CureAcceleratorTM, interactive platform dedicated to Repurposing Research, live in beta, building partnerships

CHICAGO - March 18, 2015 - PRLog -- Cures Within Reach (Cures) received a grant from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) in 2014 to build CureAccelerator, the world’s first online, interactive platform dedicated to repurposing research. This platform will explore whether drugs, devices and nutriceuticals approved for one or more human diseases can be repurposed to create “new” treatments in other diseases.  It is currently live in beta and scheduled for public launch on June 1^st.  Building on Cures’ successful history sourcing, selecting, funding, facilitating and championing Repurposing Research, CureAccelerator will connect researchers, funders, clinicians, the biomedical industry and patient groups to drive more treatments to more patients more quickly.

CureAccelerator is being built in collaboration with GlobalCures, a non-profit dedicated to curing patients with cancer and other diseases by promoting clinical research of scientifically promising, readily available and cost-effective repurposed treatments.  Its advisory board includes global representation from the pharmaceutical industry, academic researchers and staff, clinical medicine, the National Center for Advancing Translational Science, medical research foundations, patient advocacy groups, other medical research funders, and bioinformatics specialists.

Eight percent of the world’s population has a life-changing disease for which there is no universally effective therapy.  Repurposing Research is a patient-focused, time, and money efficient process for creating “new” treatments by starting with familiar drugs, devices, and nutriceuticals.   While the conventional for-profit “New Discovery” system routinely takes 10-14 years and costs $1.5 billion per successful new drug launch, many Repurposing Research projects can get to patients through off-label use in as little as 18-36 months and for a research cost of less than $250,000.  These shortened timelines and costs are made possible by repurposing the thousands of available drugs, devices, and nutriceuticals, that are already proven safe for human use.

CureAccelerator launched in a private beta version in January, with a small pool of users, and activity is building behind the scenes as the June 1^st public launch approaches.  The fundamental goal of the site is to drive more treatments to more patients more quickly.  In support of this, CureAccelerator will:

·      build a vital Repurposing Research community

·      generate clinical trials to test repurposed therapies

·      create a new medical research model promoting transparency and efficiency

Version 1.0 will have three main components: Conversation Forums, Requests for Proposals (posted by funders), and Project Submissions (posted by researchers and clinicians.)  Additional features are planned for version 2.0.

“We are creating an affordable, scalable, and sustainable system to rapidly discover medical solutions for patients with unsolved diseases,” said Dr. Bruce Bloom, President and Chief Science Officer of Cures Within Reach.  “In the first 8 weeks of CureAccelerator’s beta period, with less than 200 users, we have already created 2 powerful new collaborations with a direct path toward validating and refining repurposed treatments for patient populations that are waiting for something that works.”

“Cures Within Reach is pioneering a collaborative, open approach to rapidly discover medical solutions for patients who suffer from diseases that currently have no effective treatment,” said Deborah Bae, Senior Program Officer at RWJF. “Developing new platforms that accelerate medical discovery is an important step in building a national Culture of Health where all people have access to the best possible care.” The RWJF grant has funded the creation of the CureAccelerator, but RWJF grant funds will not be used to conduct any medical research.

CureAccelerator has received generous support from Science Exchange, a marketplace for scientific collaboration, which has pledged $100K worth of in-kind services from laboratories in their network. As a result, CureAccelerator researchers will be able to use Science Exchange’s 2,000+ experimental service offerings to validate their findings. “Science Exchange, like CureAccelerator, wants to help scientists research more efficiently and collaboratively,” says Mennah Moustafah, Head of Business Development for Science Exchange, “We are proud that CureAccelerator researchers will be utilizing our network to validate their impactful preclinical findings to accelerate drug discovery and development.”

Attorneys with the global law firm of K&L Gates have generously provided legal services on a pro bono basis in connection with the sophisticated technological, licensing, and risk management issues associated with CureAccelerator.  K&L Gates has contributed its technological knowledge and global experience in cloud based offerings, which have proven invaluable in prudently guiding the development of this innovative online project.

The public launch of CureAccelerator will be celebrated in Chicago on May 27^th, 2015 at the Cures Within Reach BioScience Awards Midwest.  www.cureswithinreach.org/bam.  All of those interested in learning more about and participating in CureAccelerator are welcome to email info@cureaccelerator.org or sign-up to receive a personal invite to the public launch at www.cureaccelerator.org

ABOUT CURES WITHIN REACH

Cures Within Reach is the only disease agnostic philanthropic organization exclusively committed to Repurposing Research as a fast-track to saving patient lives.

Cures Within Reach medical research projects have generated 12 repurposing treatments making an impact in clinical practice: autoimmune lymphoproliferative syndrome, familial dysautonomia, Types 1 and 2 diabetes, lung cancer, multiple sclerosis, prostate cancer, myelodysplastic syndrome, and pediatric auto-immune diseases.

Cures will use CureAccelerator and other initiatives to develop new financial incentives to speed the delivery of effective repurposed treatment to patients. Visit us at www.cureswithinreach.org or follow us via Twitter, LinkedIn, YouTube or Facebook.

ABOUT SCIENCE EXCHANGE

Science Exchange is a marketplace for scientific collaboration, where researchers can order experiments from the world's best labs. Their mission is to improve the quality and efficiency of scientific research by using market-based incentives to promote collaboration between scientists.  Learn more at www.scienceexchange.com

ABOUT GLOBALCURES

GlobalCures is a non-profit medical research organization dedicated to curing patients with cancer and other diseases by rapidly promoting clinical research on scientifically promising, readily available and cost-effective treatments. One of GlobalCure’s strategies is to repurpose existing drugs, currently being overlooked for cancer use, due to lack of profitability. Visit us at www.global-cures.org.

ABOUT THE ROBERT WOOD JOHNSON FOUNDATION
For more than 40 years the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation has worked to improve health and health care. We are striving to build a national Culture of Health that will enable all to live longer, healthier lives now and for generations to come. For more information, visit www.rwjf.org. Follow the Foundation on Twitter at www.rwjf.org/twitteror on Facebook at www.rwjf.org/facebook.