MARCH MATCH-NESS: NETRF's Thrivership Drive to Support Patient Education!
"Thanks to NETRF, I'm educated, healthy, and have hope for the future." ~ NET patient Nancy Lewis Harmon.
We are delighted to announce our Thrivership Drive - an opportunity to multiply your support for NETRF's patient education programs.
NETRF offers a wealth of resources designed to educate and guide individuals through their neuroendocrine cancer journey. From the NET Knowledge Center, printed patient guide and podcasts to educational conferences and one-on-one support, NETRF empowers patients with the most current and comprehensive information.
Nancy shares how NETRF's patient education resources supported her in the early days of her diagnosis. Click the image to watch Nancy's message.
Please join Nancy in supporting NETRF's Thrivership Drive to ensure the very best neuroendocrine patient education resources are available to all patients, caregivers and clinicians.
Thanks to a generous match from an anonymous donor and NETRF Board of Directors member Dr. Mark Lewis and his wife, Dr. Stasha Lewis, from March 18-31, 2024, each gift* will be matched up to $15,000 for a total goal of $30,000.
Thank you for making a profound difference in the lives of patients living with neuroendocrine cancer.
*Excludes Everlasting Impact Tribute gifts and Community Fundraising gifts.
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Save The Dates!
We're busy gearing up for two exciting patient education events. On Saturday, May 4, we're hosting an in-person patient education conference in Providence, Rhode Island; the details and registration information are here.
Can't make it to Providence? Don't fret; the day's presentations will be available on our YouTube Channel after the conference.
On Saturday, July 20, we're hosting our annual KNOW YOUR NETs virtual patient education conference. This popular annual conference is packed with the latest information about treatments, clinical trials, research updates, and a live interactive Q&A session. Registration details are coming soon, so watch our social channels and emails for updates. And, if you haven't taken our conference content survey, it closes on Friday, March 22, at 5 pm EST, so add it to your to-do list!
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NETs & Sleep
This month's Thrivership Series addresses sleep, sleep hygiene and fatigue, which are interconnected elements in a neuroendocrine cancer journey that can impact your physical and emotional well-being.
Managing fatigue and prioritizing good sleep hygiene can help improve your quality of life.
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NETWise Episode 25 Revisit: Small Bowel NETs
This month, we are sharing our NETWise episode 25, which discusses gastrointestinal NETs. Did you know that the small bowel, or the small intestine, is one of the most common places NETs form? In this episode, you will learn about the anatomy of the GI system, the different parts and functions of the small bowel, tumor biology and how small bowel NETs can greatly differ from one another. Finally, this episode details how small bowel NETs grow and what disease progression looks like. We will also cover the extensive treatment options available and new research for small bowel NETs.
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NETRF-funded Researchers Win Top Awards at ENETS
Four NETRF-funded researchers were recognized for excellence and received awards at the recent European Neuroendocrine Tumor Society (ENETS) annual meeting in Vienna. NETRF's CEO Elyse Gellerman and Director of Research Anna Greene attended the conference, which featured 12 NETRF researchers presenting their cutting-edge basic and translational work. Read more here.
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First International NET Models Meeting
Accurate models for the study of neuroendocrine tumors (NETs) are severely limited. This includes in vitro (cell lines), ex vivo (organoids), and in vivo (mouse models), which, although they exist, don’t always represent the tumors seen in patients. The first international NET Models meeting was held in Oxford, England, from February 29-March 1, 2024, to address this. The meeting was hosted by the founding group, consisting of Drs. Kate Lines (Oxford), Dawn Quelle (Iowa), Talya Dayton (Barcelona), Po Hien Ear (Iowa), Ilaria Marinoni (Bern), and Rachael Guenter (Alabama), with the help of Bioscientifica. The meeting was attended by approximately 30 researchers from around the world (including the UK, EU, Israel, USA and Canada).
The meeting was solely dedicated to discussing NET models, their current uses, and how they can be improved going forward. The sessions consisted of outstanding talks on topics ranging from 3D bioprinting to zebrafish and included novel ideas as well as improvements on current concepts. After two exciting days of interactive discussions, a white paper will be prepared to summarize the key points from the meeting. The organizers are making plans for another NET Models meeting next year and aim for this to become an annual event.
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Curasight Basket Trial for uPAR Includes NETs
The Danish company Curasight A/S announced a new Phase I/IIa clinical trial to include a total of five cancer indications in what is called a basket trial design. The trial will investigate Curasight's therapeutics and diagnostics (or “theranostic”) approach by testing the diagnostic platform uTRACE® and the treatment platform uTREAT® in neuroendocrine tumors as well as the brain tumor glioblastoma, head-and-neck cancer, non-small cell lung cancer, and pancreatic cancer.
Both uTRACE and uTREAT target uPAR, a receptor found in low-grade and high-grade neuroendocrine cancers. Dr. Andreas Kjaer, co-founder of Curasight, studied the expression of uPAR in a prospective clinical trial at Copenhagen University Hospital–Rigshospitalet through a 2020 NETRF Investigator Award. uPAR represents a potential new target for neuroendocrine cancers, especially for those that do not express somatostatin receptors.
For more information, click here.
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Breakthrough Designation by FDA to Treat GEP-NETs with AlphaMedix
The FDA has granted breakthrough therapy designation to AlphaMedix (212Pb-DOTAMTATE) for treating adults with advanced gastroenteropancreatic neuroendocrine tumors (GEP-NETs), marking it as the first targeted alpha therapy to receive this status. While this therapy is not yet FDA approved, the breakthrough therapy designation allows for expedited development and review of promising therapies. The designation is based on positive outcomes from phase 1 and ongoing phase 2 trials, showing the treatment's safety and efficacy, including a notable overall response rate and manageable side effects. Read more here.
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"His story didn't have to end this way."
Christine lost her life partner, Mark, to neuroendocrine cancer in October of 2023, just shy of his 52nd birthday.
To help educate and encourage patients to advocate for second and even third opinions, she graciously shares Mark’s NET journey with hopes of raising awareness and funds for NET research.
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Many thanks to ITM, Boehringer Ingelheim & Curium for their support of this E-update.
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