2008-10-15T08:53:00.001-07:00

Mission: To advance the scientific and medical research related to the diagnosis, treatment, cure and prevention of pancreatic cancer.

-Founded in 1998, this private, not-for-profit organization provides direct support to pancreatic cancer research.

-Named for and inspired by Cablevision's late vice chairman, Marc Lustgarten, who passed away from pancreatic cancer in 1999 at the age of 52. Marc was diagnosed in April 1998 and passed away in August 1999; he is survived by his wife Marcia and two children Andrew and Jessica.

-The Foundation's focus is to bring greater resources for research and public attention to this disease.

Facts About Pancreatic Cancer:

§ Pancreatic cancer is the fourth leading cause of cancer deaths in women and men in this country. According to the American Cancer Society (ACS), in 2008 an anticipated 37,680 Americans will be diagnosed with pancreatic cancer and 34,290 will die from the disease.

§ The average life expectancy is 6 to 9 months. Only 4% of patients will survive more than 5 years.

§ The disease is highly aggressive and resistive to standard cancer treatments – and unless resected in its earliest stages, there is no cure.

Foundation Accomplishments To Date:

§ The Lustgarten Foundation has provided more than $20 million for pancreatic cancer research – and is the nation’s largest private supporter of pancreatic cancer research.

§ Foundation donations will have supported more than 110 research projects at the country’s most prestigious medical and research institutions, including Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Johns Hopkins Medical Institutions, M.D. Anderson Cancer Center, Harvard Medical Center and Mayo Clinic.

§ Because of Lustgarten support, researchers have been able to further their careers in pancreatic cancer research with more than $73 million additional dollars from institutions like the National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health, American Cancer Society, Damon Runyon Cancer Research Foundation and American Association of Cancer Research.

§ The Lustgarten Foundation has sponsored nine annual international scientific conferences at leading research institutions in an effort to bring together the leading experts dedicated to finding a cure.

§ The Foundation has created a comprehensive Web site (http://www.lustgarten.org/) to provide the most up-to-date information to pancreatic cancer patients, their families, and the medical community. The Lustgarten Foundation also produces informational tools and newsletters that are distributed to the patient and professional communities.

Since the Foundation’s Inception:

§ A significant increase in the number of researchers are now studying this disease

§ More than 100 clinical trials are now testing potential new treatments and treatment combinations in pancreatic cancer

§ Promising biological advances are leading to better early detection methods.

§ The development of mouse models that closely mimic human pancreatic cancer are helping scientists to validate cellular mechanisms underlying the disease and test potential treatments

§ There is greater public awareness of the need for research, better treatments and a cure.

§ There has been the discovery of a familial pancreatic cancer gene, Palladin.

Media Contacts:

Kerri Kaplan

Executive Director

Office: 516-803-2304

E-Mail: kkaplan@cablevision.com

Web site: http://www.lustgarten.org/

Kimberly Johnke, L.M.S.W.

Manager, Public & Patient Information

Office: 516-803-2306

Cell: 516-538-0077

E-Mail: kjohnke@cablevision.com

Web site: http://www.lustgarten.org/

Facts Provided by the Lustgarten Foundation

Kerri Kaplan