Let's Catch Up
Here we are, it's already April and we've been quite busy these past few months.
We recently awarded an $85,000 grant to Indiana University School of Medicine researcher Brandon Gufford, PharmD., PhD.
Dr. Gufford's team, in collaboration with researchers at the University of Colorado, is investigating ways to make it easier and safer for high-risk individuals to take Tenofovir, the drug used in Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis or PrEP, a medication used to prevent HIV. You can read more about it here.
Your dollars at work
In the meantime, we also heard from former grant recipient, Dr. Sahera Dirajlal-Fargo, about how she was able to parlay our funding into success. As you may know, for many researchers, a grant from The Campbell Foundation is a launching point, allowing them to gather enough data to seek further funding.
We are so happy to report that Dr. Dirajlal-Fargo, a physician in the Division of Pediatric Infectious Diseases and Rheumatology at University Hospitals Rainbow Babies & Children's Hospital in Cleveland, Ohio is one such success story.
In August 2015, we awarded her a $48,900 grant to study the impact of inflammation in the lining of blood vessels on young patients with HIV. Dr. Dirajlal-Fargo recently informed us that, as a result of her Campbell Foundation funded-research, she not only is submitting her data to the International Pediatric HIV Conference as part of IAS in Paris this summer, but she also has received an NIH K23 award to study pediatric cardiovascular disease in HIV-infected Ugandan children. A K23 award is given to support the career development of individuals with a clinical doctoral degree who have made a commitment to focus their research endeavors on patient-oriented research.
Congratulations to Dr. Dirajlal-Fargo!
Want to know how you can help find a cure?
By now, you likely have read about proposed federal spending cuts that could greatly impact funding for HIV/AIDS research.
The U.S. President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) and HIV/AIDS programs, as well as to the National Institutes of Health, face significant cuts. Now, more than ever, organizations such as The Campbell Foundation are needed to help fill the hole being left in funding cure research.
The money we give goes directly to researchers in the trenches who not only are working to find a cure, but also are researching ways to improve the lives of those already living with HIV/AIDS. If you would like to donate, click here.
AIDS Walk 2017
Last month, The Campbell Foundation's Executive Director, Ken Rapkin, joined Broward House's AIDS Walk team to take part in the Florida AIDS Walk and Music Festival on Fort Lauderdale Beach.
With federal cuts to HIV/AIDS research funding looming large, it's important that we all work together, not only to find a cure, but to help those who are directly impacted by HIV/AIDS. Broward House raised more than $28,000, exceeding it's goal of $20,000. We are proud to be a supporter of this wonderful organization.