American Cancer Society's 2019 Bucket List Bash: Keynote Speaker: Anabella Maria Galang

Описание: Friday, February 15, 2019 | Naples Grande Beach Resort | Naples, FL

Speech written by Anabella Maria Galang

SPEECH TRANSCRIPT:
Cancer research has revolutionized my life – but not in the way that it does for most. In fact, I’ve had the privilege of being on the other end of cancer treatment. I began researching this elusive and ruthless disease at the tender age of fourteen, and instantly became fascinated with finding cures for cancer. After five challenging months of meticulous pipetting and plating, I, at sixteen years old, completed my first research project. With it, I became the youngest person to present at the American Assoc. for Cancer Research, the largest cancer research conference in the world. My research sought to modulate a single aspect of the human immune system in hopes of disrupting the tumor microenvironment’s proliferation patterns. But before I accomplished this, I had to understand the fundamental breakthroughs that have led up to our modern understanding of cancer.

One of these revolutionary treatments is chemotherapy; Dr. Sidney Farber created this therapy in the 1940s through an American Cancer Society grant. Additionally, researchers have accomplished breakthroughs in the field of genetics, the study of our cell’s DNA. Through this increased understanding, treatments like Tamoxifin have been developed to target procancerous mutations like BRCA. In addition to developments in cancer genetics, immunology has also proven itself particularly successful in the fight against cancer. In fact, the most recent Nobel Prize in Physiology and Medicine was awarded to cancer immunologist Dr. James Allison, the winner of American Cancer Society’s 2015 Medal of Honor for Basic Research. He joined the fourty-seven other American-Cancer-Society-funded researchers who have gone on to win the Nobel Prize.

Since its founding in 1913, American Cancer Society has played an integral role in facilitating scientific progress in the cancer research field. In fact, all of the advances that I just mentioned were all funded, whether in part or entirely, by the American Cancer Society. You all, by virtue of attending this event, have contributed to the audacious endeavor of ending cancer. Your donations contribute to the 7.5 million dollars that the Bucket List Bash has grossed in the past, money that the American Cancer Society dedicates to its focus: “to save lives by helping people stay well, help people get well, find cures, and fight back.” We have accomplished immense strides in the field of cancer research. However, on behalf of the next generation of cancer researchers, there is still ample work to be done. And, with your help, we can turn the vision of a cancer-free future into a reality.