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NF Preclinical Consortium 

In 2007, the Children’s Tumor Foundation invested $4M to launch the Neurofibromatosis Preclinical Consortium (NFPC) to test
candidate drug therapies for neurofibromatosis in NF1 and NF2 models; compare the responses of different NF tumors to the
same drug; and identify candidate clinical therapies. Though a competitive process, six Centers were selected – four NF1 and
two NF2. NFPC has successfully established a preclinical drug testing pipeline and formed productive collaborations with
industrial partners such as Novartis and Genentech. NFPC has been CTF’s most significant research investment to date.
The current cycle of NFPC funding concludes June 30, 2011.

CTF will be funding a further two years of the NFPC 2011-2013. The  application process for this is now CLOSED. New NFPC Centers will be announced Fall 2011. 

2008-2011: NF Preclinical Consortium Centers

• University of California, San Francisco
  Director: Kevin Shannon, MD
  Tumor Focus:  NF1 myeloid leukemia
• Washington University School of Medicine
  Director: David Gutmann, MD, Ph.D.
  Tumor Focus:  NF1 optic pathway glioma
• Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center
  Director: Timothy Cripe, MD, Ph.D.
  Deputy Director: Nancy Ratner, Ph.D.
  Tumor Focus: NF1 plexiform tumors & dermal neurofibromas
• House Ear Institute
  Director: Marco Giovannini, MD, Ph.D.
  Tumor Focus: NF2 schwannoma, meningioma
• Harvard Med School/Mass General Hospital
  Director: Andrea McClatchey, Ph.D.
  Tumor Focus: NF2 schwannoma, meningioma   
• Harvard Medical School/Brigham & Women’s Hospital
  Director: Karen Cichowski, Ph.D.                   
  Deputy Directors: Thomas De Raedt, Ph.D. & Ophelia Maertens, Ph.D.
  Tumor Focus: NF1 malignant peripheral nerve sheath tumors.

NF Preclinical Consortium External Advisory Board (EAB)
 

• Jay Gibbs, Ph.D. (Chair), AstraZeneca Pharmaceuticals
• Gideon E. Bollag, Ph.D., Plexxikon Inc.
• Sara A. Courtneidge, Ph.D. , The Burnham Inst. for Medical Research
• Michael J. Morin, Ph.D., Oncovia, Inc.
• Frank McCormick, Ph.D., University of California, San Francisco
• Edward Stern, Esq.,  Legal Counsel to the CTF Medical Advisory Committee

EAB Emeritus Members

• Larry Gelbert, Ph.D., Eli Lilly and Company 
• Filippo G. Giancotti, M.D., Ph.D. Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center
• Janet M Hock, BDS, Ph.D., Maine Institute for Human Genetics and Health
• Christopher L. Moertel, MD, Children's Hospitals and Clinics of Minnesota
• Roger J. Packer, MD, Children’s National Medical Center

Questions? Contact:
Kim Hunter-Schaedle, Ph.D., Chief Scientific Officer