Message From the Chairman

Dear Friends,

When I first learned that I had melanoma, I tried to find as much information as possible about this disease, and what I found was not encouraging.  I was Stage III, and the statistics said that less than half of all Stage III patients live more than 5 years after diagnosis.  Even the doctors admitted that the drugs they had to offer me were unproven and  ineffective.  

In the more than 10 years since I was diagnosed things haven’t changed a lot.  Melanoma strikes men and women across the full spectrum of our society.  The incidence of this disease is increasing faster than any other cancer.  The last time a drug was approved for treating melanoma was over a decade ago, and 85% plus of patients who take that drug derive no benefit from it.  Despite this, melanoma remains woefully underfunded when compared to other cancers.  

The current situation means that patient education and support are critically important, and the Melanoma Research Foundation (MRF) is a leader in offering those services to patients.  We organize symposia, at which leading physicians and scientists provide information about the latest and best treatment options.  Through a series of teleconferences we provide additional, topical programs that are available to people across the country.  And, our online patient community is a lively interactive forum through which patients and caregivers can share practical advice and emotional support.

Equally important is organizing a powerful coalition of advocates who can call on our elected officials to focus more resources on this cancer.  We need legislation to help teenagers understand the risk of frequenting tanning salons.  We need more public health support in communicating the importance of paying attention to suspicious spots on the skin.  We need more federal dollars committed to melanoma research.  These things won’t happen unless we who are melanoma patients band together to demand they happen.

MRF is committed to education and advocacy, but the heart and soul of our work is research.  Only through research can we begin to understand  this disease, and use that understanding to develop new treatments.  Over the years, MRF has funded millions of dollars in research, leading to significant breakthrough discoveries in this field.  

Now we are on the cusp of seeing that research pay off.  The work of MRF and of many others has led us to a turning point in the fight against melanoma.  Over the past five years researchers have made tremendous strides in understanding what causes this cancer.  This has opened the door to new potential therapeutic approaches.  MRF has now banded together a powerful coalition of doctors and scientists who will conduct unique trials not being performed anywhere else.  This effort will help accelerate the time when melanoma will be a manageable—or even curable—disease.  

To make this happen, we need your help now more than ever before.  We need you to reach out to others who have been affected by melanoma and build a stronger community.  We need you to join your voice with ours in an advocacy effort so we can bring about change.  And we need your financial support to help fund this new clinical trials endeavor.

We have been fortunate to have thousands of people each year contribute their time, their energy, and their donations to move us further along on the pathway to a cure.  This gives us confidence and hope that we can count on your continued support in the days ahead.  Thank you.

Sincerely, 

C.  Randy Lomax
Chairman, Board of Directors
Melanoma Research Foundation