Working to #HackCancer

Bristol Myers Squibb Joins Parker Institute and Cancer Research Institute to Accelerate I-O Research

March 30, 2017

What does it take to hack cancer? Members of Bristol Myers Squibb’s U.S. Medical team are hoping a new agreement with the Parker Institute for Cancer Immunotherapy (PICI) and the Cancer Research Institute (CRI) will help unlock the answer.

Earlier this week, Bristol Myers Squibb announced a multi-year research collaboration with the two organizations aimed at advancing immuno-oncology research. In reaching the agreement, Bristol Myers Squibb becomes the first industry partner to collaborate with CRI and PICI (pronounced pie-sea), which was formed last April with a $250M grant from billionaire tech entrepreneur Sean Parker.

Parker established PICI as a novel collaboration model to bring together industry, academic and philanthropic participants with a shared goal of accelerating immunotherapy research to develop and deliver new treatment options to cancer patients.

Because of PICI’s roots in Silicon Valley, #hackcancer has become a sort of rallying cry in describing Parker’s efforts to fight the deadly disease. It’s tech speak for disrupting or bringing a new approach to a problem. Whichever way one chooses to describe it, this latest agreement is aimed at bringing speed, collaboration and innovation to the fight against cancer.

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Our goal is to accelerate innovation in clinical and translational research by removing barriers between academic research centers. PICI’s unique collaboration model, along with CRI's commitment to transforming patient care and Bristol Myers Squibb's strong science is a powerful combination that can deliver far-reaching results.

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“Our goal is to accelerate innovation in clinical and translational research by removing barriers between academic research centers," said Julie Hambleton, Head of U.S. Medical. "PICI’s unique collaboration model, along with CRI's commitment to transforming patient care and Bristol Myers Squibb's strong science is a powerful combination that can deliver far-reaching results."

A Coordinated Approach

The agreement establishes a multi-year research collaboration to help coordinate and rapidly initiate an ambitious portfolio of pre-clinical and clinical Immuno-Oncology (I-O) studies across the PICI and CRI network of more than 300 of the nation’s top researchers and 40 labs at six of the top research institutions in the U.S.

Bristol Myers Squibb will work closely with the PICI and CRI to solicit research proposals from the network and coordinate multi-site collaboration studies to pursue some of the most difficult questions in cancer research.

“We are thrilled to partner with the PICI and CRI and speed studies of future cancer immunotherapies," Hambleton said. "It’s emblematic of Bristol Myers Squibb's focus on speed, passion and innovation to find new treatment options for cancer patients.”

To learn more about Bristol Myers Squibb’s collaboration, read the full press release here.