Dear Friends,

November is a time for thanks. We will, hopefully, be safely gathered with vaccinated family and friends celebrating Thanksgiving. On November 30, we will show thanks again on Giving Tuesday. On this global day of giving, we hope that ICRF will be at the very top of your philanthropy and that you will support us generously.

This year, to kick off our end of year giving campaign, we will dedicate Giving Tuesday for a very special project at ICRF - our newly established Grant Writing Workshop. The GWW is an important initiative recommended by our volunteers on the Scientific Review Panel (SRP) to support the next generation of scientists and enhance the quality of proposals received. ICRF invests in Israel’s best and brightest. This is especially true for the newest, young, up-and-coming researchers who will be tomorrow’s hope for curing cancer.

These stars of tomorrow have been at the top of their classes over decades of graduate programs, fellowships, and advanced studies. It probably comes as no surprise, however, that after years of organic chemistry, molecular biology, biomedical engineering, etc. they also need guidance with grant writing.

Drs. Matt Weitzman of The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia and David Malkin of The Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto, both of whom serve on the ICRF International Scientific Council, will generously dedicate their time and expertise to running workshops for our new scientists in the art of writing scientific research grants. However, there are ancillary funds necessary to allow our current and future recipients to attend. We fully believe that our investment in these grant writing workshops will pay off exponentially in the quality of future grant submissions and the life-saving science they represent. 

Our Giving Tuesday goal dedicated to this important project is $18,000. With your help, we can fund the GWW in the course of one day.

Please, on Giving Tuesday, use the following link to give early and generously. Your donation today could lead to tomorrow’s cure.

Beryl P. Chernov, National Executive Director

Several different cancer types are featured in November for Cancer Awareness Month. One of them is lung cancer, and you can learn more about a newly-funded ICRF research project on lung cancer in the interview (below) with Professor Joel Yisraeli. Other cancers highlighted in November are carcinoid and pancreatic cancers (see Dubi Fishel Fund for Pancreatic Cancer Research below), and one recently funded ICRF researcher is doing work that could possibly lead to insights into both.

Carcinoid cancer is a rare type of tumor that has been called “cancer in slow motion” because symptoms are often not presented until the disease is advanced. Doctors don't know what causes the mutations that can lead to carcinoid tumors, but they do know that carcinoid tumors develop in neuroendocrine cells. Neuroendocrine cells are found in various organs throughout the body. They perform some nerve cell functions and some hormone-producing endocrine cell functions. In adults, carcinoid tumors are most often found in the digestive tract, which includes the pancreas.

While carcinoid tumors are not hereditary, von Hippel Lindau (VHL) syndrome is an inherited disorder, characterized by the abnormal growth of both benign and cancerous tumors and cysts in many parts of the body. VHL syndrome is caused by mutations in the VHL gene, which normally functions to prevent cells from growing and dividing too rapidly or in an uncontrolled way. One of the tumors that VHL syndrome may cause is pancreatic neuroendocrine tumors, a cancer that forms within the hormone-producing cells of the pancreas.

Amit Tirosh, MD, the recipient of an ICRF Clinical Research Career Development Award at Chaim Sheba Medical Center, has found that distinct changes in cellular metabolism characterize pancreatic tumors that develop in individuals with VHL syndrome, and he has identified a specific small molecule metabolite that may mediate the effects of the VHL mutation.

Dr. Tirosh believes that this small molecule is a pro-tumor metabolite, which accelerates tumor proliferation and suppresses the immune response to the tumor in pancreatic cancer patients with VHL. His team will test this hypothesis and, if correct, this small molecule may become a potential target for treatment of pancreatic cancers (and possibly other cancers, including carcinoid tumors) in VHL patients.

Professor Joel Yisraeli is a long-time grantee of the ICRF. He recently spoke to us about his new ICRF Project Grant focusing on targeted therapy for lung cancer. 

Lung Cancer Statistics

Source: American Cancer Society

The Dubi Fishel Fund for Pancreatic Cancer Research was established in 2020 to honor the memory of ICRF Board Member, Dubi Fishel, who lost his battle with cancer on Yom Kippur last year.

The fund supports the research of ICRF grantee Dr. Lina Jaber of Hebrew University who is investigating early detection of pancreatic cancer. Last year, the fund reached its fundraising goal of $33,000, covering the first year of Professor Jaber’s three-year grant. On November 1, the campaign will be launched again to raise $33,000 for the second year of the grant. The campaign, which is chaired by family and friends, will run until December 31, 2021.

A beloved member of the Chicago community, Fishel was born in Tel Aviv. He served in the Israel Defense Forces and was active in the Six-Day War, the Yom Kippur War, and the Lebanon War. He was no stranger to fighting battles.

Fishel’s final mission was to share his journey with pancreatic cancer and generate support for ICRF's mission to fund cutting-edge cancer research in Israel.

November is Pancreatic Cancer Awareness Month. It is estimated that more than 48,000 people will die from pancreatic cancer this year. It is the third leading cause of cancer death in both men and women and there is currently no standard diagnostic tool or established early detection method yet available for pancreatic cancer in the general population. Help support Dr. Jaber’s important research through the Dubi Fishel Fund for Pancreatic Cancer Research.