Target ALS Achieves Extraordinary $250 Million Capital Campaign Goal to Accelerate ALS Research

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May 07, 2024, 09:00 ET

NEW YORK, May 7, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Target ALS is thrilled to announce that it has reached its $250 million capital campaign goal, spearheaded by visionary founder, Dan Doctoroff.

After his diagnosis with ALS in late 2021, Dan focused his efforts on scaling up Target ALS. Leveraging his deep relationships and fundraising talents, and the remarkable achievements Target ALS has realized since its inception in 2010, Dan committed to raising $250 million to dramatically increase investment in ALS at a critical moment in time.

"This is deeply personal for me given my family history; my dad and my uncle died from ALS," says Dan, "but my mission is to save the one in 400 people who will die of this disease. Over the past eleven years, we have developed a unique collaborative model to advance ALS research, and the $250 million – and I'm not stopping until I can't do it anymore – will advance discovery dramatically."

Equipped with a comprehensive ALS research investment strategy developed by individuals with extensive expertise in ALS, other neurodegenerative diseases, scientific research, and drug discovery, as well as those who have been personally affected by the disease, Dan and the Target ALS team set out to raise awareness and funds to accelerate ALS research. Target ALS is profoundly grateful for everyone who supported the campaign and committed to changing the lives of those living with ALS and their loved ones.

Over the next 8 years, the $250 million will be thoughtfully invested across Target ALS' Seven Pillars, focused on expanding both the breadth and depth of the Target ALS Innovation Ecosystem. The strategy aims to fuel scientific breakthroughs, driving the development of effective biomarkers and treatments for ALS.

Pillar 1: Diversification and expansion of talent to attract new ideas and technologies to be applied to ALS by the emerging generation of scientists and clinicians
Pillar 2: Maintenance and expansion of Scientific Core Facilities to lower barriers to work on ALS by providing expedited no-strings-attached access to research tools and resources worldwide
Pillar 3: Applying the Target ALS model to related diseases that share common genetic causes and underlying disease biology to expand the field of experts working on ALS and open new avenues of study
Pillar 4: Discovery and development of new therapeutic targets by fostering collaboration between academic scientists with deep understanding of disease biology and industry partners with drug discovery expertise
Pillar 5: Discovery and development of toolkit of biomarkers to shorten time to diagnosis, track disease evolution, and evaluate treatment, leading to more efficient clinical trials
Pillar 6: Treatment of ultra-rare forms of ALS to gain insights into specific disease-causing targets that could have broader applications in ALS and beyond
Pillar 7: Prudent growth of Target ALS capacity to expand expertise and scale up the work needed to defeat ALS

To learn more about each pillar and how they are designed to advance ALS research, please click here.

This achievement marks an inflection point in the history of ALS research and Target ALS, underscoring an incredible opportunity to drive tangible progress for the ALS community. "The true achievement is not the fundraising itself, but what we will be able to accomplish with the resources entrusted to us. We take this opportunity as a responsibility to help build a world where everyone with ALS lives, and we won't stop until we realize this vision," says Manish Raisinghani, M.B.B.S., Ph.D., President and CEO of Target ALS.

About Target ALS
Target ALS is a 501(c)(3) medical research foundation breaking down barriers to accelerate research for Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) and realize a world where everyone with ALS lives. Founded in 2013 by former New York City deputy mayor Dan Doctoroff — who lost both his father and uncle to ALS and was himself diagnosed in 2021 – Target ALS has transformed ALS research through its landmark Innovation Ecosystem model. The organization has fostered unprecedented collaborations between academia and the pharma and biotech industry, lowered barriers to access to critical research tools, and become a hub of communication and networking for the worldwide scientific community, resulting in the launch of seven clinical trials and dozens of drug discovery programs over the last decade. For more information and to get involved, visit www.targetals.org.

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SOURCE Target ALS