48 SEENA MAGOWITZ FOUNDATION COURAGE odd because pancreatic cancer patients usually have a hard time digesting any type of food. A CAT scan proved what Dr. Von Hoff already suspected: Gemcit - abine, an experimental drug at the time, was helping shrink the patient’s tumor. And just as importantly, he said, it had improved the patient’s quality of life, allowing him even to take some leisurely walks. To this day today, Dr. Von Hoff remembers the brand new Adidas the patient had on his feet. “Careful observation, listening to people. These are the foremost things a doctor can do,” he said. Fifteen years ago, Dr. Von Hoff listened to a stranger who called him and accepted the stranger’s invitation for lunch, paving the way for what could arguably be described as one of the most impactful alliances for the future of clinical advances to improve survival rates among patients with pancreatic cancer. That stranger was Roger Magowitz. “I lost my mother to pancreatic cancer,” Magowitz told Dr. Von Hoff. “I want to do something against the disease.” Magowitz had recently started the Seena Magowitz Foundation, named after his mom, who died at the age of 64, and was looking, in part, for a beneficiary for the money he planned to raise at a golf tournament,

SEENA MAGOWITZ FOUNDATION 49 the first in what has become a successful annual event. He was also searching for a brother in arms of sorts, someone as determined — and hopeful — as he was to defeat pancreatic cancer, which, according to a recent study, is on track to become the second-leading cause of cancer deaths in the United States by 2030. “When I started the Seena Magowitz Foundation, it certainly was a way for me to heal,” Magowitz said. “In my head, I had a justified answer to move forward: My mother went from this earth to give me the motivation to help others.” In its 17 years, the Seena Magowitz Foundation has raised about $12 million, making it easier for physicians, nurses and researchers not only to carry out a number of clinical trials, but also to test drugs that could lead to clinical trials. One of those trials was to explore whether combining gemcitabine with nanoparticle albumin-bound paclitaxel, a chemotherapy medicine better known by its commercial name, Abraxane, could increase the survivability of pancreatic cancer patients. The story of Abraxane’s development began decades ago. Dr. Von Hoff, while still in San Antonio, worked with Patrick Soon-Shiong — who, among other things, WHEN I STARTED THE SEENA MAGOWITZ FOUNDATION, IT CERTAINLY WAS A WAY FOR ME TO HEAL,” MAGOWITZ SAID. “IN MY HEAD, I HAD A JUSTIFIED ANSWER TO MOVE FORWARD: MY MOTHER WENT FROM THIS EARTH TO GIVE ME THE MOTIVATION TO HELP OTHERS.” HOPE