MMRF CANCER FIGHTERS
Meet the MMRF staff members moving us closer to curing cancer every day...
Independent
Events Manager Vice President
Business Development
It’s personal – for the 90+
patient and patient families
who host independent
events for the MMRF,
and raise over $1 million
each year. These individuals want to make a difference and
come up with impressive and inspiring events each year. Chris is no stranger to multiple
myeloma. As a scientist, he
worked on the team that
developed Velcade. It was
during an event supporting
the drug’s launch that heartfelt stories from patients on that
drug solidified his commitment to finding a cure for multiple
myeloma. At the MMRF, Chris is responsible for staying abreast
of the leading-edge technologies and treatments and finding
ways to align them with strategic partnership opportunities
that help the MMRF’s mission to accelerate treatment in
pursuit of a cure. “This is a great time for optimism, “ Chris
says. “Between the capabilities of big data analytics and the
discoveries happening in immune oncology and genomics,
there is much to be hopeful about.” When he isn’t connecting
the dots between promising science and powerful partners,
Chris enjoys traveling with his family, playing and watching
sports and looking for the next great restaurant.
For Brooke, it is personal too. As a smoldering myeloma
patient since 2010, she too wants to make a difference,
and has supported these independent event hosts for the
past seven years. “I have the best job in the world—I get to
support, attend and say thank you at many of the events
around the country,” Brooke says. “We have the most amazing
patients, and the MMRF so appreciates all that they do.”
Outside of the MMRF, Brooke loves spending time with her
18- and 12-year old kids as well as sculpting and painting.
CONFERENCE ROUNDUP
59 TH American Society of Hematology Annual Meeting
December 9 – 12, 2017 — Atlanta, Georgia
The world’s largest professional society of clinical and scientists working to
conquer blood diseases will meet in Atlanta to present the latest hematology
research. As the most influential minds in multiple myeloma gather for ASH, the
MMRF will meet with researchers from around the globe to discuss exciting
CoMMpass results and to share new and ongoing research efforts to mine
the growing CoMMpass data set for new insights. In addition, our own Senior
VP of Research, Dr. Daniel Auclair, PhD, will make an oral presentation on the
MMRF’s Precision Medicine study—the Molecular Profiling Protocol (see pg. 7
for more info). This type of trial is the first of its kind in myeloma. To learn more
about the data presented this year, please see pages 4 and 5 of this issue.
For live updates from this year’s meeting, visit TheMMRF.org/ASH.
ACCEL E RATO R • W I N T E R 2017
17
CHRIS
WILLIAMS
BROOKE
ROBERTS