Steve Kirsch's Efforts Lead To up to $1.2 Million in Grants to Advance New Treatments for Waldenstrom's Macroglobulinemia

San Jose, CA (July 27, 2010) - Steve Kirsch of San Jose has founded five startup high technology companies over the past 30 years and has dedicated his life to philanthropy.

So, in 2007, when Kirsch, CEO of his latest venture, Abaca Technology, an email spam blocker, received the devastating diagnosis of Waldenstrom's macroglobulinemia (WM), a B-cell non-Hodgkin lymphoma with no known cure, he immersed himself in learning all he could about the disease and threw his efforts and his resources behind finding better treatments. Approximately 1,500 people a year in the United States are diagnosed with the disease.

Kirsch turned to The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society (LLS) and urged the nonprofit health agency to bring the best minds together to pursue novel approaches to finding new therapies for WM. LLS, in turn, partnered with the International Waldenstrom's Macroglobulinemia Foundation (IWMF) to convene a forum in Washington D.C. to identify impediments to progress in treating WM patients. The two organizations agreed to seek applications from WM experts interested in receiving research funding.

Today, LLS and IWMF announced the awarding of grants to four researchers tasked with developing new Waldenstrom's macroglobulinemia (WM) cell lines, a critical link in discovering new and more effective treatments for the currently incurable disease. Kirsch joins IWMF, LLS and an anonymous donor, to fund the projects.

"Steve's involvement in this process is a great example of what can come about when a passionate individual focused on advancing the science brings his considerable resources and determination to the table," said Louis DeGennaro, chief mission officer of LLS. "He was instrumental in jumpstarting this process and we are hopeful that the research will yield true benefits for patients."

WM is a lymphoma characterized by B-lymphocytes in the bone marrow, and an abnormal level of the protein monoclonal immunoglobulin M (IgM).  Cell lines are invaluable in understanding the genetics and biology of cancerous cells. The development of a biologically stable and satisfactorily representative WM cell line will enable researchers throughout the world to test their latest ideas on bio-identical cells and thus compare their results with those of other researchers.

The recipients are: Stephen M. Ansell, M.D., Ph.D, Associate Professor, Mayo Clinic College of Medicine Division of Hematology, Department of Medicine, Rochester, MN; Asher A. Chanan-Khan, M.D., Associate Professor of Oncology, Roswell Park Cancer Institute Division of Lymphoma/Myeloma, Department of Medicine, Buffalo, NY; Dr. Suning Chen, Ph.D., Associate Professor, Head of Hematologic Research Unit Jiangsu Institute of Hematology, First Affiliated Hospital of Soochow University, China; Irene Ghobrial, MD, Assistant Professor of Medicine, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute Division of Hematologic Neoplasia, Department of Medical Oncology, in Boston.

About The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society
The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society ® (LLS) is the world's largest voluntary health agency dedicated to blood cancer. The LLS mission: Cure leukemia, lymphoma, Hodgkin's disease and myeloma, and improve the quality of life of patients and their families. LLS funds lifesaving blood cancer research around the world and provides free information and support services. 
 
Founded in 1949 and headquartered in White Plains, NY, LLS has chapters throughout the United States and Canada. To learn more, visit www.LLS.org or contact the Information Resource Center at (800) 955-4572, Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. ET. www.lls.org.

About IWMF
The International Waldenstrom's Macroglobulinemia Foundation (IWMF) was founded in 1994 as a non-profit agency and is devoted to the blood cancer Waldenstrom's macroglobulinemia. The mission of IWMF is: To establish a means for those with Waldenstrom's macroglobulinemia, their family members, doctors and others with interest in the disease to provide mutual support and encouragement and to promote and support research leading to a cure.
 
The IWMF office is located in Sarasota, FL and has support groups internationally. To learn more about the foundation go to the website at www.iwmf.com or call 941-927-4963.