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Friends of Cancer Research

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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 po

licy. 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.

07/22/2025

From terms like “Breakthrough Therapy designation” to the broader regulatory pathways that bring new cancer treatments to patients, the language of oncology drug development can be overwhelming, even for those working in healthcare or advocacy.

Understanding terminology is more than just decoding acronyms. Instead, it’s about being able to navigate complex treatment options, understanding how therapies are approved, and engaging in discussions that directly impact patients.

That is why we developed ProgressforPatients.org, a free, plain-language course designed to break down drug development and regulatory key terms and concepts. Whether you are a patient advocate, researcher, or someone looking to better understand the processes that shape medical innovation, this course offers clear, reliable information that helps bridge the gap. Empower yourself with knowledge that can help drive better decisions and stronger advocacy for patients.

07/08/2025

Pragmatic clinical trial elements are design features that align trials with real-world medical care rather than rigid research protocols. Traditional trials often require patients to travel to specialized centers, undergo extensive testing, and follow strict schedules that don't reflect routine care. Pragmatic elements remove these barriers and simplify data collection to generate reliable evidence.

The post market setting, or trials conducted after treatment has already received FDA approval and is available to patients, presents strong opportunities for pragmatic approaches. These studies focus on understanding effectiveness in broader populations, characterizing specific side effects, or answering questions about optimal use in practice. Since basic safety and effectiveness are established, there's more flexibility to make trials more patient-friendly.

These approaches prove especially valuable for including historically underrepresented patients, such as older adults and racial minorities. By embedding research into routine practice, pragmatic trials generate evidence that better reflects diverse patient populations.

Learn more about pragmatic clinical trial elements in our publication for detailed strategies to make clinical trials more accessible and inclusive: https://www.esmorwd.org/article/S2949-8201(24)00043-2/fulltext.

06/30/2025

Before 2012, clinical trials and regulatory processes often followed a one-size-fits-all approach. New treatments that showed early promise for patients with serious diseases were required to undergo lengthy clinical trials, often leaving patients waiting years to access potentially life-saving therapies.

This rigid approach raised concerns about how to deliver potentially transformative scientific advances to patients more efficiently and sparked action from advocacy groups.

The FDA's Breakthrough Therapy Designation, led by Friends of Cancer Research and the broader cancer advocacy community, created a new pathway for treatments to compress the stages of development and accelerate progress.

Treatments that receive Breakthrough Therapy Designation receive:

• Frequent and enhanced interactions with FDA review teams and drug developers to support efficient development process
• Increased involvement with senior FDA officials throughout the review process
• Opportunities to streamline clinical trial design, enabling earlier assessment of benefit and reducing the potential for patients to be exposed to potentially inferior treatments.

Since 2012, the FDA has received thousands of designation requests, granting close to tone-third of these requests, and brought hundreds of breakthrough treatments to market.

Learn more about the history of the Breakthrough Therapy Designation and how patient advocates used their voice to champion legislative action: https://progressforpatients.org/.

06/20/2025

Just released! The latest edition of the Friends of Cancer Research Advocate Newsletter.

In this issue, you’ll find:
• Highlights from our recent advocate webinar and conference on engineered cell-based therapies
• Latest trends in Accelerated Approval pathway
• Breaking news and policy developments shaping the future of cancer research and care

Read the latest issue and subscribe to stay ahead of developments shaping cancer research and patient advocacy: https://friendsofcancerresearch.org/blog/quarterly-advocacy-newsletter-q2-2025/.

06/19/2025

Historically significant racial injustices in the medical field have understandably created distrust in healthcare among many Black Americans. The Tuskegee Study, which enrolled 600 Black men and ran for 40 years, denied participants proper care—subjecting them to painful spinal taps without anesthesia, withholding antibiotics, and administering placebo drugs even after penicillin was discovered, all without informed consent.

This legacy of harm contributes to ongoing health disparities today. Black Americans are twice as likely to develop blood cancers like multiple myeloma but remain severely underrepresented in clinical trials. In one recent study of a multiple myeloma treatment that extended patients’ lives by an average of six months without disease progression, only 1.8% of participants were Black—despite Black Americans representing 20% of multiple myeloma diagnoses. This is not an isolated case; such disparities are common across oncology trials.

Underrepresentation in clinical trials means there is a lack of understanding of how treatments work across different populations. The FDA has noted that "meaningful differences may exist" in how diseases and treatments affect Black patients.

That’s why Project TEACH—a partnership between Friends of Cancer Research, Black Women's Health Imperative, and Stand Up To Cancer—works to bridge this gap by educating Black women about clinical trial participation while acknowledging valid concerns rooted in history.

Sign up for the course to learn more about advocating for diversity in clinical trials. Informed participation can help ensure medical research benefits everyone: https://teachforblackwomen.org/.

05/27/2025

What policy opportunities exist to help overcome current barriers and ensure that patients can access the potentially transformative benefits of engineered cell-based therapies? Watch Kristen Hege explain how a robust cost recovery system can make these treatments more accessible.

Our advocate-focused webinar recapping the meeting, "Unlocking Next-Generation Therapies," featured experts Natasha Kekre, Kristen Hege, Patrick Hanley, and Holly Fernandez Lynch. Panelists discussed how current development and manufacturing models, built around volume-based incentives, fall short to support small patient populations. Instead, these models need to reflect the transformative clinical value these therapies can deliver. As scientific innovation advances and regulatory frameworks evolve, better alignment across systems is essential. To fully realize the promise of these therapies, we need systems that are efficient, transparent, ethically grounded, and trusted by the public.

Read the full recap on our website: https://friendsofcancerresearch.org/blog/meeting-recap-unlocking-next-generation-therapies-meeting-recap-sharing-next-steps-and-opportunities-with-advocates/.

05/18/2025

On May 21, Friends of Cancer Research is hosting an advocates-focused webinar exploring unique challenges currently limiting the development and broad availability of engineered cell-based gene therapies for rare diseases and small patient populations. Building on our recent public meeting with Parker Institute for Cancer Immunotherapy, the webinar will revisit proposals from the white paper, “Regulatory and Manufacturing Pathways to Expand Access to Genetically Modified Cell-Based Therapies” and include a live Q&A.

Special thanks to Chris White, mucosal melanoma survivor and Friends of Cancer Research Advisory Advocate, for contributing to this discussion and emphasizing the importance of continued progress and collaboration in this space.

Click to register: https://bit.ly/4318ZI1
Click to access the white paper: https://bit.ly/4kgjUmM

Webinar discussions will focus on:
- Why many promising cell-based therapies struggle to move beyond early development.
- Implications of current manufacturing and regulatory models on patient access to these promising therapies.
- What alternative manufacturing solutions, such as decentralized and point-of-care models, could look like in practice.
- Where regulatory flexibility and new policy models could expand access, particularly for rare cancers and other rare diseases.

05/15/2025

What policy opportunities exist to overcome barriers hindering the sustainable development of engineered cell-based therapies and ensure patients access their potentially life-saving benefits?

Our upcoming virtual event on Wednesday, May 21, will equip advocates with the necessary information to better understand the unique challenges currently impeding the progress and availability of engineered cell-based therapies for rare diseases and small patient populations.

Panelists—Mark Stewart, Natasha Kekre, Kristen Hege, Patrick Hanley, Ph.D., and Holly Fernandez Lynch, JD, MBE—will discuss proposals for establishing practical and flexible regulatory pathways that balance rigorous oversight with operational feasibility for small populations, developing scalable manufacturing models, and exploring sustainable cost recovery and reimbursement models collaboratively with payors.

Register today and submit your questions for our expert panelists today: https://friendsofcancerresearch.org/event/unlocking-next-generation-therapies-advocate-event/.

05/08/2025

The Emily Whitehead Foundation is excited to attend the Friends of Cancer Research and Parker Institute for Cancer Immunotherapy (PICI) joint public meeting, “Unlocking Next-Generation Therapies: Exploring Innovative Development and Manufacturing Models for Cell Therapies,” on May 9 in Washington, D.C.

Friends of Cancer Research and PICI are bringing together a working group to develop a practical framework for advancing regulatory and manufacturing approaches that can enable timely access to promising therapies while ensuring quality and safety.

Foundation Executive Director George Eastwood will be on a keynote panel discussion titled “Advancing Regulatory Frameworks for Cell-Based Therapies.” The discussion will explore the challenges in developing cell-based therapies for small patient populations and discuss potential solutions to gaps in development and access.

05/01/2025

We are hosting an advocate-focused webinar on May 21, featuring:

✅ A recap of our public meeting, “Unlocking Next-Generation Therapies,” and working group discussions on innovative models for developing engineered cell-based therapies.
✅ A panel discussion highlighting multi-stakeholder perspectives on challenges and proposed solutions.
✅ A live Q&A session with patient advocates, researchers, and regulatory experts shaping solutions proposed by the Cell & Gene Therapies project working group.

To register, visit our website: https://friendsofcancerresearch.org/event/unlocking-next-generation-therapies-advocate-event/

04/24/2025

Register today for “Advocating, Accelerating, and Amplifying Lung Cancer Discovery,” an upcoming webinar hosted by the Lung-MAP Accrual Enhancement Committee (AEC), featuring experts and lung cancer advocates from the current Lung-MAP clinical trial to discuss recent trial updates, challenges to the traditional clinical trial landscape that Lung-MAP is working to overcome, and opportunities for patient engagement in the process.

Join us on May 14 from 1:00PM-2:00PM ET: https://friendsofcancerresearch.org/event/lung-map-webinar-advocating-accelerating-and-amplifying-lung-cancer-discovery/https://friendsofcancerresearch.org/event/lung-map-webinar-advocating-accelerating-and-amplifying-lung-cancer-discovery/

04/18/2025

T-cells play an important role in the immune system by recognizing antigens, or markers, on cells. When T-cells identify abnormal antigens, they target and destroy them, removing potential threats, such as cancer or viruses, from the body. However, some cancer cells can evade detection, allowing tumors to grow unchecked.

Scientists have developed groundbreaking cell therapy treatments that enable a patient's own immune system to detect and destroy cancer cells with remarkable precision.

As cell therapies continue to evolve, so do opportunities to enhance their development, delivery, and accessibility.

Innovative approaches to regulatory pathways, manufacturing models, and reimbursement strategies could help expand patient access and ensure these life-saving treatments reach those who need them most.

Join Friends of Cancer Research on May 21 for a webinar specifically designed to help advocates understand how advancements in manufacturing, regulatory pathways, and reimbursements can expand patient access to these potentially life-saving therapies.

Register today and watch our video to learn more about CAR-T cell therapies: https://friendsofcancerresearch.org/event/unlocking-next-generation-therapies-advocate-event/

Address

1800 M Street NW
Washington D.C., DC
20036

Opening Hours

Monday	9am - 5pm
Tuesday	9am - 5pm
Wednesday	9am - 5pm
Thursday	9am - 5pm
Friday	9am - 5pm
Saturday	9am - 5pm
Sunday	9am - 5pm

Telephone

(202) 944-6700

Website

https://friendsofcancerresearch.org/

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