More Effective, Less Toxic Treatments

For nearly twenty years, EIF grants have supported state-of-the-art therapies bringing new and innovative treatment approaches to breast cancer worldwide. Through the EIF Revlon Run/Walk for Women fundraisers, EIF grants helped accelerate research for the revolutionary cancer treatment Herceptin®, a non-toxic medication for certain types of breast cancer -- the most aggressive forms of cancer with tumors that contain the HER-2 alteration. After extensive trials, Dr. Dennis Slamon, director of the Revlon/UCLA Women's Cancer Research Program, announced that Herceptin received FDA approval years ahead of schedule - ultimately saving the lives of countless women around the world. Herceptin has significantly increased the survival rate in over one-third of women who receive it and has improved their quality of life.   With EIF support, UCLA established a cancer research network dedicated to making innovative treatments available to more patients.

As part of EIF’s ongoing funding strategy, EIF established Lee Laboratories for Translational Research to expedite promising treatment research for new targeted therapies for women’s cancers. Research has clearly demonstrated that all breast cancer is not alike, and there is unfortunately no one-size-fits-all approach to treatment. To improve the overall outcome, new treatments must be specifically designed and developed for each identifiable sub-type of breast cancer.  Rather than treating all breast cancer patients with highly toxic chemotherapy, these translational researchers are at the leading edge of gaining a more thorough understanding of the diversity of human breast cancers.  They are designing strategies for more effective, less toxic treatments for the disease and bringing them to patients faster. Money raised through Lee National Denim Day primarily supports this effort.