Joining the Fight Against Breast Cancer

By: Ronica Smucker
February 8, 2012

Currently, a woman living in the U.S. has a 12.1% risk of being diagnosed with breast cancer — that’s 1 out of 8 women. Think about 8 women you know; mothers, sisters, friends, coworkers – that’s how close this disease is to each of us. It’s a disease that requires our attention, resources, and brightest minds to work collaboratively to beat it. Today, we announce another bold step in our mission: the launch of the Canary Breast Cancer Program.

We’re funding two forward-thinking research projects that will lay the foundation for a new Breast Cancer Early Detection Initiative. One study will focus on finding biomarkers in the blood of women diagnosed with breast cancer that may indicate the presence of tumor growth. The second study will develop an imaging modality to detect breast cancer at the earliest stages. As such, it offers great potential in detecting very small tumors– pinpointing the location for surgery or target therapies before the cancer has the chance to spread.

Building upon the successful models of our other research programs, we have a tremendous opportunity to develop early detection tools that will help save the lives of women all over the world.

Our work wouldn’t be possible without the support of our community. We invite you to take action, show your support by making a donation to the Breast Cancer Early Detection Initiative.

 Sharon Pitteri, PhD, Assistant Professor of Research at the Canary Center at Stanford, will be leading this bold initiative forward. In this video, she shares her inspiration for working in the field of early detection as well as a brief overview of the program structure and goals. 

Discovering Biomarkers for Early Cancer Detection (Whiteboard Video)

By: HeidiAuman
February 5, 2012

Canary Foundation is working toward simple blood tests and molecular imaging techniques that detect cancer at an early stage when it is most treatable and when a cure is most likely. These tests rely on biomarkers, specific indicators that cancer cells are found among the body’s healthy tissues. Proteins produced by a developing tumor are one type of biomarker. A cancer cell, compared to a healthy one, may make a new type of protein or different amounts of normal proteins. An early detection blood test would detect the abnormal protein as soon as it appeared in the body. Canary Center at Stanford’s faculty researcher Dr. Parag Mallick describes the challenge of discovering these biomarkers and using them for early cancer detection.

Canary Cares Profile: Dale Jantzen

By: Canary Foundation
January 24, 2012

Dale Jantzen is a board member and long-time supporter of Canary Foundation. Through the years, Dale has been actively involved with our organization in many different capacities; as a donor, volunteer, supporter of the Canary Challenge, and much more. In this video, Dale shares his personal motivation for supporting cancer early detection research and how late diagnosis cancer has affected his life.