About Us
Founded in 1944, the American Committee for the Weizmann Institute of Science develops philanthropic support for the Weizmann Institute in Israel, and advances its mission of science for the benefit of humanity.
May 20, 2013...
Emily Whitehead, 8, celebrates a year of remission after cancer therapy at Children's. Photo from The Philadelphia Inquirer
It is vanishingly rare for an experimental treatment to wipe out advanced, recurrent cancer, then keep the disease from coming back.
Yet therapies driven by CARs have been doing exactly that in a small but growing number of blood-cancer patients at the University of Pennsylvania and other centers.
https://www.weizmann-usa.org/news-media/feature-stories/cancer-research-understanding-the-p53-gene/
Dec 01, 2006...
In their quest to better understand, prevent, and treat cancer, Weizmann Institute of Science researchers are getting to the heart of the matter by exploring the genetics of the disease.
Prof. Varda Rotter, head of the Institute's Department of Molecular Cell Biology, studies p53, a gene that suppresses tumor growth and may one day open doors to the development of new cancer treatment drugs. "There is really a strong feeling that a critical breakthrough in preventing cancer and designing future therapies will occur once it is understood how this gene works," said Prof. Rotter.
https://www.weizmann-usa.org/news-media/feature-stories/june-is-men-s-health-month/
Jun 01, 2012...
Anchored by a Congressional health education program, Men’s Health Month aims to heighten awareness of preventable health problems and encourage early detection and treatment of disease.
The broad-ranging research of Weizmann Institute scientists addresses multiple areas of men’s health, including fighting cancers that are common to men. According to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), “Every year, cancer claims the lives of nearly 300,000 men in America.” Weizmann research, such as a method for timely detection of prostate cancer, can help protect our fathers, brothers, husbands, friends. Read on for just a few examples of how Institute science is benefitting men’s health.
https://www.weizmann-usa.org/news-media/news-releases/altitude-training-for-cancer-fighting-cells/
Sep 19, 2017...
Cancerous tumor tissue under a microscope: T cells grown under low oxygen conditions (green) and regular T cells (purple) show similar distribution patterns vis-à-vis blood vessels (red). Right: The content of granzyme B, a cell-killing enzyme (red), is much higher in T cells grown under low oxygen conditions (top) than in regular T cells (bottom)
Mountain climbers and endurance athletes are not the only ones to benefit from altitude training – that is, learning to perform well under low-oxygen conditions. It turns out that cancer-fighting cells of the immune system can also improve their performance through a cellular version of such a regimen. In a study published in Cell Reports, Weizmann Institute of Science researchers have shown that the immune system’s killer T cells destroy cancerous tumors much more effectively after being starved for oxygen.
Aug 15, 2016...
Basel, August 15, 2016 - Today Novartis announced that six scientists will receive the 2016 Novartis Prizes for Immunology at the upcoming 16th International Congress of Immunology (ICI) in Melbourne, Australia on Aug 22, 2016.
The Novartis Prizes for Immunology are awarded every three years for breakthrough contributions to the fields of basic and clinical immunology. Each of the two Prize categories is endowed for CHF 100,000 and can be shared by up to three scientists.
https://www.weizmann-usa.org/news-media/news-releases/one-patent-three-drugs/
Mar 16, 2016...
A protocol that arose from Weizmann Institute of Science research has led to U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval of a new biological drug for the treatment of a certain form of lung cancer. This is the third cancer drug to be developed on the basis of studies conducted by the Department of Immunology’s Prof. Michael Sela and colleagues.
Prof. Michael Sela
All three drugs are antibodies that block a receptor called the epidermal growth factor receptor, or EGFR. This receptor, which is on the surface of cells, plays a role in the formation and spread of cancerous tumors. Used in combination with chemotherapy or radiation, blocking EGFR may prevent cancer from growing. Prof. Sela and colleagues Drs. Esther Aboud-Pirak and Esther Hurwitz discovered, a number of years ago, that EGFR-inhibiting antibodies produce a synergistic anticancer effect when used together with chemotherapy.
https://www.weizmann-usa.org/news-media/feature-stories/the-dark-side-of-the-sun-1/
May 15, 2018...
May is Melanoma/Skin Cancer Detection and Prevention Month: the perfect time to learn more about the disease – and what the Weizmann Institute of Science is doing to help.
Did you know that skin cancer is the most common cancer in America? And that it’s been on the rise for more than 30 years?
The single most significant cause of skin cancer is the sun. That’s certainly true when it comes to melanoma – the deadliest of all skin cancers – with the Skin Cancer Foundation citing research that shows that 86% of melanomas are linked to UV radiation. Thus, prevention – such as wearing a high-SPF sunblock or protective clothing anytime we go outside, even on overcast days – and early screening are the most important tools in our skin-cancer-defeating arsenal.
Sep 27, 2019... Glioblastoma, a typically incurable brain cancer, is a master of diversity. Not only do the tumors differ from one patient to the next, but cells within each tumor differ greatly from one another. In a study published recently in Cell, researchers at the Weizmann Institute of Science, working in collaboration with Boston researchers and physicians, have found that glioblastoma cells come in as many as four “states,” or subtypes, and – as if that were not enough – these cells can transition from one state to another. These findings might help explain why glioblastoma is so difficult to treat and point toward ways of developing future therapies.
Feb 25, 2020...
After investing $26 million in research during the past 15 years, NETRF has helped to establish the NET knowledge base needed to expand the exploration of improved treatments, according to Elyse Gellerman, NETRF Chief Executive Officer. “We can see real momentum in this new round of grants. We hope the discoveries from these projects will lead to improved treatment options for patients.”
NETRF is supporting a new pioneering approach to NET immunotherapy with a Petersen Accelerator Award to Steven Libutti, MD, Rutgers Cancer Institute of New Jersey, to characterize a novel immune regulator called B7x to determine whether it has a role in shutting off the body’s immune response to fight against pancreatic NETs.
Mar 19, 2019...
Mina J. Bissell. (Credit: Berkeley Lab)
Mina Bissell, a distinguished scientist at the Department of Energy’s Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab), has been selected to receive two prestigious awards for her pioneering contributions to breast cancer biology and medicine.
In recognition of her lifetime achievements, including her extraordinary insights into how a cell’s local environment impacts gene expression and tumor formation, the American Philosophical Society (APS) has chosen Bissell as the recipient of the Jonathan E. Rhoads Gold Medal for Distinguished Service to Medicine. The honor is given only once every three years.
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