From the Jeff Gordon Foundation:
Jeff Gordon Children’s Foundation Announces First Global Initiative in Rwanda With Partner Organizations Partners In Health – Dana Farber Cancer Institute
Charlotte, N.C. (May 24, 2011) – Jeff Gordon alongside Partners In Health representatives, Dr. Larry Shulman and Dr. Sara Stulac gathered friends and supporters on Wednesday evening to announce their new partnership which was established to bring accessible cancer treatment to children of Rwanda. The Jeff Gordon Children’s Foundation has committed to raise $1.5 million dollars, over the course of three years, to participate in the development and implementation of proper protocols for pediatric cancer patients.
Rwanda remains Africa’s most densely populated country, and its estimated population of 10 million is expected to double within the next 10 years. Through the funding of the Jeff Gordon Children’s Foundation, Partners In Health – Dana Farber Cancer Institute will develop a comprehensive program to address all components of cancer: prevention, diagnosis, chemo and radiation therapies, surgery and survivor follow-up care for children faced with cancer.
“Childhood cancer occurs randomly, regularly and excludes no ethnicity, socioeconomic class or geographic region and that is why it is imperative we reach beyond our borders and bring access to treatment to countries like Rwanda. Partners In Health and the Jeff Gordon Children’s Foundation share a mutual desire to reach the day when no child faces the uncertainties of cancer, with our new partnership we are one step closer,” said Gordon.
The evening concluded with Gordon, Dr. Larry Shulman and Dr. Sara Stulac engaging guests into the newly launched initiative. They answered questions, shared first-hand stories of their personal experiences and showed video footage of rural Rwanda demonstrating the urgent need for pediatric medical care.
Together in partnership, the Jeff Gordon Children’s Foundation and Partners In Health – Dana Farber Cancer Institute are committed to establish and execute a proper infrastructure for oncological treatment and care.
About Jeff Gordon Children’s Foundation
The Jeff Gordon Children’s Foundation was established as a non-profit 501 (c)(3) organization in 1999 by the four-time NASCAR Cup Series champion. The Foundation supports children battling pediatric cancer by funding programs that improve patients’ quality of life, treatment programs that increase survivorship and pediatric medical research dedicated to finding a cure. In addition, the foundation also supports the Jeff Gordon Children’s Hospital in Concord, NC. For more information visit www.jeffgordonchildrensfoundation.org
About Partners In Health
Partners In Health (PIH) works in 12 countries around the world to provide quality health care to people and communities devastated by joint burdens of poverty and disease. PIH has been providing vital health care services in Haiti for more than 20 years and is the largest health care provider in the country, working with the Haitian Ministry of Health to deliver comprehensive health care services to a catchment area of 1.2 million across the Central Plateau and the Lower Artibonite Valley. PIH had 4,400 staff in Haiti before the January 12 earthquake. Visit www.pih.org for more information.
About Dana Farber Cancer Institute
Dana-Farber Cancer Institute (www.dana-farber.org) is a principal teaching affiliate of the Harvard Medical School and is among the leading cancer research and care centers in the United States. It is a founding member of the Dana-Farber/Harvard Cancer Center (DF/HCC), designated a comprehensive cancer center by the National Cancer Institute.
About Larry Shulman
Dr. Lawrence Shulman is Chief Medical Officer at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, where he is also Chief of the Division of General Oncology and Senior Vice-President for Medical Affairs. He is a specialist in the treatment of patients with breast cancer, and principal investigator on multiple national and international clinical trials. Together with Paul Farmer, Sara Stulac, Joia Mukherjee, and other clinicians, he has helped to lead Partners In Health’s work in cancer care. He co-chairs the Global Task Force on Cancer Care and Control in the Developing World.
About Sara Stulac
Pediatrician Dr. Sara Stulac has recently joined Partners In Health’s medical directorate to lead cross-site work in quality of pediatric care. She has just returned to the U.S. from Rwanda, where she lived for six years and helped to build Partners In Health’s program there, most recently as the Clinical Director. Sara is an Instructor in Medicine in the Division of Global Health Equity at Brigham and Women’s Hospital, and a Research Associate in Medicine at Harvard Medical School.
Date: 5/24/2011