ROLFE PANCREATIC CANCER FOUNDATION

The Foundation’s primary goal is to provide funding to scientists for research that will ultimately lead to the development of a reliable early detection test. The Foundation will support basic science, translational, and clinical research that will lead to the eventual creation of this test.

The Foundation seeks to encourage promising scientists to dedicate their careers to pancreatic cancer research, including early detection. The Foundation will provide start-up funding and continuous grants for investigators who focus much of their activities on early detection. While the Foundation is particularly interested in sponsoring young investigators (less than 10 years post-graduate), the Foundation will also make grants to established scientists who are working on specific projects directly related to early detection.

The Foundation is interested in funding projects or programs that are novel and not duplicative of current initiatives. However, the Foundation is specifically interested in ensuring that scientists communicate their findings with each other, and build on one another’s work toward the objective of creating an early detection test and, ultimately, a cure for pancreatic cancer.

The Foundation encourages the sharing of information and resources among all scientists and between all institutions pursuing pancreatic cancer research. Strong consideration for funding will be given to viable programs that exhibit clear collaboration among scientists, not only within a single institutional system, but also among research teams from two or more separate institutions nationally and internationally. It is our belief that collaboration will accelerate research, and bring us closer toward the development of an early detection test and, eventually, more effective treatment methods and a possible cure.

It is the intention of the Foundation to fund scientists who can create “seed projects” that will effectively grow into larger initiatives, and make them competitive for larger grants from other organizations, including the National Institute of Health. It is our expectation that scientists funded by the Foundation will be competitive for RO1 grants within three to five years of receiving initial Foundation funding.

The Foundation is interested in sponsoring research that generates short-term results, as well as long-term sustenance. To that end, the Foundation will make grants on an annual basis for current-use projects and programs. In addition, the Foundation will occasionally consider providing funds to create and build an endowment for specific programs that would sustain pancreatic cancer research in perpetuity. The Foundation does not fund indirect costs for research projects.

The Foundation expects that the institutions we support will become our partners in the fight against pancreatic cancer. As such, the Foundation presumes that these institutions will:

1) Inform the Foundation of the status of relevant research activities and progress;
2) Support the Foundation on appropriate fundraising activities;
3) Provide open interaction with investigators;
4) Acknowledge the Foundation’s support in appropriate publications (including electronic communications); and
5) Provide periodic reports of fiscal responsibility.

In addition, the Foundation may also ask our partners to assist with the marketing and promotion of special events, display the Foundation’s literature in appropriate public venues, inform patients and families about us, or provide opportunities for the Foundation to have a presence in relevant public programs (e.g., conferences, seminars, health fairs, etc.). In turn, the Foundation will continue to support our partners by providing adequate funding opportunities in both the short-term and over a multiple-year period. The Foundation seeks to sustain an environment of open communication and information-sharing with our partners.

The Foundation seeks to fund organizations that have identified specific needs of pancreatic cancer patients, survivors, and their families. The Foundation will support programs that consist of any or all of the following elements: psycho-social/emotional support, information dissemination, assistance with palliative care and end-of-life issues, patient and public education, awareness building, etc. The Foundation will provide funding to develop new programs that will address these needs to the benefit of patients, survivors, and their families.

The Foundation will partner with organizations that can develop a “model” that can be replicated at other facilities. Ideally, once the programs are in place, they should run efficiently, and become a customary part of the organization’s standard programmatic offerings.

The Foundation will provide annual grants for the creation and sustenance of patient and family care programs. In addition, the Foundation will occasionally establish endowments at select institutions so that relevant programs will remain in perpetuity.

The Foundation anticipates that the organizations we support will become our “partners” in aiding those affected by pancreatic cancer. Upon request, the Foundation expects that our partners will:

• Inform the Foundation on the status of relevant activities
• Assist us with joint fundraising opportunities
• Acknowledge the Foundation’s support in appropriate publications and electronic communications
• Provide periodic reports of fiscal responsibility.

In addition, the Foundation may also ask our partners to assist with the marketing and promotion of special events, display the Foundation’s literature in appropriate public venues, inform patients and families about us, or provide opportunities for the Foundation to have a presence in relevant public programs (e.g., conferences, seminars, health fairs, etc.).

In turn, the Foundation will continue to support our partners with funding opportunities. The Foundation seeks to sustain an environment of open communication and information sharing with our partners.