As we celebrate the Chordoma Foundation’s 10-year anniversary this month, we want to share our sincere thanks to everyone who has helped make our progress possible.
Thanks to you, what started as a small group of survivors and family members determined to bring about a better future for everyone affected by this disease has grown into the leading funder of chordoma research, an efficient catalyst for chordoma drug development, and a dependable source of information and support for thousands of patients and their loved ones across the world.
Despite long odds, the support, involvement, and generosity of our many friends and partners has fueled progress that is virtually unprecedented for a rare cancer, and helped fundamentally change what once was a lonely and bewildering journey for many chordoma patients.
Since 2007, more than 10,000 donors from 43 countries have contributed over $10 million – and counting – all of which has been directed toward improving the lives of those affected by chordoma and leading the search for a cure. With this investment, we’ve gone from knowing virtually nothing about this disease and its potential vulnerabilities, to helping to initiate seven new clinical trials that are bringing promising treatments from the lab to patients who need them.
But, what gives us the most hope is that the ground we’ve gained thus far has made it possible for patients to begin benefitting from advances in research in a matter of years rather than decades.
By eliminating many of the obstacles that once stood in the way of research – lack of tissue, disease models, coordination among researchers, or the ability to connect patients with clinical trials – we have leveled the playing field for chordoma. Therapies developed for other cancers can now be tested in the lab and brought to clinical trials for chordoma patients in a fraction of the time that it once took. Hundreds of researchers are now bringing their expertise to bear on chordoma. And powerful new technologies – like CRISPR, single cell sequencing, and DNA-encoded chemical libraries – can now be applied to the discovery of new therapies that exploit chordomas unique vulnerabilities.
In short, a field that was at a standstill is now racing. Thank you for believing in us, and for helping us get to this exciting point. Because of you, the future is looking increasingly bright for all of us touched by chordoma.
Reflecting on our shared progress
Over the next several months, we’ll be sharing a series of stories and updates about the headway you’ve helped make against chordoma in the last ten years, and the opportunities that lie ahead.
To kick things off, we’ve created a “Then and Now” timeline below, highlighting ten ways the Foundation has improved the lives of those affected by chordoma, and paved the path to cures.
