Parterships are Important.
They bring people together in pursuit of a common cause and put many minds to work on a problem, increasing the likelihood that a solution is found. That’s why we are getting into the business of creating partnerships. The MPN Research Foundation believes that researchers in the field should be collaborating across institutions to solve some of our hardest questions. We are eager to bridge the divide and offer a framework for these kinds of relationships to develop and thrive.
Last year we launched a multi-center partnership to explore the use of Interferon (IFN) in MPN patients. Interferon remains the only treatment that provides disease-altering effects for MPN patients, but we don’t understand why it works and we don’t know why it works for some patients and not others. Understanding its mechanism of action for MPNs can lead to better interferon compounds and potentially new drugs that can change the prognosis for MPN patients.
The MPNRF Interferon Initiative brings together internationally recognized experts in both blood and solid tumors to explore the many questions we have about Interferon. The initial team of investigators includes:
Leonidas Platanias, MD, PhD: Lurie Cancer Center
Ann Mullally, MD: Division of Hematology, Brigham and Woman’s Hospital
Jean-Luc Villeval, PhD: INSERM/Institut Gustave Roussy, Paris
Joseph Scandura, MD, PhD: Weill Cornell School of Medicine
To ensure the partnership is productive, the MPN Research Foundation created an Advisory Group of recognized experts in Interferon and MPNs that will track progress and steward the multi-center relationship. Members of the Advisory Group include: Andrew Schafer, MD (chair); John Crispino, PhD; Josef Prchal, MD; Robert Cohen, MD; Ronald Hoffman, MD; Richard Silver, MD; Jean-Jacques Kiladjian, MD, PhD; William Vainchenker, MD, PhD; Radek Skoda, MD and Hans Hasselbalch, MD.
We are also focusing on creating partnerships among the many MPN advocacy groups. When the MPNRF was founded, there were very few of these organizations around. Today, there are over a dozen around the world that are actively working to educate, advocate, and fund research in the MPN field.
To help fund the Interferon Initiative we have formed a partnership with MPN Alliance Australia. We are excited for the opportunity to collaborate with this group as we further our cause.
We hope you support both organizations as we pursue new treatments and a cure for myeloproliferative neoplasms. Together, we can change the prognosis for MPN patients.