Stand Up to Cancer Announces More Than $80 Million Pledged So Far in Connection With September 10 Fundraising Special

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Sep 15, 2010, 06:00 ET

Entertainment Industry, Corporate and Organizational Donors, Philanthropists, Volunteer Teams and the General Public Contributed Funds for Collaborative Cancer Research Done by Dream Teams & Innovative Young Scientists

Stand Up To Cancer Telecast is Available Online at www.su2c.org/2010show

Donations can be made online at www.su2c.org and at 1-888-90-STAND (78263)

LOS ANGELES, Sept. 15 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Stand Up To Cancer today announced that in connection with the September 10, 2010, simultaneous commercial-free telecast, more than $80 million has been pledged so far to accelerate ground-breaking research and bring new treatments to patients as quickly as possible. The telecast is available online at www.su2c.org/2010show. Donations can continue to be made online at www.su2c.org and at 1-888-90-STAND (78263).

Stand Up To Cancer returned to primetime TV on September 10, at 8PM EST & PST / 7PM CT. The one-hour fundraising event, hosted by network news anchors Katie Couric, Diane Sawyer, and Brian Williams, was simulcast live and commercial-free on ABC, CBS, FOX, NBC, Bio, Current TV, Discovery Health, E!, G4, HBO, HBO Latino, MLB Network, mun2, Showtime, Smithsonian Channel, The Style Network, TV One and VH1.

A pre-show promotion hosted by Cat Deeley (FOX's So You Think You Can Dance), and an After Hours show were featured on numerous online portals and destination sites, which all also streamed the one-hour special online over the weekend: ABC, ABC News, AOL, Bing, CBS, CBS News, Discovery Health, E! Online, FOX, G4, Huffington Post, Hulu, Livestream, MLB Network, MSN, mun2, NBC, Style Network, TV Guide, TV One, Ustream, VEVO, VH1, Wonderwall.MSN.com, omg.yahoo.com and YouTube.

Nielson reports that the September 10th SU2C telecast was viewed by an audience of 18.3 million, up 15% from the inaugural telecast that took place on September 5, 2008.

"From individuals all over the country who called or went online to contribute; to corporations, organizations, philanthropists and foundations who support this work, to the networks and cable channels who donated airtime, to the celebrities who volunteered to participate -- we're building an incredible grassroots movement. We all feel that cancer has taken too much from us, and are rallying to help the teams of scientists working to end this disease. Particularly in these challenging economic times, the support has been phenomenal, and we are profoundly grateful for it," said Lisa Paulsen, President & CEO of the Entertainment Industry Foundation, the 501(c)(3) charitable organization for the television and film business that serves as the fiduciary behind Stand Up To Cancer.

SU2C was formally launched on May 27, 2008, to raise funds for groundbreaking translational research to accelerate the delivery of new therapies to patients, getting them from the "bench to the bedside" as quickly as possible. SU2C brings together scientists from different disciplines across various institutions to work collaboratively -- rather than competitively -- at a critical time in the field of cancer research when collaboration can be synergistic.

Major League Baseball was the founding donor to contribute to Stand Up To Cancer, making an initial $10 million pledge in 2008, and announcing an additional one for $20 million during the Sept 10 broadcast, bringing the total of the MLB donation to more than $30 million. Via taped message, President Barack Obama thanked MLB Commissioner Allan "Bud" Selig and SU2C and noted "I share your passion for conquering this disease once and for all." Stand Up To Cancer awarded their first named Innovative Research Grant on behalf of Allan H. "Bud" Selig and his wife Suzanne L. Selig.

Other existing major SU2C contributors include Sidney Kimmel, the country's largest individual supporter of cancer research, Amgen, Bloomberg Philanthropies, GlaxoSmithKline and Wallis Annenberg & The Annenberg Foundation. Cancer Treatment Centers of America, the Gateway for Cancer Research Foundation and Comcast recently joined that group. ABC2, MasterCard, Virgin America, Brains on Bikes, Milken Family Foundation, Sony Computer Entertainment America and The Island Def Jam Music Group are among SU2C's many other supporters.

The SU2C founding members include Katie Couric; Laura Ziskin, executive producer of the Sept. 5, 2008, and Sept. 10, 2010 broadcasts, who is a cancer survivor; Sherry Lansing, chairperson of the Entertainment Industry Foundation's Board of Directors and founder of the Sherry Lansing Foundation; EIF President and CEO Lisa Paulsen; EIF Senior Vice President Kathleen Lobb; Rusty Robertson and Sue Schwartz of the Robertson Schwartz Agency; nonprofit executive Ellen Ziffren; and Noreen Fraser, founder of the Noreen Fraser Foundation (NFF) and a cancer survivor.

The 2010 SU2C special was dedicated to the nearly 13 million U.S. cancer survivors and illustrated how the groundbreaking research funded by SU2C can change the tide in the fight against the disease. In addition to updates provided on the work of the five SU2C Dream Teams, the evening featured performances from legendary recording artists and a live phone bank with more than 80 stars answering calls from viewers.

"In addition to the remarkable array of celebrities, there were many other aspects of the show that were incredible highlights for all of us involved in producing it," said Laura Ziskin, SU2C co-founder, executive producer of the Sept. 10 broadcast, and a cancer survivor. "So many people from all across the country shared with us how they've been affected by cancer," noted Ziskin. "We were delighted to be able to honor them by featuring so many survivors, telling some of their stories, and forcefully making the point that you can triumph over cancer. Being able to share tangible progress being made by the SU2C research Dream Teams in their fight against this disease was thrilling, as was introducing the scientists to our viewers. These men and women work 24/7 trying to end cancer, often with very little public recognition, so we were really pleased to have them onstage for the show's close. But make no mistake, cancer is a crisis, a disaster and we must do more urgently."

Sherry Lansing, SU2C co-founder and chairperson of the Entertainment Industry Foundation's Board of Directors and founder of the Sherry Lansing Foundation, added, "The telecast highlighted the scientists who are the true unsung heroes in the battle with cancer, they are the 'rock stars' of science. We were gratified to have the support and participation of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) Director Francis Collins, as well as having him play guitar with Dave Stewart of the Eurythmics and other performers. Hopefully, this will encourage more young people to consider careers in science and cancer research."

"The degree to which donors of all types have embraced supporting SU2C's model of "translational" cancer research done by Dream Teams of scientists is extremely encouraging," said SU2C co-founder Rusty Robertson. "How SU2C's research projects can best benefit patients is always top-of-mind for our investigators, as well as for members of advocacy groups who serve on the Dream Teams with them."

Participants in the SU2C telecast included Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Tatyana Ali, Dave Annable, Christina Applegate, David Archuleta, Lance Armstrong, Hank Azaria, Elizabeth Banks, Kathy Bates, David Boreanaz, Sir Richard Branson, Abigail Breslin, Ann Marie Calhoun, Chiquis, George Clooney, Dr. Francis Collins, Cindy Crawford, Marcia Cross, Tim Daly, Taylor Dayne, Baron Davis, Cat Deeley, Emily Deschanel, Michael Douglas, Fran Drescher, Elizabeth Edwards, Idris Elba, Donald Faison, Sally Field, Derek Fisher, Jennifer Grey, Dr. Sanjay Gupta, Bill Hader, Michael C. Hall, Dorothy Hamill, Mark Harmon, Tony Hawk, Anne Heche, Jon Heder, Marg Helgenberger, Cheryl Hines, Vanessa Hudgens, Randy Jackson, Thomas Jane, Ken Jeong, Rashida Jones, Kathryn Joosten, Minka Kelly, Jaime King, Diane Lane, Dr. Jon LaPook, Eva La Rue, Jay Leno, Zachary Levi, Ray Liotta, Rob Lowe, Seth MacFarlane, Marlee Matlin, Jason and Brandi Maxiell, Dylan McDermott, Tobey McGuire, Shareen Mitchell, Mandy Moore, Olivia Munn, Lisa Niemi, Don Newcombe, Apolo Anton Ohno, Kelly Osbourne, Dr. Mehmet Oz, Gwyneth Paltrow, Jim Parsons, Matt Passmore, Dr. Drew Pinsky, Aubrey Plaza, Dr. Ana Maria Polo, Yarel Ramos, Robin Roberts, Shaun Robinson, Seth Rogen, Adam Sandler, Ryan Seacrest, Kyra Sedgwick, The Simpsons, Will Smith, Brenda Song, Eric Stonestreet, Marcia Strassman, Alison Sweeney, Maura Tierney, Sam Trammell, Gabrielle Union, Nia Vardalos, Sofia Vassilieva, Sofia Vergara, Patrick Warburton, Denzel Washington, Marissa Jaret Winokur, Reese Witherspoon, Dr. Jessica Wu, Aaron Yoo, Renee Zellweger, and Ethan Zohn.

Musical guests included Billie Joe Armstrong of Green Day, Natasha Bedingfield, Neil Diamond, The Edge, Fitz and the Tantrums, Delta Goodrem, Herbie Hancock, Kris Kristofferson, Lady Antebellum, Leona Lewis, Martina McBride, Aaron Neville, Orianthi, Kelly Price, Dave Stewart, Ann Wilson and Nancy Wilson of Heart and Stevie Wonder.

"Survivors from all walks of life -- celebrities, political figures, sports stars, young and old -- participated in a poignant segment called 'Cancer Doesn't Care' illustrating the degree to which cancer touches us all," said SU2C co-founder Sue Schwartz. "One out of three women and one in every two men will be diagnosed in their lifetimes."

"Patrick Swayze's remarks, the first he made publicly about his battle with pancreatic cancer, were the emotional centerpiece of the 2008 show. His widow Lisa Niemi's intro of a Stevie Wonder-led 'Unchained Melody' musical tribute to Patrick -- and many others taken by this disease -- was one of the most moving moments in this year's show," said SU2C co-founder Ellen Ziffren.

"Two-and-a-half-year-old Stand Up To Cancer is a new player in the advocacy community, and it was so heartening to see members of 40+ other groups stand with us, united around a common goal: ending the suffering caused by this terrible disease," said SU2C co-founder Kathleen Lobb.

SU2C's INNOVATIVE RESEARCH MODEL

The American Association for Cancer Research (AACR), SU2C's scientific partner, conducts expert scientific review of the research projects and administers designated funds raised through the initiative under the direction of a Scientific Advisory Committee. Nobel Laureate Phillip A. Sharp, Ph.D., Institute Professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and at the David H. Koch Institute for Integrative Cancer Research at MIT chairs the Committee, which includes highly accomplished physician-scientists and clinical investigators, senior laboratory researchers and patient advocates.

SU2C's next phase in the grant selection process will be to issue a call for proposals for a second round of Innovative Research Grants (IRG). These grants support high-risk and potentially high-reward projects with significant potential for translational application. Each individual IRG recipient receives up to $750,000 over three years. AACR will issue this call on behalf of Stand Up To Cancer within the next six weeks. The current 13 IRG projects, totaling $9.68 million, were announced in December of 2009, and address a wide range of cancer types and organ sites, including lung, ovarian and breast cancers, as well as pediatric cancer, leukemia and lymphomas.

In May of 2009 SU2C announced its first round of three-year Dream Team grants to five multi-institutional, cross disciplinary research teams, totaling $73.6 million. The teams began working in earnest last fall and made their first progress reports during the second quarter of 2010; they were subsequently visited on-site by members of the Scientific Advisory Committee. All five teams have met and/or exceeded their six-month milestones, and the progress -- while early -- is encouraging.

In conjunction with the Sept. 10 broadcast, the AACR and SU2C launched the AACR-SU2C Clinical Trials Finder, a resource for cancer patients and their loved ones to identify clinical trials that may be appropriate for their particular diagnosis, stage and treatment history. Clinical Trials Navigators can be reached toll free at 1-877-769-4829 between the hours of 8:30 a.m. – 6:00 p.m. ET, Monday through Friday.

Every day, cancer kills 1,500 Americans – one person every minute. This year, more than 550,000 Americans and almost 8 million people worldwide will succumb to this vicious disease. With advances in technology and research, scientists are close to pushing cancer from a disease that all too often takes lives to one people largely triumph over.

Stand Up To Cancer's innovative approach to cancer research is designed to eliminate barriers that have traditionally inhibited creativity and collaboration by enabling the best and brightest investigators from leading institutions across the country and the world to work together and accelerate the conquest of cancer.

About the Stand Up To Cancer Initiative

Stand Up To Cancer (SU2C) – a program of the Entertainment Industry Foundation (EIF), a 501(c)(3) charitable organization – raises funds to hasten the pace of groundbreaking translational research that can get new therapies to patients quickly and save lives. In the fall of 2007, a group of women who have been profoundly affected by cancer began working together to marshal the resources of the media and entertainment industries in the fight against it.

SU2C major media partners include AOL, Bonnier Corporation, Conde Nast Media Group, Costco Connections, eBay Inc., Facebook, Hearst Corporation, iTunes, MySpace, Rodale, Inc., Los Angeles Times, Martha Stewart Living, Meredith Corporation, Time Inc., CBS Radio, Twitter, VEVO and YouTube.

About the Entertainment Industry Foundation

Stand Up To Cancer is a program of the Entertainment Industry Foundation (EIF), the 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organization that serves as the collective philanthropy for the television and film businesses. EIF has distributed hundreds of millions of dollars to support programs addressing critical health, education and social issues.

About The American Association for Cancer Research

The American Association for Cancer Research (AACR), which consists of more than 32,000 scientists engaged in the fight against cancer, is Stand Up To Cancer's sole scientific partner. The AACR, the oldest and largest scientific organization in the world focusing on every aspect of high-quality, innovative cancer research from the bench to the bedside, is responsible for administering and managing the grants, and providing scientific oversight in conjunction with the SU2C Scientific Advisory Committee, led by Nobel Laureate Phillip A. Sharp, Ph.D., institute professor at the David H. Koch Institute for Integrative Cancer Research at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

SOURCE Stand Up To Cancer