The Children’s Tumor Foundation announced the honorees for its premiere annual benefit, “A Night to Celebrate Our Stars”, to be held on November 7, 2013 at Cipriani Wall Street in New York City. The Foundation’s Children’s Humanitarian Award will be given to corporate honoree OncoSynergy, Inc., to be accepted on its behalf by Nicole and Allen Salmasi will also pay tribute to Salmasi. The evening’s medical honoree and Children’s Humanitarian Award recipient will be Dr. Bruce Korf of the University of Alabama at Birmingham, and the evening the Children’s Tumor Foundation Ambassador Bailey Gribben.
Funds raised at this event support research into neurofibromatosis (NF), a genetic disorder that causes tumors to grow on the nerves throughout the body, and affects one in every 3,000 people. Each year, the Foundation gives three honors — to a person or a company with a distinguished history of philanthropy and a dedication to the health and well-being of children; a medical professional whose contribution to the field of NF research or medicine has a direct impact on the quality of life of those affected by the disorder; and a young person who demonstrates great courage in dealing with the obstacles one faces when living with NF.
Receiving the Children’s Humanitarian Award, the highest honor given by the Foundation, will be OncoSynergy, Inc., a biotechnology company developing novel therapies for highly aggressive and therapy resistant cancers. With a focus on tackling drug resistance, the major cause of treatment failure in cancer patients, the company is developing first-in-class therapeutics such as its lead drug candidate OS2966, which blocks the critical path for therapy resistance in cancer and holds promise for significantly improving patient outcomes. Accepting on behalf of OncoSynergy will be Nicole and Allen Salmasi. Nicole Salmasi is a fund manager involved with several charitable organizations including New York-based New Destiny as an active supporter and a Board member. Allen Salmasi is a venture capitalist who has held several key executive roles in the past as the CSO, member of the Board of Directors, and President (wireless division) of Qualcomm Incorporated, CEO and Chairman of NextWave Telecom, which was acquired by Verizon Wireless in 2005, and NextWave Wireless, which was acquired by AT&T earlier this year.
Bruce Korf, MD, PhD, is one of the leading clinical experts in NF. He is chair of the Department of Genetics and director of the Heflin Center for Genomic Sciences at the University of Alabama at Birmingham. He is currently chair of the Foundation’s Medical Advisory Committee, is past president of the Association of Professors of Human and Medical Genetics, immediate past president of the American College of Medical Genetics and Genomics (ACMG), president of the ACMG Foundation for Genetic and Genomic Medicine, and serves on the Board of Scientific Counselors of the National Human Genome Research Institute. He is the author or co-author of four books and numerous scientific articles, including Neurofibromatosis: A Handbook for Patients, Families, and Health Care Professionals.
The Foundation will also pay tribute to this year’s Ambassador, Bailey Gribben. Bailey is a 16 year old living with NF who has undergone numerous brain surgeries to remove tumors, including a recent 10-hour operation to remove a tumor on the top of his brain. Despite these procedures, Bailey has decided that he won’t let NF interrupt his life. He is an avid volunteer, helping developmentally disabled children in basketball and baseball programs. For the past 18 months, Bailey has been involved with a study at the National Institutes of Health, hoping to do his part in finding treatments not just for himself but for all living with NF.
“We are proud to honor OncoSynergy, Dr. Bruce Korf, and Bailey Gribben at this special event, and pleased to celebrate the medical advancements made over the past year,” said John Risner, President of the Foundation, “These are promising times in NF research and events like this help fund the programs that will fulfill our mission of ending NF.” For more information about the Annual Benefit Gala, please visit www.ctf.org/benefitgala.
About Children’s Tumor Foundation
The Children’s Tumor Foundation is a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organization dedicated to finding effective treatments for the millions of people worldwide living with neurofibromatosis (NF), a term for three distinct disorders: NF1, NF2, and schwannomatosis. NF causes tumors to grow on nerves throughout the body and can lead to blindness, bone abnormalities, cancer, deafness, disfigurement, learning disabilities, and excruciating and disabling pain. NF affects one in every 3,000 people, more than cystic fibrosis, Duchenne muscular dystrophy, and Huntington’s disease combined. The Children’s Tumor Foundation funds critical research into neurofibromatosis. In addition to benefitting those who live with NF, this research is shedding new light on several forms of cancer, brain tumors, bone abnormalities, and learning disabilities, ultimately benefiting the broader community. For more information, please visit www.ctf.org.
Media Contact:
Simon Vukelj
Director of Communications
Children’s Tumor Foundation
212-344-7568
svukelj@ctf.org
