Since the establishment of the Stefanie Spielman Fund for Breast Cancer Research in 1998, the Spielman family has been clear that they want this philanthropy to not only offer support to patients but radically change how breast cancer is understood.
Among those investments is the Spielman Breast Cancer Cohort and Tissue Bank, established in 2006 to support and promote groundbreaking breast cancer research. Major foundations and government organizations often do not provide financial backing to store tissue samples. Therefore, the Spielman Fund is critical to the formation of a tissue bank and its long-term growth. The work researchers do with the tissue samples leads to opportunities to receive major grant support. Most importantly, their efforts will benefit current and future patients.
“The Spielman Breast Cancer Cohort and Tissue Bank has impacted all phases of cancer care," says Daniel Stover, MD, associate professor in the Department of Internal Medicine and medical oncology lead for the Spielman Breast Cancer Cohort and Tissue Bank. “For example, research done using samples from the tissue bank is now contributing to our understanding of novel diagnostics like ‘liquid biopsy’ or blood-based tests and digital pathology.”
The bank is also supporting research into the individual expression of the HER2 gene, which promotes tumor growth, and specific treatments to counteract its expression that scientists at The Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center – Arthur G. James Cancer Hospital and Richard J. Solove Research Institute (OSUCCC – James) are investigating.
The Spielman Breast Cancer Cohort and Tissue Bank has also supported research that has:
- contributed to identifying new risk markers for breast cancer
- increased our understanding of how treatments work in early phases
- deepened our knowledge of how metastatic or advanced breast cancer responds to treatment therapies • shown the potential side effects of specific treatments and how they might be mitigated
All patients treated for breast cancer at the OSUCCC – James have the opportunity to donate tissue. The bank stores leftover tissue and blood gathered during medical procedures, so patients who consent to participate do not undergo separate procedures. All samples are coded to preserve patient anonymity. Researchers must apply to access samples, and the approval process is designed to foster outcomes of the greatest scientific significance. “These proposals are evaluated for scientific merit — since these are precious samples — but we also try to make access as straightforward as possible to help move research forward,” says Dr. Stover.
Looking toward the future of the Spielman Breast Cancer Cohort and Tissue Bank, Dr. Stover says he and colleagues are continuing to promote revolutionary work.
“We are focusing on expanding areas of particular need and interest for researchers, on breast cancer types that are under-represented in existing studies, and on unique and harder-to-treat subtypes,” he says. “We are making advances that we see as the future of breast cancer care, but also advances that we hadn’t considered before”