Aspen Institute Launches New Partnership with Friends of Cancer Research

WASHINGTON, Sept. 17, 2014 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The Aspen Institute Health, Medicine, and Society Program and Friends of Cancer Research (Friends) announce a new partnership, which will launch with a series of policy briefings on Cancer Research in the 21^st Century. The inaugural event, "Curing Cancer: How Close Are We?", will feature Dr. Francis Collins, director of the National Institutes of Health, and Dr. Ronald DePinho, president of the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, and will be moderated by Susan Page, Washington bureau chief at USA Today. The briefing will take place on October 14, 2014, in the Aspen Institute's DC office; dates and locations for additional briefings in 2014 and 2015, will be announced as they are scheduled.

"The treatment for cancer is the scientific quest of our age. With this partnership with Friends, we hope to advance the conversation on this most important of issues," said Elliot Gerson, executive vice president of policy and public programs at the Aspen Institute.

"The partnership announced today will bring together true leaders of innovation for a unique dialogue on the progress, opportunities and realities of biomedical research and the battle against cancer," said Ellen Sigal, Chair & Founder of Friend of Cancer Research. "The platform that this partnership with Aspen creates will allow this conversation to be heard by an incredible and diverse audience."

The policy briefing series will explore the history and evolution of cancer care, highlighting the progress made — how far we have actually come in our knowledge and understanding of cancer and what the future holds. The briefings will also showcase the medical research successes achieved and preview exciting new scientific advances in cancer care. The goal of the program is to provide an understanding of the evolution of cancer treatment, including drug research and development, as well as a view toward the future in combatting the second leading cause of death in United States today.

Space is limited for the October 14 briefing, which will include a discussion and luncheon. For more information visit www.aspeninstitute.org/events/2014/10/14/curing-cancer-how-close-are-we.
A video recording will be posted shortly after the event at www.aspeninstitute.org/video.  

About Friends of Cancer Research

Friends of Cancer Research (Friends) is our country's leading voice in advocating for policies and solutions that will get treatments to patients in the safest and quickest way possible. As a think tank and an advocacy organization based in Washington, DC, Friends develops groundbreaking partnerships and creates a more open dialogue among both public and private sectors and tears down the barriers that stand in the way of conquering cancer. Working with federal health agencies, congressional leadership, academic research centers, and private sector industry, Friends continues to create innovative, educational, policy, and scientific approaches to improve health outcomes and cancer care. For more information please visit www.focr.org.

About The Aspen Institute

The Aspen Institute's Health Medicine and Society Program is a venue for academic, government, and industry leaders to explore critical issues in health care and health policy and how they may affect individual health and that of families, communities, nations, and the world. By convening bipartisan, multi-disciplinary forums, the program facilitates the exchange of knowledge and insights among decision-makers and helps to forge networks and other collaborations with the ultimate goal of improving human health.

Through public policy programs and strategic dialogue, including roundtables, policy briefings, conferences, and Internet discussion forums, the program seeks to help chart the way forward on issues relating to health and medical science by bringing together the foremost experts in many fields. The program's work routinely incorporates the views of leading scientists, economists, physicians, policymakers, historians, patients, and other committed voices in health care and health policy.

For more information, please visit http://www.aspeninstitute.org/policy-work/health-medicine-society.

The Aspen Institute is an educational and policy studies organization based in Washington, DC. Its mission is to foster leadership based on enduring values and to provide a nonpartisan venue for dealing with critical issues. The Institute has campuses in Aspen, Colorado, and on the Wye River on Maryland's Eastern Shore. It also maintains offices in New York City and has an international network of partners.

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SOURCE The Aspen Institute