Friends of Cancer Research

Friends of Cancer Research Friends of Cancer Research powers advances in science and policy that speed life-saving treatments to patients.

Mission
Friends of Cancer Research powers advances in science and policy that speed life-saving treatments to patients. About Us
Friends of Cancer Research aims to accelerate cutting edge cancer care that both extends and improves quality of life for patients. To accomplish this, we leverage groundbreaking collaborations, generate scientific evidence, and integrate patient input to shape public policy. How we work at Friends of Cancer Research:
We identify problems standing in the way of the best science reaching patients. We generate the evidence necessary to understand a problem. We create policy solutions to address and overcome that problem.

11/17/2025

Happening Now! Our free Advocate Webinar is live on YouTube! https://bit.ly/4i5ATs5

Join our Advisory Advocates as they explore key takeaways from our 2025 Annual Meeting and highlight what patients, caregivers, and advocates can learn.

During the Annual Meeting, Kristin McJunkins highlighted patients' willingness to participate in clinical trials, informed consent, and transparent communication. Now, she and other advocates are diving deeper into these insights as they discuss how evolving treatment landscapes and control arm selection can impact patients.

Join now or watch on-demand later!

11/14/2025

At the Friends of Cancer Research 2025 Annual Meeting, Carol Vallett emphasized how reducing burdens on patients participating in clinical trials, such as minimizing frequency of blood draws and reducing travel distances for treatment, can improve trial experience and expand access.

Building on these conversations, we invite patient advocates and caregivers to join our free Advocate Webinar on Monday, November 17 from 1pm-2pm ET!

This free session will revisit the three panel topics discussed at the Annual Meeting, with an emphasis on the patient advocate perspective and experience, and includes:
• Seamless Trial Designs for Rare Cancer Drug Development
• Trial Designs for Combination Drug Development
• Control Arm Selection for Multi-Regional Clinical Trials

Hear directly from Friends of Cancer Research Advisory Advocates and deepen your understanding of some of the most pressing topics in cancer research and regulation. Register today! https://friendsofcancerresearch.org/event/advocates-webinar-annual-meeting-2025/

The Friends of Cancer Research ctMoniTR Project brings together stakeholders across sectors to generate the evidence nee...
11/13/2025

The Friends of Cancer Research ctMoniTR Project brings together stakeholders across sectors to generate the evidence needed to support the use of ctDNA as an early endpoint. By aligning efforts from the start and promoting consistent approaches to data collection and analysis, ctMoniTR helps streamline evidence generation, strengthens confidence, and ultimately accelerates treatments to patients.

Read more about the project in The Cancer Letter: https://cancerletter.com/regulatory-news/20251024_1/.

11/12/2025

Missed our Annual Meeting? You can watch it and our other meetings anytime on our YouTube page. Since 2020, we've been recording all our sessions, from our meeting on the future use of complex biomarkers to our most recent session on next-generation therapies. Stay current on innovative research, expert panels, and in-depth conversations on advancing cancer care. https://www.youtube.com/.

What if we could predict cancer treatment success within weeks instead of months?Recent findings from Friends of Cancer ...
11/10/2025

What if we could predict cancer treatment success within weeks instead of months?

Recent findings from Friends of Cancer Research's ctMoniTR Project demonstrate that circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) reduction measured as early as 7 weeks post-treatment can indicate long-term survival benefits in patients with advanced non-small cell lung cancer (aNSCLC) treated with immunotherapy or chemotherapy.

In an aggregate analysis of 918 patients across four randomized clinical trials, we saw decreased ctDNA levels are associated with improved overall survival (OS). Patients treated with immunotherapy showed ctDNA reductions at both early (up to 7 weeks) and later (7-13 weeks) timepoints after treatment initiation, and they were associated with improved overall survival (OS) across all molecular response (MR) thresholds (i.e., 50% decrease, 90% decrease, and 100% clearance). Among patients receiving chemotherapy alone, associations become more pronounced when assessing at the 7–13-week timepoints. The majority of patients had the same category of MR response at both timepoints.

Part of our ctMoniTR Project, these findings support the potential of ctDNA as an intermediate endpoint in aNSCLC. Further research is needed to determine the optimal time window for assessing ctDNA response. Prospective trials and trial-level meta-analyses will also be critical to validating ctDNA as a regulatory-grade intermediate endpoint for oncology drug development.

Read the study in Journal for ImmunoTherapy of Cancer: http://dx.doi.org/10.1136/jitc-2025-012454.

The 2025 Friends of Cancer Research Annual Meeting showcased the power of collaboration, innovation, and patient partner...
11/07/2025

The 2025 Friends of Cancer Research Annual Meeting showcased the power of collaboration, innovation, and patient partnership in advancing clinical research. This year’s discussions focused on advancing seamless trial designs, improving evaluation of combination therapies, and strengthening the design of global studies.

Read the full recap on our blog, https://bit.ly/4qFiNkG, and watch the full meeting on YouTube, https://bit.ly/4qyyzOe.

Yesterday's Annual Meeting brought together industry leaders tackling the most pressing challenges in cancer research an...
11/05/2025

Yesterday's Annual Meeting brought together industry leaders tackling the most pressing challenges in cancer research and drug development. Join us Monday, November 17, where we will dive deeper into these discussions: https://bit.ly/47myvbK.

In this free event, you will hear directly from Friends of Cancer Research Advisory Advocates who participated in the workings groups that helped shape key conversations at the Annual Meeting. There will be a Q&A, please submit your questions here: https://bit.ly/47h4n1h.

Thank you to everyone who attended the Friends of Cancer Research 18th Annual Meeting today. Our speakers provided valua...
11/05/2025

Thank you to everyone who attended the Friends of Cancer Research 18th Annual Meeting today. Our speakers provided valuable insights into the evolving landscape of oncology drug research, development, and regulation. We hope you enjoyed the conversations and we look forward to seeing you next year.

• You can access the meeting on-demand on our YouTube channel: https://bit.ly/4qyyzOe
• Read the white papers on our website: https://bit.ly/4fwyZ2x
• Visit our events page to register for future public meetings: https://bit.ly/4oSeHUI

11/03/2025

Last chance to register! Join us tomorrow in-person in Washington, DC or virtually for Friends of Cancer Research's 18th Annual Meeting. This free event explores today's most pressing challenges and innovative solutions in cancer research and drug development.

Visit our website to register, explore panel topics, read the meeting white papers, and watch explainer videos: https://friendsofcancerresearch.org/event/friends-of-cancer-research-annual-meeting-2025/.

Biomarkers are critical for turning scientific discovery into patient impact. The FDA’s Biomarker Qualification Program ...
10/29/2025

Biomarkers are critical for turning scientific discovery into patient impact. The FDA’s Biomarker Qualification Program (BQP) established a formal pathway to support development and regulatory acceptance of novel biomarkers. Our new analysis, published in Therapeutic Innovation & Regulatory Science (DIA), examines the BQP and proposes opportunities to strengthen the program and enhance biomarker development—particularly surrogate endpoints essential to the Accelerated Approval Pathway.

Since its inception in 2016, BQP has made limited progress—only 8 of 61 accepted biomarker projects have achieved full qualification, and none have been surrogate endpoints.

We believe targeted resources, stronger collaboration, and more timely engagement could strengthen the program and efficiently advance development of novel biomarkers, including surrogate endpoints.

Read the study: https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s43441-025-00889-6

One week until the Friends of Cancer Research Annual Meeting! Learn more about each panel by reading the executive summa...
10/28/2025

One week until the Friends of Cancer Research Annual Meeting! Learn more about each panel by reading the executive summaries below. Access the full white papers via the links to prepare for deeper discussions at our Annual Meeting.

Panel 1: Seamless Trial Designs for Rare Cancer Drug Development: https://bit.ly/4hv2PFP
• Allen Melemed, Chimerix, a Jazz Pharmaceuticals Company
• Harindra Abeysinghe, Johnson & Johnson
• Misha Mehta, Friends of Cancer Research Advisory Advocate
• Chris Turner, Nuvalent, Inc.
• Ying Yuan, MD Anderson Cancer Center

Panel 2: Trial Designs for Combination Drug Development: https://bit.ly/3LcLaqf
• Gideon Blumenthal, Merck & Co., Inc.
• Julie Bullock, GSK
• Gary Doherty, AstraZeneca
• Elad Sharon, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute
• Carol Vallett, Friends of Cancer Research Advisory Advocate

Panel 3: Control Arm Selection for Multi-Regional Clinical Trials: https://bit.ly/3L9PVks
• Harpreet Singh, Precision for Medicine
• Judd Englert, Amgen Inc.
• Sumithra Mandrekar, Mayo Clinic
• Kristin McJunkins, Friends of Cancer Research Advisory Advocate
• Raymond Osarogiagbon, Baptist Hospital Group
• Kathleen Winson, Genentech

Register to join us on Tuesday, November 4 in-person in Washington, DC or virtually: https://friendsofcancerresearch.org/event/friends-of-cancer-research-annual-meeting-2025/.

10/27/2025

Watch Mark Stewart, Vice President of Science Policy, as he explores “Control Arm Selection for Multi-Regional Clinical Trials,” the third session from our upcoming Annual Meeting. This session will explore the need for practical, science-based strategies to guide control arm decisions that are both regionally relevant and globally credible and the utilization of transparent frameworks for supporting operational feasibility and data acceptability.

Watch the full video on our YouTube channel: https://youtu.be/xO6Amsc_SLE?si=GSNs0nP16MR9QCJ2.

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Wednesday 9am - 5pm
Thursday 9am - 5pm
Friday 9am - 5pm
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Sunday 9am - 5pm

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(202) 944-6700

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