Leadership:
MMRF Founders
The Multiple Myeloma Research Foundation (MMRF) was spearheaded by Kathy Giusti and her identical twin sister Karen Andrews. In 1998, Kathy, a graduate of Harvard Business School and a pharmaceutical executive, teamed up with Karen, a corporate attorney, to found the MMRF.
When Kathy was diagnosed with multiple myeloma, she and Karen founded the MMRF with the principle focus of funding transformative research as a catalyst in the development of progressive, life-extending treatments that multiple myeloma patients so urgently needed. Leveraging her past business experience, Kathy, as Chief Executive Officer, applied her business savvy to the science of cancer research and changed the culture of the traditional not-for-profit model. Kathy and Karen optimized the MMRF to run like a Fortune 500 company, with a culture of speed, innovation, and results.
One of the largest hurdles was that scientific teams all over the world were failing to communicate and engage in data exchange. Compounding these failures, the rare and heterogeneous nature of multiple myeloma made it difficult for a single center to enroll enough patients or collect enough tissue samples to properly complete a robust clinical trial.
For several years, Kathy worked alongside the multiple myeloma community to design, execute, and fund groundbreaking collaborative research initiatives that revolutionized clinical research methods and created new opportunities for effective treatments. The MMRF research initiatives include the Multiple Myeloma Research Consortium, the MMRC Tissue Bank, the Multiple Myeloma Genomics Initiative (MMGI), and the Multiple Myeloma Personalized Medicine Initiative (MMPI).
Committed to maximizing the patient-impact of these models, Kathy has shared her approach with many research organizations that are pursuing treatment advances for a number of cancers and other devastating diseases.
The MMRF has played a key role in the progress made against multiple myeloma. Today, as a result, there are a multitude of new drugs available that have more than doubled life expectancy for patients.
Kathy’s visionary leadership of the MMRF has earned her many distinguished recognitions. Most recently, she was named to TIME magazine’s 2011 list of the World’s 100 Most Influential People. She has also received a number of other honors, including the American Society of Clinical Oncology’s (ASCO) Partners in Progress Award, the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) Centennial Medal for Distinguished Public Service, the Harvard Business School Alumni Achievement Award, and the Healthcare Businesswomen's Association's Woman of the Year Award.
Read about Kathy Giusti's transformative approach to cancer research:
- MMRF Featured in Fast Company as "Savvy Renegade...Saving Lives"
Fast Company, April 2013 - Kathy Giusti Featured in The New York Times' “The Boss” Column
The New York Times, December 2012 - Kathy Giusti and Deborah Dunsire, MD Interviewed by Personalized Medicine in Oncology
Personalized Medicine in Oncology, May 2012 - Kathy Giusti Named to the 2011 TIME 100
TIME Magazine, April 2011
Listen to Kathy Giusti speak about the innovative model of the MMRF:
- ForbesWoman Interview with Kathy
ForbesWoman, December 2012 - Healthcare Entrepreneur Kathy Giusti Addresses MBA Class of 2011
Harvard Business School Class Day, 2011 - Kathy Giusti Keynote Speaker at WBL Summit
Women Business Leaders (WBL) Annual Summit, 2011 - The TODAY Show Features Kathy Giusti
TODAY, 2010 - Kathy Giusti Highlighted in The Money Chase inside Harvard Business School
CNBC, December 2008
Read articles authored by Kathy Giusti:
- The Multiple Myeloma Research Foundation's evolving focus on drug R&D
Nature Biotechnology, July 2012 - Company Profile: Multiple Myeloma Research Foundation
Personalized Medicine - Future Medicine, May 2012
