CHICAGO – June 1, 2007 – GlaxoSmithKline Oncology (GSK), in support of The American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) and The ASCO Foundation, proudly announce today the creation of the Gianni Bonadonna Breast Cancer Award and Fellowship as a tribute to Dr. Bonadonna’s outstanding contributions in the field of cancer research. The annual Award and Fellowship will acknowledge clinical or translational researchers of merit in the field of breast cancer and enable emerging investigators to undertake new patient-oriented research under the mentorship of the awardees. The new Award, which is supported by a multi-year grant in excess of one million dollars from GSK, will be unveiled at the ASCO Annual Meeting in Chicago and the first awardee will be announced at the 2007 ASCO Breast Cancer Symposium in September.
Dr. Gianni Bonadonna, Chair for the Committee on Prospective Clinical Trials at the Istituto Nazionale Tumori in Milan, Italy, is one of the most important figures in modern-day medical oncology. His significant achievements during a long esteemed career include his ground-breaking research in adjuvant treatment of breast cancer and the development of the combination chemotherapy regimen that remains the gold-standard treatment for Hodgkin’s disease today.
“GSK is delighted and privileged to support ASCO and The ASCO Foundation on this new award that honors the legacy of one of the giants of medical oncology,” said Paolo Paoletti, MD, Senior Vice President of the Oncology Medicine Development Center at GlaxoSmithKline. “Dr. Bonadonna is an exceptional scientist, clinician and humanitarian. His revolutionary and courageous approaches to early stage cancer research opened up new avenues for the treatment of breast cancer, resulting in improved standards of care and longer lives for thousands of patients. His tangible impact on the progress we have made in cancer research continues to be felt today.”
About the Gianni Bonadonna Breast Cancer Award and Fellowship ‘The Gianni Bonadonna Breast Cancer Award and Lecture’, a $10,000 award, will be presented annually to a researcher of merit in the field of breast cancer. The award will be accompanied by a Fellowship grant, presented to an early-career breast cancer researcher at the institution with which the awardee is affiliated. ‘The Gianni Bonadonna Breast Cancer Research Fellowship’ will consist of a one-year grant of at least $50,000 in support of the fellow’s research.
In 1972 Bonadonna designed a new combination chemotherapy regimen for Hodgkin’s disease known as ABVD (adriamycin, bleomycin, vinblastine and dacarbazine) that proved to be superior to the existing standard of care at the time (the MOPP regimen). In 1973 he designed and conducted the first randomized study to test the activity of the CMF (cyclophosphamide, methotrexate and fluorouracil) combination chemotherapy as an adjuvant treatment in node-positive operable breast cancer. Adjuvant CMF proved to be effective in significantly reducing the risk of disease recurrence and death over a prolonged period of time (30 years).
“Without Gianni Bonadonna’s initial work in demonstrating the activity of chemotherapy, we would not be where we are today in terms of the management and the cure of breast cancer,” said Gabriel Hortobagyi, president of ASCO. “Bonadonna’s legacy is one of focus, persistence, passion, innovation and creativity. That’s a tall order for most new members of our profession but clearly is a combination of attributes that make Dr. Gianni Bonadonna a role model for oncology professionals of the future.”
“I have always tried to instil in my colleagues and students that it is most important to treat the human being and not just the disease. I am grateful to ASCO and GSK for this honor and I hope this Award symbolizes and sends that message to oncology professionals of today and the future,” said Dr. Bonadonna.
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