Novel approach aims to identify patient subgroups within
Multiple Myeloma
NORWALK, Conn. and PHOENIX, Ariz. - April 2, 2012 - The Multiple
Myeloma Research Foundation (MMRF) today announced a unique
oncology research partnership. This multi-year agreement involves
several partners including the Translational Genomics Research
Institute (TGen), Spectrum Health, and the Van Andel Research
Institute (VARI).
The collaboration will provide a broad range of genomic services
and analyses to help drive the success of the landmark 1000-patient
study on the molecular segments and variation of multiple myeloma
which has been launched by the MMRF.
Under the agreement, TGen will provide a central hub where patient
samples will be analyzed using an unprecedented breadth of genomics
platforms. The data to emerge from this work will provide the most
comprehensive view of myeloma at the molecular level and will
enable the research community to better understand what drives a
patient's response to treatment or disease progression and will
also generate new leads for targeted drug development.
The MMRF began enrolling patients in the landmark study CoMMpass
(Relating Clinical Outcomes in MM to Personal Assessment of Genetic
Profile) last year through a network of academic and community
clinical centers. Study participants will provide an initial tissue
sample at the time at which they are newly diagnosed, and will
provide follow-up tissue samples at the time of first and
additional relapse. Sequential analysis of these tissue samples
will shed new light on the relationship between molecular variation
and patients' response or resistance to therapy.
"We are proud to support the MMRF's unparalleled research
initiative, which has tremendous potential to make a significant
difference in the way multiple myeloma is treated," said Dr. John
Carpten, Ph.D., Professor and Director of TGen's Integrated Cancer
Genomics Division. "The rigor and breadth of this effort will
enable a much more sophisticated understanding of the molecular
changes that give rise to myeloma, and that affect a patient's
course of disease. We believe the collective data to emerge along
the way will provide an invaluable resource for innovators to
design the next significant breakthroughs against this incurable
disease."
Analyses during the study will also apply and build on insights
from the Multiple Myeloma Genomics Initiative (MMGI) sequencing
project to identify specific subgroups of multiple myeloma
patients. For example, the study will involve sequencing tissue
samples using techniques perfected in the MMGI and will test for
mutations activating the BRAF gene, which were found in a small
percentage of multiple myeloma patients in the sequencing
project.
"We are excited to build on our earlier partnership with TGen.
Their dedicated commitment to multiple myeloma genomic research and
earlier achievements will play a critical role in the success of
this initiative," said Dr. Louise M. Perkins, Ph.D., MMRF's Chief
Scientific Officer. "The strong collaboration of academia, the
clinical community and industry in this landmark project will
enable us to translate new information into improved treatment
approaches more efficiently and effectively than ever
before."
TGen will work with VARI to centrally collect and store tissue
samples and extract DNA and RNA from samples for next-generation
sequencing analysis including whole-genome and RNA-sequencing.
Using the Program for Biospecimen Science and its biorepository at
VARI, Dr. Scott Jewell's program will use collection and biobanking
best practices to centrally manage the collection and biobanking
for this study. VARI will process the specimens, isolate the cancer
cell population and prepare derivatives for genomic analysis at
TGen. VARI will use the VARI/TGen bioinventory software to assist
in the tracking and management of the biospecimens throughout the
life of the project.
Spectrum Health, which is accredited by the College of American
Pathology and is also a Clinical Laboratory Improvement Amendments
(CLIA) laboratory, will provide the BRAF gene analysis and a flow
cytometric immunophenotype of each patient's myeloma using
state-of-the art analytics in its clinical diagnostics
laboratory.
"We are very excited to be a partner in this effort to determine
how to conquer this disease," said Lisa A. Shannon, Chief Operating
Officer of Spectrum Health in Grand Rapids. "This is very important
research and we are proud to lend our expertise and experience to
the effort. Partnerships like this expand the opportunity for
success in conquering diseases like multiple myeloma."
This study is currently enrolling patients at clinical centers
throughout the U.S. For more information about participation in the
study, visit www.themmrf.org.
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About Multiple Myeloma
Multiple myeloma is an incurable blood cancer. The five-year
relative survival rate for multiple myeloma is approximately 34
percent, one of the lowest of all cancers. In 2012, more than
21,000 adults in the United States will be diagnosed with multiple
myeloma and nearly 11,000 people are predicted to die from the
disease.
About the Multiple Myeloma Research Foundation (MMRF)
Multiple Myeloma Research Foundation (MMRF) was established in 1998
as a 501(c)3 non-profit organization by twin sisters Karen Andrews
and Kathy Giusti, soon after Kathy's diagnosis with multiple
myeloma. The mission of the MMRF is to relentlessly pursue
innovative means that accelerate the development of next-generation
multiple myeloma treatments to extend the lives of patients and
lead to a cure. As the world's number-one private funder of
multiple myeloma research, the MMRF has raised over $190 million
since its inception to fund nearly 120 laboratories worldwide,
including 70 new compounds and approaches in clinical trials and
pre-clinical studies and has facilitated more than 35 clinical
trials through its affiliate organization, the Multiple Myeloma
Research Consortium (MMRC). As exceptional stewards of its donors'
investments, the MMRF has been consistently recognized for its
sound fiscal management. For more information about the MMRF,
please visit www.themmrf.org.
About the Multiple Myeloma Research Consortium
The Multiple Myeloma Research Consortium (MMRC) is a 509(a)3
non-profit organization that integrates leading academic
institutions to accelerate drug development in multiple myeloma. It
is led from MMRC offices in Norwalk, Conn., and comprises 16 member
institutions. Barbara Anne Karmanos Cancer Institute, Baylor
Charles A. Sammons Cancer Center at Dallas, City of Hope,
Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Emory University's Winship Cancer
Institute, the John Theurer Cancer Center at Hackensack University
Medical Center, Mayo Clinic, Ohio State University, Mount Sinai
School of Medicine, Sarah Cannon Research Institute, University
Health Network (Princess Margaret Hospital), University of
California-San Francisco, University of Chicago, University of
Michigan, Virginia Cancer Specialists, and Washington University in
St Louis.
The MMRC was founded in 2004 by Kathy Giusti, a myeloma patient,
and with the help of the scientific community. The MMRC is a sister
organization to the Multiple Myeloma Research Foundation (MMRF),
the world's leading funder of multiple myeloma research. The MMRC
is widely recognized as an optimal research model to rapidly
address critical challenges in drug development and to explore
opportunities in the today's most promising research areas in
genomics, compound validation, and clinical trials. The MMRC is the
only consortium to join academic institutions through membership
agreements, customized IT systems, and an integrated tissue bank.
For more information, please visit www.themmrc.org.
About TGen
The Translational Genomics Research Institute (TGen) is a Phoenix,
Arizona-based non-profit organization dedicated to conducting
groundbreaking research with life changing results. Research at
TGen is focused on helping patients with diseases such as cancer,
neurological disorders and diabetes. TGen is on the cutting edge of
translational research where investigators are able to unravel the
genetic components of common and complex diseases. Working with
collaborators in the scientific and medical communities, TGen
believes it can make a substantial contribution to the efficiency
and effectiveness of the translational process. For more
information, visit: www.tgen.org.
About Spectrum Health
Spectrum Health is a not-for-profit health system in West Michigan
offering a full continuum of care through the Spectrum Health
Hospital Group, which is comprised of nine hospitals including
Helen DeVos Children's Hospital, a state of the art children's
hospital that opened in January 2011, and 190 service sites; the
Spectrum Health Medical Group and West Michigan Heart, physician
groups totaling more than 600 providers; and Priority Health, a
health plan with 625,000 members. Spectrum Health is West
Michigan's largest employer with more than 18,000 employees. The
organization provided $176.5 million in community benefit during
its 2011 fiscal year.
About Van Andel Research Institute
Established by Jay and Betty Van Andel in 1996, Van Andel Institute
(VAI) is an independent research and educational organization based
in Grand Rapids, Mich., dedicated to preserving, enhancing and
expanding the frontiers of medical science, and to achieving
excellence in education by probing fundamental issues of education
and the learning process. Van Andel Education Institute (VAEI) is
dedicated to strengthening science education and preparing and
motivating individuals to pursue science or science-related
professions. Van Andel Research Institute (VARI), the research arm
of VAI, is dedicated to probing the genetic, cellular and molecular
origins of cancer, Parkinson's and other diseases and working to
translate those findings into effective therapies. This is
accomplished through the work of over 200 researchers in 18 on-site
laboratories and in collaborative partnerships that span the globe.
More information: www.vai.org.
About the Multiple Myeloma Genomics Initiative
The MMGI is a $12 million, six-year program that comprises several
research and discovery efforts spanning the spectrum of genome
science. The MMRC contributes patient samples from its 16
collaborating academic members via a centralized Tissue Bank; the
MMRF provides funding for the project. The comprehensive genomic
survey of MMRC samples is conducted in collaboration with the Eli
and Edythe L. Broad Institute of Harvard and MIT and the
Translational Genomics Research Institute (TGen). The MMGI
comprises several research and discovery efforts spanning the
spectrum of genome science. Array comparative genomic hybridization
(aCGH), gene expression profiling (GEP), DNA methylation analysis
and DNA sequencing are among the assays performed on hundreds of
patient multiple myeloma tumor tissue. Data from the MMGI and other
multiple myeloma genomics efforts is available to the scientific
community through the Multiple Myeloma Genomics Portal, the world's
only myeloma-specific repository of genomic data
(www.myelomagenomics.org).
To continue the momentum of these study findings, the MMRF has
granted Biotech Investment Awards to two organizations focused on
epigenetic targets. Altogether, the MMRF is investing more than $5
million in programs to drive the rapid translation of these
findings into effective treatments for multiple myeloma.