In September of 2011, Angela was diagnosed with Stage IV brain cancer. Since then, she has undergone 13 hours of surgery, 42 oral chemotherapy treatments, and 30 radiation therapies; more than any one individual or family should ever have to endure, especially since she is a 10-year breast cancer survivor. She is now being treated with Avastin, and thankfully this drug has dramatically improved her quality of life.
Angela is being treated at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute where doctors and researchers are working feverishly to develop a new generation of targeted therapeutics designed to immediately broaden the number of effective therapies and offer genuine hope for patients.
Thanks to a flurry of activity in the corporate sector, there are drugs “in the pipeline” that may be effective for brain tumors. However, these drugs, almost without exception, were developed for the more common solid tumors (lung, colon). To make these available for patients with brain cancer, doctors and researchers at Dana-Farber must take the extra step of demonstrating to the pharmaceutical companies that they hold promise in battling brain cancer.
The Avastin trials were lead at Dana-Farber and today scientists and clinicians are poised to make the next break-throughs in brain cancer research. The Center for Neuro-Oncology has gained momentum with each new clinical trial, and their physicians and researchers are highly encouraged by the progress. However, the necessity for philanthropic gifts has never been greater. While the government remains an important source of support for basic research, today, funds are rarely available for innovative research.
Angela & Pat Palmer have personally pledged $100,000 to create the Angela and Patrick Palmer Research Fund at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute. The purpose of this fund is to support the research of the Neuro-Oncology Department and one day find a cure for this dreaded disease. The goal is to raise $1 million per year for three years with the hope of significantly impacting this difficult disease with improved outcomes for all patients.
Angela's Fund is a 501(c)3 and all donations are tax deductible.
