Fund, promote and support collaboration between researchers in the field of adult stem cell transplantation.
Fund patients participating in the resulting early stage clinical trials.
Improve the lives of people worldwide suffering from diseases and conditions that may benefit from adult stem cell research.
Make curative therapies accessible to all.
The National Foundation to Support Cell Transplant Research (NFCTR) has been established to support recognized, peer reviewed biomedical research in the field of adult stem cell transplantation. Adult stem cells have the potential to repair or regenerate damaged tissue and create a paradigm shift in the treatment of diseases affecting people on every continent.
We are funding researchers in a number of strong academic settings and support both collaboration and information sharing wherever possible. With the ability to see and fund cutting edge research from multiple institutions, we hope to create opportunities to leverage and expedite the science.
In Kentucky, we have focused on the work of Dr. Suzanne Ildstad and her multi-disciplinary Institute for Cellular Therapeutics (ICT) at the University of Louisville. Dr. Ildstad is internationally recognized for her identification of a novel cell in bone marrow that makes it possible to safely transplant small amounts of bone marrow from one person to another without life-threatening rejection. In making bone marrow transplants safe, you build a platform to permanently treat or cure autoimmune diseases and genetic blood disorders affecting millions of people worldwide - and allow drug-free tolerance for transplanted organs and limbs. Total healthcare costs for patients suffering from these conditions are staggering; a significant portion of those costs will be eliminated when this treatment becomes standard of care. We believe that the ICT is poised on the edge of research and clinical initiatives that will change the face and future of international healthcare.
In North Carolina, we are funding a collaboration between Dr. Ildstad and Dr. Joanne Kurtzberg, internationally renowned expert in umbilical cord blood transplantation. Dr. Kurtzberg is a professor in the Department of Pediatrics and Pathology at Duke University, Director of the Pediatric Blood and Marrow Transplant (PBMT) program at Duke University Medical Center and Director of the Carolinas Cord Blood Bank. Drs. Ildstad and Kurtzberg are collaborating in the treatment of sickle cell disease, thalassemia and rare childhood disorders using Dr. Ildstad’s discoveries. Two children in Kentucky treated three years ago with this protocol are now living normal, active lives. They are considered cured of their disease. A cure for sickle cell disease is also a cure for thalassemia; 4% of the world’s children suffer and die young from one of these two inherited blood disorders. We believe that this collaboration represents a remarkable opportunity, in our lifetime, for all of us to profoundly affect the lives of children and young adults everywhere suffering from these diseases and others that may be cured or permanently treated by this research.
In Illinois, we are funding a collaboration between Dr. Ildstad and Dr. Joseph Leventhal, internationally recognized expert in antibody induction strategies for organ transplantation. Dr. Leventhal is Associate Professor of Surgery in the Division of Organ Transplantation at Northwestern University Medical School and Director of the Living Donor Renal Transplant Program at Northwestern Memorial Hospital. Drs. Ildstad and Leventhal are collaborating in the use of stem cells and facilitating cells to induce drug-free tolerance for transplanted kidneys.
Significant milestones have already been achieved with the trials now in progress. We hope that you will join us in an extraordinary opportunity to significantly impact the lives of so many.
