Each year, thanks to the fundraising efforts of the Tour de Pier community, our three cancer charities are able to provide crucial support for patients and fund groundbreaking research. As we gear up for an epic 2024 ride, we want to look back at 2023 and highlight the progress each charity was able to make because of your fundraising and generosity. We can’t wait to see what we can accomplish together in 2024!

The Hirshberg Foundation

In 2023, the Hirshberg Foundation was able to fund 8 new individual & collaborative Seed Grants, collectively awarding 120 projects to date. The Seed Grant program continues to produce results and past Seed Grant recipients presented at conferences around the globe in 2023. As a long-time sponsor of the American Pancreatic Association (APA) Meeting, their 2023 opening symposium addressed the role of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in diagnosing, treating and advancing pancreatic cancer research. At the end of last year, the Agi Hirshberg UCLA Center for Pancreatic Diseases moved to a beautiful new space on the UCLA campus that offers patients and loved ones world-class integrative care in one convenient location.

Through direct patient interactions, in 2023 the Hirshberg Foundation provided invaluable support services to over 200 newly diagnosed patients and their families. Their Patient & Family Webinars and Symposium videos help pancreatic cancer patients & caregivers learn from top medical professionals, share their stories and connect with one another. The Hirshberg Foundation is proud to partner with the National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN) to develop extensive guidelines on care options, treatment protocols, and expert recommendations, all made available in their latest Guidelines book.

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The Uncle Kory Foundation

In 2023, the Uncle Kory Foundation (UKF) funded $200,000 to their brain cancer Seed Grant Program, $150,000 in Collaborative Grants and $100,000 in second year Renewal Seed Grants. They also contributed $100,000 to a program that is near and dear to the Tour de Pier community and the South Bay, the Fight Like the Averys Grant (FLAG) which supports pediatric brain cancer research programs. UKF was also able to provide $10,000 in Medical Student Grants at UCLA and Duke University.

Thanks to the support from the Tour de Pier, as of January 2024, UKF has awarded $3,650,000 in grants to 61 projects focused on finding better treatments for adult and pediatric brain cancer. UKF research grants have led to over $2.2 million in additional funding from the National Institute of Health and other funding opportunities. Together, we have brain cancer surrounded.

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Cancer Support Community Redondo Beach

CSC South Bay provides hope, education, and support to cancer patients, survivors, and their loved ones completely free of charge. CSC South Bay offers 200 programs per month (both in-person and virtually) which include support groups led by licensed mental health professionals, healthy lifestyle classes, educational workshops, counseling, and Kids Community programs.

In 2023, thanks in part to the support from the Tour de Pier, CSC South Bay served 1,950 individuals through 755 support groups. Their 572 Healthy Lifestyle Classes include restorative yoga, Tai Chi, meditation, sound bowl healing, and walking groups to provide healing and emotional wellness. 130 educational workshops covered topics from nutrition to relaxation techniques to caregiver support. They provided 464 no-cost counseling sessions and 2023 saw an expansion to 364 new participants and an 80% increase in Kids Community attendance. CSC South Bay was recognized for their great work with the 2023 Daily Breeze Award for the Southbay’s Best Nonprofit Organization.

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It is thanks to you that our three charities have been able to continue their important work. Our research and patient programs are made possible because of your participation, fundraising and generosity. We look forward to seeing you at the 2024 Tour de Pier – let’s continue to make a difference for our cancer community!

The Sahin-Toth Laboratory remains an important part of the Hirshberg Foundation’s research program and is central to our efforts on UCLA’s campus. Led by our Scientific Advisory Board Chair, Dr. Miklos Sahin-Toth, his lab is focused on hereditary chronic pancreatitis, a major risk factor for pancreatic cancer. Dr. Sahin-Toth’s work is in partnership with Dr. Guido Eibl in our Translational Laboratory. Their two teams are committed to better understanding genetics, obesity, diet, and inflammation and how they contribute to pancreatic cancer acceleration.

Dr. Sahin-Toth and his team continue to contribute to prestigious journals, participate in conferences across the globe, and secure funding from the NIH. We eagerly await more updates from Dr. Sahin-Toth and his research group in the future.

Publications from the Sahin-Toth Laboratory in 2023

1. Modelling chronic pancreatitis as a complex genetic disease in mice. Gut 2023, 72:409-410. PMC9666703.

Jancsó Z, Demcsák A, Sahin-Tóth M.

The final published form of a remarkable paper from 2022. Chronic pancreatitis is a complex genetic disease, and patients often carry multiple genetic variants. Here we crossed mouse strains with different pancreatitis-associated gene variants to study their combined effect. Mice with single genetic changes showed no pancreas disease; however, mice with both gene variants developed severe chronic pancreatitis. Gut is a preeminent journal in gastroenterological sciences.

2. Trypsin activity in secretagogue-induced murine pancreatitis is solely elicited by cathepsin B and does not mediate key pathologic responses. Gastroenterology 2023, 164:684-687. PMC10441611.

Geisz A, Tran T, Orekhova A, Sahin-Tóth M.

Our flagship paper of 2023! Here we demonstrated that trypsin activity generated by cathepsin B during the early phase of pancreatitis is a marker rather than a driver of the disease. One important implication is that cathepsin B should not be considered as a therapeutic target in pancreatitis. Gastroenterology is the official journal of the American Gastroenterological Association (AGA), and the most prominent US publication in the gastroenterological sciences.

3. No evidence for the benefit of PPIs in the treatment of acute pancreatitis: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Scientific Reports 2023, 13:2791. PMC9935541.

Horváth IL, Bunduc S, Hankó B, Kleiner D, Demcsák A, Szabó B, Hegyi P, Csupor D.

Alexandra Demcsak (2022 Seed Grant recipient) contributed to this clinical paper showing that acid-reducer PPIs have no therapeutic benefit in acute pancreatitis. The Scientific Reports is an open-access journal publishing original research from all areas of life sciences. It is part of the prestigious Nature Research journal family.

4. Mouse model of PRSS1 p.R122H-related hereditary pancreatitis highlights context-dependent effect of autolysis-site mutation. Pancreatology 2023, 23:131-142. PMC10492521.

Jancsó Z, Morales Granda NC, Demcsák A, Sahin-Tóth M.

Modeling the pathogenic effect of the p.R122H cationic trypsinogen mutation in mice has been a challenge since its discovery in 1996. Here we clarify why this mutation causes pancreatitis in humans but not in mice. Pancreatology is the official journal of the International Association of Pancreatology and the European Pancreatic Club.

5. Substrate specificity of human chymotrypsin-like protease (CTRL) characterized by phage display-selected small-protein inhibitors. Pancreatology 2023, 23:742-749. PMC10528761.

Németh BZ, Nagy ZA, Kiss B, Gellén G, Schlosser G, Demcsák A, Geisz A, Hegyi E, Sahin-Tóth M*, Pál G*. *contributed equally.

The most recent chapter of our long-running collaborative work with the Pál laboratory aimed at the characterization of the substrate specificity of human pancreatic chymotrypsins and elastases. It is hard to believe, but we published the first joint paper on this problem in 2011. Pancreatology is the official journal of the International Association of Pancreatology and the European Pancreatic Club.

6. Risk of chronic pancreatitis in carriers of the c.180C>T (p.Gly60=) CTRC variant: case-control studies and meta-analysis. Pancreatology 2023, 23:481-490. PMC10586708.

Berke G*, Beer S*, Gede N, Takáts A, Szentesi A, Hegyi P, Rosendahl J, Sahin-Tóth M*, Németh BC*, Hegyi E*. *contributed equally.

This important addition to the literature on pancreatitis genetics provides a quantitative assessment of the effect of a common chymotrypsin C (CTRC) variant on the risk of chronic pancreatitis. Pancreatology is the official journal of the International Association of Pancreatology and the European Pancreatic Club.

7. CFTR p.F508del mutation carrier status is not associated with biliary acute pancreatitis. Pancreas 2023, 52:e256-e257.

Martonosi ÁR, Németh BC, Párniczky A, Vincze Á, Szentesi A, Erőss B, Sahin-Tóth M, Hegyi P, Hegyi E.

An intriguing hypothesis that turned out to be wrong. The risk of biliary pancreatitis is not increased by CFTR mutations. Pancreas is the official journal of the American Pancreatic Association.

8. Functional predictors of pathogenicity of missense CPA1 variants in chronic pancreatitis. Gut 2023

Sándor M, Sahin-Tóth M.

Another highlight of our 2023 publications! After functionally characterizing 50 carboxypeptidase A1 (CPA1) mutations, we found, to our surprise, that very few cause chronic pancreatitis and despite measurable functional defects, most CPA1 mutations are benign. Gut is a preeminent journal in the gastroenterological sciences.

The Ronald S. Hirshberg Translational Pancreatic Cancer Research Laboratory is a cornerstone of our research program, the first at UCLA to be solely dedicated to investigating the driving forces and biology of pancreatic cancer. Dr. Guido Eibl’s research program is consistently funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and continues to deepen our understanding of the intricate ways that diet, obesity and inflammation can accelerate tumor development.

We applaud Dr. Eibl and his lab and look forward to sharing more of the progress being made through their projects.

Publications from the Translational Laboratory in 2023

Low dose combination treatment with metformin and simvastatin inhibits obesity-promoted pancreatic cancer development in male KrasG12D mice. Scientific Reports 2023;13(1):16144 (PMCID: PMC10522691) (* dual first authorship)
Y.Teper*, L.Ye*, R.T.Waldron, A.Lugea, X.Sun, J.Sinnett-Smith, O.J.Hines, S.J.Pandol, E.Rozengurt, G.Eibl.

This original research paper reported that a combination of low dose simvastatin and low dose metformin inhibited pancreatic cancer development in a mouse model. This effect was only seen in male mice. Our results may be of translational importance for future clinical trials testing the efficacy of metformin and simvastatin in preventing pancreatic cancer progression in humans. The Scientific Reports is an open-access journal publishing original research from all areas of life sciences. It is part of the prestigious Nature Research journal family.

Presentations in 2023

American Pancreatic Association
San Diego, CA, November 15-18, 2023

“Linking pancreatitis, oxidative stress, and lipid metabolism in pancreatic cancer progression: a new avenue to early intervention.”
L.Antonucci, A.Duran, I.Cobo, K.Watari, C.Nicoletti, S.Nandi, L.Caputo, G.Eibl, A.M.Lowy, G.Hatzivassiliou, P.Tamayo, Y.Wu, R.Sears, C.Glass, D.Scott, L.Alexandrov, P.Puri, D.Dawson, Y.Hu, M.Diaz-Meco, J.Moscat, M.Karin

“Low dosage combination treatment with metformin and simvastatin inhibits obesity promoted pancreatic cancer development in male KrasG12D mice.” 
Y.Teper, L.Ye, R.Waldron, A.Lugea, X.Sun, J.Sinnett-Smith, J.Hines, S.Pandol, E.Rozengurt, G.Eibl

“Combined Simvastatin and Metformin Treatment Targets Growth and Fibroinflammatory Responses in Pancreatic Stellate Cells.”
R.Waldron, L.Huo, E.Rozengurt, G.Eibl, S.Pandol, A.Lugea

The Hirshberg Foundation is happy to announce Eden Brauer, PhD, RN will be joining us at the 18th Annual Symposium on Pancreatic Cancer to discuss Survivorship in Pancreatic Cancer.

This presentation will provide an overview of cancer survivorship and new trends and directions in cancer survivorship care. We will also discuss the unique physical, psychosocial, and spiritual aspects of survivorship experiences of patients and families in the context of pancreatic cancer, and how this can inform comprehensive supportive care.

Eden Brauer is an Assistant Professor at the UCLA School of Nursing and a member of the Cancer Control and Survivorship Program of the UCLA Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center (JCCC). As a nurse-scientist, Dr. Brauer’s research focuses on cancer care delivery, with specific emphasis on integrating patient-reported outcomes, supportive/ palliative care, and long-term survivorship care in various clinical models and contexts. Dr. Brauer has an active program of research and serves as PI on multiple projects focused on the symptom and functional experiences of cancer survivors and system-level approaches to implementing survivorship care in routine clinical settings. Prior to joining the faculty, Dr. Brauer trained as a Postdoctoral Fellow at the UCLA Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center and as a Predoctoral Fellow at City of Hope. She received her baccalaureate degree from Columbia University and earned both her Master of Science in Nursing (MSN) and Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) from UCLA.

We are thrilled to have Eden Brauer, PhD, RN present Survivorship in Pancreatic Cancer at the 18th Annual Symposium.

Held in collaboration with the UCLA Agi Hirshberg Center for Pancreatic Diseases at the Luskin Conference Center
April 13, 2024
8:30 am – 3:00 pm

Schedule

The Hirshberg Foundation is happy to announce Jenny Tran, PhD will be joining us at the 18th Annual Symposium on Pancreatic Cancer to moderate the uplifting and informative panel discussion portion of our event.

We are honored, each year, to share the stories of pancreatic cancer patients and caregivers. These honest and personal discussions give us all perspective, insight, and sensitivity to the journey of both patients and loved ones once someone in the family is diagnosed with pancreatic cancer.

Dr. Jenny Tran will join us for another consecutive year as our panel moderator to facilitate a meaningful discussion featuring two patients and two caregivers impacted by pancreatic cancer. Attendees will have the honor of hearing personal stories, perspectives, and insights from survivors. They will answer questions about how they navigated their diagnosis, what they wished they knew then, and what they want you to know now.

Dr. Jenny Tran is currently a Licensed Psychologist at Simms Mann UCLA Center for Integrative Oncology. She provides clinical care for patients and family members touched by cancer, centered around the emotional, psychological, social, and spiritual impacts of cancer.

Dr. Tran balances an integration of evidence-based interventions to strengthen coping skills and improve management of cancer-related distress, with a culturally informed, human-centered approach to support processing of themes that come up in one’s unique illness experience. She offers cancer-focused individual counseling, caregiver support, family consultation, and assessment, in addition to interdisciplinary collaboration with medical providers. Additionally, Dr. Tran is involved in program development of services at the Simms Mann Center, including a monthly online orientation for patients coping with an Advanced GI Cancer to learn about Supportive Care Services recommended throughout their cancer care. She recently created an integrative health workshop sponsored by Roots and Wings for the Chinese community of patients in the San Gabriel Valley coping with metastatic breast cancer, which included topics presented by a multidisciplinary speaker panel on symptom management, survivorship nutrition, and cancer-related anxiety.

Dr. Tran earned both her master’s degree and PhD in Clinical Psychology with an emphasis in Health Psychology at California School of Professional Psychology with Alliant International University in Los Angeles. Her personal experience as a caregiver for her late father influenced the pursuit of her doctoral dissertation which explored how cultural values and coping styles impact the quality of life in family caregivers of older adults living with a chronic illness. She completed her full-time APA-accredited internship at VA St. Louis Health Care System and returned to the Simms Mann UCLA Center for Integrative Oncology to complete a two-year postdoctoral fellowship in Psycho-Oncology.

Her clinical experience includes treatment of OCD and anxiety-related disorders; administration of cognitive assessments for older adults; provision of individual and group support for veterans around adjustment to chronic illness, injury, and disability, health promotion and disease prevention; and counseling for patients and loved ones touched by cancer through the trajectory of care.

We are eager to have Jenny Tran, PhD joining us to moderate the Panel Discussion: Perspectives from Survivors and Caregivers at the 18th Annual Symposium.