Three paths toward major advances for chordoma patients

Better care for chordoma patients is coming, but to bring the treatments of the future to fruition, we need your support.

Thanks to the generosity of people like you, significant advances are being made along three paths:

1. New molecular tests will guide treatment based on the unique biology of each patient’s tumor — possibly even without requiring a biopsy. This year alone, discoveries from our grantees and collaborators included a blood-based diagnostic and prognostic test, a blood-based approach to detect recurrences, and a tissue-based prognostic test.

2. Existing drugs will provide near-term options to patients with recurrent disease. Through our Drug Repurposing Initiative, all FDA-approved drugs have been tested against chordoma cells and > 65 promising drugs and combinations have been tested in mice, including a record 20 this year. Results have provided rationale for five clinical trials, including one testing the drug cetuximab, which will begin enrollment soon with grant funding from the chordoma community. More repurposed therapies are flowing through this pipeline with increasing speed; with continued investment, they’ll reach clinical trials in the next couple years.

3. New drug discovery promises highly effective therapies that could dramatically change how chordoma is treated. Specifically, our Immunotherapy Initiative is uncovering new ways to direct immune cells to attack chordomas. And, progress that exceeds even our most optimistic hopes is being made through our Brachyury Drug Discovery Initiative: this year, our grantees demonstrated for the first time the ability to eliminate brachyury in chordoma cells — a big step forward towards the first drugs against chordoma’s Achilles’ heel.

These high-impact initiatives will, if continued, make a big impact in the lives of patients. Your donation will continue to push research to move at a pace consistent with the urgency felt by patients and families.

Thank you for helping us create a brighter future for everyone affected by chordoma.