There is currently limited research solely dedicated to finding a cure for GYN Carcinosarcoma (also known as GCS or MMMT).
If you make a donation to the American Cancer Society, Ovarian Cancer Research Fund, Ovarian Cancer National Alliance—or other national research funds—none of your donation will go toward finding a cure for GYN Carcinosarcoma. The reason—these organizations do not conduct research on our rare cancer. If you want to make a difference in GYN Carcinosarcoma research with your donation, The GCS Project is the fund to support.
We have already engaged the interest of other researchers, and more research will be directed to GYN Carcinosarcoma. However, this is the only research on our cancer today.
With the generous donations to The GCS Project – over $300,000 during 2016/2017 – we have funded basic GCS specific research at the University of Massachusetts General Hospital, but we have so much further to go! We need continuing financial support to maintain this research for effective treatments and hope we can count on YOU to help the women affected by this rare cancer.
In addition to the mission of the GCS Project of providing support and information to GCS patients and their families, a goal from the beginning was also to raise funds for targeted GCS treatment research and clinical trials. The cost can run into millions of dollars, so to support such research in an impactful way requires a significant donation. The GCS Project raises significant dollars for targeted research by incremental donations over an extended period of time. In effect the GCS Project, like most non-profit charities, function as a depository for many smaller donations that accumulate over time until significant dollars are available to fund research. The Board in consultation with medical oversight evaluates and approves which research project to support. The GCS Project operates with an uncompensated volunteer Board, and other than website cost all donations go to research.
The GCS Project would like to thank our many donors over the past 7 years. Your support has allowed us to provide significant support to 3 GCS dedicated research projects. Listed below are brief descriptions of the research your donations have supported.
One of the missions of the GCS Project is to support research and clinical trials. We do this by taking donations and distributing them to GCS specific studies. These studies cost millions of dollars to fund and it takes a significant amount of money to make an impact. The smaller donations are greatly appreciated but in the larger scheme of things they don’t fulfill what the project/trial needs. The GCS Project acts as a depository for smaller donations. With Medical oversight, the research/trials are evaluated to determine which studies meet the criteria of being GCS specific. These studies can then be considered for our support through a large donation. This is why we are only able to support different research/trials every couple of years.
Below are the studies/trials which our generous donors have funded.
The GCS Project donated to Mass General in early 2018.
This project is focused on the molecular biology of these tumors recognizing that they are a unique tumor, their metastases and in particular brain metastases and utilizes the most up to date genomic platforms and bioinformatic analysis. It remains collaboration between Harvard, UAB, and UAMS. This project is still ongoing but will be finished shortly and will provide extensive genomic analysis with novel target identification. In addition, the GCF project will be listed clinical trials which specifically are relevant for carcinosarcoma patients
The GCS Project donated to University of Alabama Birmingham in late 2020.
The funding for that helped support the post doc in my lab, Carly Scalise PhD. Additionally, those funds helped us to develop a database for all our carcinosarcoma patients, we collected tissue, ascites, and blood on these patients and consented them for translational science studies.
We have developed cell lines and Patient-Derived Mouse Models that we are using to continue to use with collaborators across the country to further develop biomarkers for response to treatment. Additionally, we have compiled and analyzed all the Next Generation Sequencing data on our Carcinosarcoma patients and are using this for background data for the rationale for our Investigator Initiated Clinical trial. Carcinosarcoma patients have also been recruited to our DETECT trial, which is looking for an early detection for endometrial cancer using tampons.
We now have a very robust biobank with several mouse models and cell lines that are specifically carcinosarcoma. The generous donations from the GCS Foundation have been instrumental in the successes of the Arend Lab and the clinical trials/translational research being done at UAB.
The GCS Project donated to UAB in late October 2023.
Immunotherapy has gained a significant amount of attention recently, but its efficacy as a single agent in gynecological cancers has been disappointing. Pre-clinical evidence supports the combination of using Vascular Endothelial Growth Factors(VEGF) inhibitors with immunotherapy. VEGF inhibitors suppress the activation of tumor-associated macrophages (TAMs) and VEGF has been shown to affect the functional maturation of dendritic cells; therefore, VEGF inhibitors could improve the function of antigen presentation. In this study, Cabozantinib (VEGF inhibitor) and Dostarlimab (immunotherapeutic drug) will be administered as a combination to patients with recurrent gynecologic carcinosarcoma.
Contact Person
Anna Wilbanks, MSN, RN, WHNP-BC
Research Nurse Manager GYN Oncology Clinical Trials
O’Neal Comprehensive Cancer Center
UAB | The University of Alabama at Birmingham
1700 6th Avenue South, Suite 10100, 10th Fl WIC | Birmingham, AL 35233
O: 205.934.6454 | F: 205-975-9769 | annaburton@uabmc.edu
The next phase in funding will be focused on CLINICAL TRIALS for those diagnosed with carcinosarcoma. We need another $300,000-400,000 to support such clinical trials.
Please donate in honor of those you know with GYN Carcinosarcoma. We have created a fund through our 501(c)(3) organization. We urge you to give a tax-deductible donation* to further the research of this rare cancer and find a cure.
Money plays a significant part in making this project a success. But without the knowledge and support of a world-class medical team, without the patients who have donated precious tissue for study and who participate in studies with unknown outcomes, and without the support of the family and friends of the women with GCS, the money would not be meaningful.
Every outside dollar donated to The GCS Project has gone and continues to go toward GCS Carcinosarcoma research.
This GCS Project website and the associated administrative expenses are solely supported by family and also the volunteer support and expertise of family and friends. Only the researchers looking for treatments and a cure are receiving community donated funds needed to do their work. If you are a patient or family member of a patient with GYN Carcinosarcoma and are able, this is the research to support.
When you click on the link below, you will be taken to a different site than The GCS Project, but rest assured it is associated with us. Your donation will be tax deductible and will support the research solely dedicated to finding a cure for gynecological carcinosarcoma. You will receive notification about your donation from a different site.
We embrace transparency and accountability in our operations. Below, you’ll find links to our Form 990’s from previous years. These forms provide insights into our organization’s finances and resource utilization. Feel free to explore forms from past years:
Please consider helping to provide these dedicated researchers with the resources they need to find the cure
Clinical trials are currently being offered at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS). Phase 1/2 Study to Evaluate the Safety, Pharmacokinetics, and Efficacy of BLU-222 as a Single… Read More »
Clinical trials are currently being offered at the University of Alabama at Birmingham. Immunotherapy has gained a significant amount of attention recently, but its efficacy as a single agent in… Read More »
Clinical trials are currently being offered at Medical University of South Carolina (MUSC) Health Care in Charleston SC. A Phase II/III Study of Paciltaxel/Carboplatin alone, or combined with either Trastuzumab… Read More »