Since 1898, cancer research has been the core of Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center. Our mission, after all, is to eliminate cancer’s grip on humanity by unlocking its secrets through personalized approaches and unleashing the healing power of hope. In May, National Cancer Research Month, we reflect on the ways we can continue to shake off cancer’s grasp by pioneering advancements in prevention, detection and treatment. This includes the generous supporters who make this work possible.
Roswell Park donors fuel the life-changing work that comes to fruition here. Selfless gifts made to the Roswell Park Alliance Foundation are invested into:
- Empowering investigators to pursue new approaches and solve unanswered questions
- Equipping teams to expand the horizon of what we know about cancer and the innate powers of the human immune system
- Propelling unique treatment approaches to shape the future of cancer care
Kickstart bold new research
Twice every year, researchers at Roswell Park submit proposals through a competitive and rigorous process before Roswell Park Alliance Foundation’s Scientific Advisory Committee. Grants are awarded to the projects that show the most potential for finding new treatments for cancer and new ways to understand the disease.
In the 2021-2022 year alone, more than 30 grants were awarded, totaling more than $2.5 million. Those grants were funded entirely by donations from individuals, families, businesses and organizations who believe in the Roswell Park mission.
Expand groundbreaking science
Donors also power scientific breakthroughs on a larger scale by funding The 11 Day Power Play Cell Therapy Center and prioritizing support of immunotherapy advancements. By studying the central role of the immune system and its cancer-fighting abilities, our scientists can continue to develop this new class of treatments to defend against and attack various cancers.
New ways to personalize care are also expanding at Roswell Park, thanks to donor support. Just as each patient is unique, so too is their disease. Genomic and immuno-biomarkers can give doctors more detailed information about a patient and their specific experience with cancer, leading to more informed and precise care.
More research-funded projects
To learn more about the ways donations have make an impact on research at Roswell Park, check out some of our recent publications.
Learn MoreLaunch innovative clinical trials
No standard of care has become so without proving its worth through the clinical trial process. Roswell Park has been the birthplace of research that advanced to clinical trials like SurVaxM, a brain cancer vaccine. This new treatment option is being offered to patients with a rare and deadly form of the disease. SurVaxM is currently in a phase 2B, multicenter randomized clinical trial for newly diagnosed adult glioblastoma patients in 15 sites across the United States and China.
These cancer research efforts and more were made possible by Roswell Park donors. Their generosity is the key to what Roswell Park does every day. Their hope in a future without the fear, pain and loss due to cancer emboldens our researchers to continually seek ways to end cancer as we know it.
