Newswise — On June 17, 2008, the Cancer Research Institute (CRI) will host its 22nd Annual Awards Dinner at The Rainbow Room in New York City. More than 300 guests are expected to attend the black-tie dinner, at which CRI will honor philanthropic and corporate leaders and scientists who have made significant contributions to the fight against cancer, including:
"¢ Carlos A. Ferrer, who will receive the Oliver R. Grace Award for Distinguished Service in Advancing Cancer Research. Mr. Ferrer is the founder and a managing member of Ferrer Freeman & Company, LLC, a private equity firm located in Greenwich, CT, that invests exclusively in healthcare and healthcare-related companies. He is a former chairman of the CRI Board of Trustees (1997-2001) and has been one of its most active members since he joined the board in 1994. The Institute will celebrate his success in raising CRI's profile within the pharmaceutical and financial management industries and in ushering CRI through one of the most transformative and expansive periods in its history. Cancer Research Institute co-chairman of the Board of Trustees Andrew M. Paul will present the Grace Award to Mr. Ferrer.
"¢ Michael J. Bevan, Ph.D., investigator, Howard Hughes Medical Institute and professor of immunology at the University of Washington, who will receive the William B. Coley Award for Distinguished Research in Basic and Tumor Immunology. The Cancer Research Institute will honor Dr. Bevan for his discovery of cross-presentation and positive selection of T cells. His work has provided a scientific rationale for the development of much of the cancer vaccine field and our understanding of how the host cellular immune system detects tumor antigens and self-proteins. Presenting the Coley Award to Dr. Bevan will be one of the world's leading T-cell experts, Philip D. Greenberg, M.D., professor of medicine and immunology at the University of Washington and Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Seattle, WA, who is also a member of the Cancer Research Institute Scientific Advisory Council.
The dinner will also feature a keynote address by Jedd D. Wolchok, M.D., Ph.D., director of immunotherapy clinical trials at New York City's Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center (MSKCC), where is he also a medical oncologist specializing in the treatment of melanoma. Dr. Wolchok is the creator of a therapeutic melanoma vaccine that the USDA approved last year for treatment in canines with late-stage disease. The vaccine is currently in early-phase human clinical trials. Dr. Wolchok, who is also a Coordinating Committee member of the Cancer Vaccine Collaborative, a joint program of the Cancer Research Institute and the Ludwig Institute for Cancer Research Cancer, will speak on the rapidly accelerating fields of cancer vaccine and immunotherapy research, and will describe how MSKCC, one of the top cancer treatment centers in the world, has taken a leading position in the exploration of cancer vaccines and immunotherapies.
About the Oliver R. Grace Award for Distinguished Service in Advancing Cancer Research
This award, established in 1995, recognizes the contributions of dedicated laypersons whose leadership has had a significant impact on cancer research. The award is named in memory of the late Oliver R. Grace, founding chairman of the Cancer Research Institute, whose vision, wisdom, and generosity benefited the Institute for nearly 40 years. Former Grace Award winners include, among other champions of cancer research: Wade F.B. Thompson (2007), chairman, CEO, and co-founder of Thor Industries; Julian H. Robertson Jr. (2006), chairman, Tiger Management LLC; Katie Couric (2002), then a co-anchor of NBC New's Today; and Andrea Jung (2001), chief executive officer, Avon Products, Inc. Each Grace Award winner will receive a gold medallion designed by Van Cleef & Arpels.
About the William B. Coley Award for Distinguished Research in Basic and Tumor Immunology
This award was established in 1975 in honor of Dr. William B. Coley, a pioneer of cancer immunotherapy, whose daughter Helen Coley Nauts (1907-2001) founded the Cancer Research Institute. Award winners are nominated by CRI's Scientific Advisory Council, the Academy of Cancer Immunology, and former Coley Award winners, including: Jeffrey V. Ravetch (2007), Ian H. Frazer (2006), James P. Allison (2005), and Robert D. Schreiber (2001). Each winner will receive a cash prize of $5,000 and a gold medallion designed by Van Cleef & Arpels.
About the Cancer Research Institute
The Cancer Research Institute (CRI) is the world's only non-profit organization dedicated exclusively to the support and coordination of scientific and clinical efforts that will lead to the immunological treatment, control, and prevention of cancer. Guided by a world-renowned Scientific Advisory Council that includes five Nobel Prize winners and thirty members of the National Academy of Sciences, CRI supports the finest cutting-edge cancer research at top medical centers and universities throughout the world. As the initiator and steward of unprecedented global laboratory and clinical collaborations, the Cancer Research Institute is ushering in a new era of scientific progress, hastening the discovery of effective cancer vaccines and other immune-based therapies that are providing new hope to cancer patients.
The Cancer Research Institute has one of the lowest overhead expense ratios among non-profit organizations, with the majority of its resources going directly to the support of its science, medical, and research programs. This has consistently earned CRI an A grade or higher for fiscal disclosure and efficiency from the American Institute of Philanthropy and top marks from other charity watchdog organizations. http://www.cancerresearch.org.
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