Where Is Advanced CLL Research Being Conducted?

Our recent CLL Global Research Foundation virtual town hall featured CLL Global President, Dr. William Wierda, and Dr. Erin Parry, an Investigator of Hematologic Neoplasia at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute. CLL patient advocate Jeff Folloder moderated the event. Watch the full webinar.

Transcript

Jeff Folloder: 

Where is the most advanced CLL research being carried out, and how is it funded?  

Dr. William Wierda:     

Well, maybe I’ll start. It’s being conducted at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and MD Anderson. There are a few centers in the U.S. that have dedicated programs in CLL. So, Dana-Farber is one of them. They have a very active program clinically and laboratory-wise. We have also a very active program at MD Anderson. The Ohio State University has a very active program with Jennifer Woyach leading that group.

The Memorial Sloan Kettering group has been very active. So, there are a number. Mayo Clinic has been another one. I hate to start naming them because I’m sure I will miss one, but there are a lot of good programs in CLL research that cover pretty much most of the U.S. So, you can likely go some place that’s relatively close by and not have to travel a long ways to see a CLL expert.

Some of this work is funded, and the research is funded by pharmaceutical companies when they’re developing new drugs and new treatments. Some of it is funded by the federal government to do research that is important to understand particularly the basic science and translational science behind the disease and developing therapies. The CLL Global Research Foundation is a nonprofit organization that provides research funding, and we have provided grants over the years in the order of $40 million to do research.

So, The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society is another organization that provides funding. So, there are various places that we look to for supporting our research and that are all important to supporting the research, as I mentioned, from the federal government to pharmaceutical companies to nonprofit organizations like the CLL Global Research Foundation.

Jeff Folloder:               

So, in other words, we need to write some more checks because we need to fund more research, right? 

Dr. William Wierda:      

Research is extremely important because without research, we have no progress, and we’re stuck where we are if we don’t have any research or progress. We won’t have development of new treatments and cure for the disease without continued research, laboratory research, and clinical trials and clinical trial participation with very courageous patients.

So, that’s my plug for research. I’m a very passionate person about that. It’s extremely important, and we’re extremely grateful for the support, engagement, and involvement we have from our courageous patient population.