But the work of conquering cancer continues all year long.
Using the funds provided by our donors, CCF-supported researchers work enthusiastically in their labs with clear dedication. Since 1984, 98% of the physician-scientists supported by CCF have continued to perform oncology research. As families gather around a holiday table, how many loved ones are present because of the treatments and care a CCF-funded researcher may have provided or influenced?
Inspired by our mission to conquer cancer worldwide, Foundation staff members continue their efforts to raise money in order to fund breakthrough research and share cutting-edge knowledge. This year, in addition to the record-setting funds raised at our annual Chicago celebration dinner, “An Evening to Conquer Cancer,” CCF helped produce 13 events from coast to coast, raising funds and awareness to grow the CCF network and its resources. The Campaign to Conquer Cancer is on target to reach its goal of $150 million, and CCF enters the year’s giving season primed to add more Young Investigator Award recipients to our prestigious roll.
This year was a remarkable year. The exemplary effort to support the calling that we all feel—doctors, industry leaders, and donors—is matched only by the generosity of ASCO and its members. Whether it’s a former grant recipient taking time to give an interview about how CCF has helped him or her advance a clinical trial, an Annual Meeting attendee making a $100 donation, or endowing a Young Investigator Award in memory of Jane C. Wright, MD, every facet of our mission benefits both ASCO members and the general public.
At the Grants and Awards Ceremony, I had the privilege to present award after award to brilliant and dedicated researchers and patient advocates. I heard “thank you” in a number of languages—that happens when donors permit the Foundation to support cancer research and education around the world. It remains a challenge for me to put into words the weight of the gratitude we at the Foundation feel for the support we are given.
Oncology professionals engage tirelessly against an often devastating set of diseases in an effort to answer the hopes of people everywhere. As another season of thanksgiving begins, we remain humbled by the time and resources you dedicate to conquering cancer. Thank you.
Wishing you and yours a happy holiday season.
Sincerely,
Thomas G. Roberts, Jr, MD
Chair, Conquer Cancer Foundation Board of Directors
Originally printed in ASCO Connection. © American Society of Clinical Oncology. “A Note of Thanks From the Conquer Cancer Foundation.” ASCO Connection, November 2016. All rights reserved.
