Less is Unacceptable: A Community Forging Ahead

For over 25 years, the Lustgarten Foundation has led the charge in advancing pancreatic cancer research—empowering scientists, driving bold collaborations, and relentlessly advocating for progress. Once overlooked, this field is now a hub for groundbreaking discoveries and top scientific talent. By breaking down silos, we’ve created a space where life-saving partnerships thrive. Our call to action urged the NCI to increase their funding 13-fold since 1999. We will not accept less. We will not step back. We are forging ahead.

STANDING FIRM AGAINST SETBACKS
As we navigate the reality of top-down scientific mistrust and devastating funding cuts, we will not stand idle. Research is fundamental. While we continue to advocate for the full reinstatement of federal cancer research funding, we remain committed to fueling breakthrough research and raising critical awareness. Pancreatic cancer patients, survivors, and those lost too soon will not be left behind or forgotten – progress is paramount.

EMPOWERING SCIENTISTS
In 1998, limited public funding deterred young investigators from pursuing pancreatic cancer research. The Lustgarten Foundation tackled this challenge head-on by investing in programs that cultivate talent and innovation:

• The Ruth Bader Ginsberg and John Lewis Career Development Grant Programs launched in 2020 to increase opportunities for trailblazing investigators committed to increasing our understanding and treatment of the disease. The grants support independent research programs led by early-career scientists (assistant professor or equivalent) working at an academic, medical or research institution anywhere in the world.
• Innovation & Collaboration Program provides seed funding for investigators who have highly innovative research with significant potential to accelerate the mission to transform pancreatic cancer into a curable disease.

COLLABORATIONS FOR A CURE
Guided by our patient-centered mission and science-driven strategy, Lustgarten supports flexibility, fearlessness, creative confidence, and a culture of innovation and dedication to scientific rigor:

• Break Through Cancer (2022): We brought their Team Lab model to pancreatic cancer research, investing in two landmark projects:
  • Conquering KRAS—developing combination therapies to target the KRAS mutation, which drives over 90% of pancreatic tumors.
  • Demystifying Pancreatic Cancer—creating tools to track tumor responses in clinical trials to better understand treatment resistance and effectiveness.
• The Pancreatic Cancer Collective (2012): In partnership with Stand Up To Cancer, we have funded over 400 investigators at nearly 70 leading research centers across the U.S. and U.K.

DRIVING CHANGE THROUGH FUNDING & ADVOCACY

• Over $287.2M invested in high-risk, high-reward research.
• Partnerships with 85 academic institutions since our inception.
• 62 active grants across 33 institutions.
• 90% of our current grant portfolio supports research at NCI-designated cancer centers.
• Contributions to a threefold increase in the five-year survival rate (from <4% to 13%).

THE RISK IS URGENT
Cancer reaches far beyond politics or party lines—it does not discriminate and does not relent. U.S. cancer research, once a bipartisan priority, has generated groundbreaking advancements worldwide. However, it now faces sweeping policy changes and funding cuts, disrupting infrastructure and unsettling the research community. Despite the uncertainty ahead, we will not be discouraged. Now is the time to double down and build on the momentum we’ve worked tirelessly to build. Time is everything. We are laser-focused on improving the health and outcomes of those affected by pancreatic cancer, giving them the chance for more tomorrows with their loved ones.

MAKE YOUR VOICE HEARD!
Pancreatic cancer research is at risk, and patients can’t wait. Community is power – we need YOU:

• Advocate: Contact your representatives in Washington, D.C., and share why reinstating full research funding matters.
• Spread Awareness: Use social media, email, or even phone a friend to discuss the urgent risk to funding and critical needs of the pancreatic cancer research community.
• Donate: Your support fuels our mission of transforming pancreatic cancer into a curable disease.