COMMUNITY GRANTS

$110,673 Community Grant

Many of us were incredibly moved by the heroic efforts of the firefighters who put their lives on the line during the January 2025 wildfires in the Pacific Palisades and Altadena communities. Unfortunately, cancer represents the greatest long-term health risk to firefighters today.

Of note, firefighters face a 9% higher risk of cancer diagnosis and a 14% higher risk of dying from cancer compared to the general US population, according to research by the National Institute for Occupational Health and Safety (NIOSH). 

PHASE ONE values the importance of investing for the long term, which is why we are proud to provide this Community Grant to the Volunteer Fire Foundation (VFF) and Integrative Healers Action Network (IHAN) to support the growth of their Firefighter Detox Program.  

While extensive research highlights the troubling statistics linking firefighters to increased cancer risk, practical solutions to address these risks remain limited. The Firefighter Detox Program is a targeted cancer intervention with the goal of becoming standard therapy for firefighters nationwide.

In the organization’s initial 2023 round of research, firefighters participating in the program saw a 72.5% reduction in high-range toxins. In 2024, during the second round of research, there was an 81.4% reduction in these toxins.  

The numbers speak for themselves, and the teams at VFF and IHAN are working hard to get this program introduced to fire departments throughout California. You can learn more about this work and these incredible organizations HERE.

$60,000 Community Grant

LAUSD proposes a multi-pronged pilot in schools which includes the development and implementation of prevention education resources and media on cancer related to substance abuse. Students will be informed on the relationship of both cancer and drugs. The implementation will build skills and self-efficacy to delay or avoid the abuse of a substance like tobacco and cannabis that can have a negative effect on their bodies. Youth will also be linked to pre-intervention and intervention health services, such as screening, and treatment options.

$10,000 Community Grant

Walk With Sally (WWS) is a nonprofit organization dedicated to lessening the burden of cancer for children and families. Sadly, most of the children and families enrolled in WWS programs are living below the poverty line due to the many costs associated with cancer.

The end-of-year holiday period can be an increasingly challenging time for children in grief or survivorship trauma, as this is either the first holiday period without their parent or sibling, or they are painfully reminded that this may be their last.

The PHASE ONE Community Grant supported WWS’ November Grateful Giving workshop, which included licensed mental health professional guided animal and art therapy. WWS also provided holiday cheer through gifts and meals to 10 families of 4 in desperate need of support.

"We received gifts from your very lovely and generous foundation. It really made us feel good to be able to open some nice gifts from you. It warmed my heart and I really felt the love and holiday spirit. Especially since I am still fighting this cancer." –Lisa M., WWS Program Recipient

Learn more about Walk with Sally

$60,471 Community Grant

FORCE (Facing Our Risk of Cancer Empowered) has a longstanding history of furthering research for people facing cancer due to an inherited mutation, and for the past 25 years has been the voice for the hereditary cancer community.

Through education, support, advocacy, and research efforts, FORCE improves the lives of millions of individuals and families facing hereditary breast, ovarian, pancreatic, prostate, colorectal, and endometrial cancers.

With support from PHASE ONE, FORCE will expand its Clinical Research Search & Enroll Program. Its goal is to ensure that all individuals who may benefit from participation in a study are informed and have equitable access to the information they need to make an informed personal decision.

Read the full grant announcement | Learn more about FORCE

$50,000 Community Grant

Since its inception, Imerman Angels has created more than 34,000 matches and registered and trained over 14,500 Mentor Angels— connecting cancer fighters, survivors, previvors, and caregivers in 113 countries with free, personalized one-on-one psychosocial support.

With the support of the Community Grant from PHASE ONE, Imerman Angels will build a focused Clinical Trial Matching Program to connect their patient and caregiver community with critical resources and education on clinical trials.

PHASE ONE’s grant will provide funding for formal training of Imerman Angels Cancer Support Specialists and other staff on clinical trials, two educational sessions for the Imerman Angels community, the development of a Mentor Angel recruitment plan focused specifically on building a pipeline for Mentors with experience with clinical trials, and the infrastructure to support this program.

Together, PHASE ONE and Imerman Angels will build a program to educate, engage, and empower the patient and caregiver community.

Read the full grant announcement | Learn more about Imerman Angels

$50,000 Community Grant

In 2021, PHASE ONE awarded a Community Grant to Dr. Querfeld to investigate the disparities in prognosis and survival on a molecular level among cutaneous lymphoma patients of different racial groups, with a focus on African-American patients. ⁠

Cutaneous (skin) T cell lymphoma (CTCL) refers to types of blood cancers that originate in the skin. CTCL can be potentially disfiguring and disabling, having a significantly negative impact on quality of life and relationships. ⁠

We know that CTCL is more common and more deadly among African American patients compared to Caucasian patients, but we do not know exactly why African Americans are more susceptible to this disease and resistant to common therapies. This study aims to shine a light on these differences.

The study enrolled 24 African-American (AA) patients with CTCL pairing them with samples from non-AA to begin formally analyzing skin biopsy samples for specific gene signatures, and found that the global gene expression profile differs from AA patients compared to non-AA patients, indicating a distinct pathway for the development of their lymphoma and emphasising that therapies developed specifically for these patients are critically needed. The study also revealed two distinct clusters segregated by specific genetic and histopathologic signatures.

Thanks to PHASE ONE’s investment, these findings will provide a deeper understanding of the tumor genomics and biology driving CTCL in African-American patients, ultimately saving thousands of lives from this disease.

$50,000 Community Grant

The Simms/Mann–UCLA Center for Integrative Oncology provides psychosocial care, usually free of charge, to cancer patients and families dealing with the emotional, psychological and physical burdens of cancer and its treatment.

Additionally, in response to COVID-19, the Center provided individual and group support for frontline COVID-19 staff in the hospitals, by establishing virtual (Zoom) support groups and other empowering programs that have been well-received by patients and their families.

The care provided amidst the pandemic was more intensive and demanding than previous norms as newly diagnosed and ongoing patients experienced heightened anxiety due to COVID-19 concerns– making the support the Center provides to the frontline care team even more impactful and critical.

The Center saw tremendous results from its efforts to serve patients and families during the COVID-19 pandemic. The referral rate has increased significantly and the programs created had wonderful responses from patients.

"The PHASE ONE grant greatly enhanced the work of the Center and extended its care to all those who have been touched by this pandemic – not just our patients with cancer and their loved ones, but also the frontline workers who stepped in to provide emotional and spiritual support to those in greatest need. The grant allowed the Center to bring this vital and sustaining circle of care to all in our healthcare community,”

–Kauser Ahmed, PhD, Director of the Simms/Mann, UCLA Center for Integrative Oncology

$50,000 Community Grant

Sharsheret is a national nonprofit organization supporting young women and their families facing breast cancer.

PHASE ONE's grant helped Sharsheret expand its outreach throughout Los Angeles medical centers and its mission to support women of all backgrounds through individualized connections with networks of peers and health professionals.

This grant also helped Sharsheret provide individual patient kits which include:

• Busy Box® for mothers facing cancer

• Best Face Forward® for those impacted by the cosmetic side effects of treatment

• Newly Diagnosed kit

• Thriving Again® survivorship kit

• Financial Wellness Toolkit

Learn more about Sharsheret

$52,000 Community Grant

In 2017, PHASE ONE funded and helped create a pilot program with LAUSD that educated high school students about testicular cancer.

After receiving many accolades and positive results, LAUSD introduced and expanded the program to additional campuses across the district for the 2018-2019 school year which PHASE ONE helped fund with this grant.

The results of this pilot program were promising. The evaluation showed increases in knowledge, awareness, and attitudes, and a nearly 20% increase in testicular self-examination among males.

$50,000 Community Grant

Clinical trials are essential for translating scientific discoveries into new treatments, but only 3–4% of adult cancer patients participate annually in therapeutic clinical trials. How people get information is changing dramatically and it may be necessary to use new modes of online communication through social media to tap into health communication effectively.

With this grant, Dr. Mina Sedrak, Assistant Professor, Department of Medical Oncology & Therapeutics Research, brought scientific rigor and insight to study online communication and social networks, developing new tools and methods for mining the cancer ecosystem online, and understanding how interpersonal connections influence personal health choices and actions.

The use of social media for cancer research is in its infancy. Its value and direct application remained to be seen and warranted further exploration. The research Dr. Sedrak and his team did was highly innovative because, just like the medium itself, the tools used to conduct social media research are incompletely characterized and evolving.

These insights will lead to novel approaches for the dissemination of information to improve treatment and support for cancer patients and survivors and create improved public awareness of clinical trials.

$15,000 Community Grant

In order to make the greatest impact, patients and advocates need a complete knowledge and understanding of the drug development process.

That’s why, in partnership with Friends of Cancer Research, PHASE ONE is pleased to be able to offer a new course and tool for patient advocates - ProgressForPatients.org.

Through the Advocacy Education program, advocates will acquire the necessary tools to effectively communicate with drug researchers, developers, and regulators enabling them to make the connections necessary to engage with all sectors who need to be better guided by patient input. PHASE ONE provided a grant to Friends of Cancer Research and has joined the Advocacy Alliance.

Visit ProgressForPatients.org to learn how you can be a better advocate for yourself, a family member, or a friend.

$25,000 Community Grant

PHASE ONE’s first endowment grant was made in 2015 to the USC Norris Adolescent and Young Adult (AYA) cancer program’s new testicular cancer awareness initiative. The initiative is a collaborative community project with the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) and the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA).

With the funds from the PHASE ONE grant, in the fall of 2015, AYA initiated a pilot program with the LAUSD and UCLA aimed at increasing awareness of testicular cancer among school-age students.

In the past several decades, cancers occurring in childhood have been the focus of cancer research and treatment programs worldwide. Unfortunately, less attention has been given to AYA patients (ages 15-39) and cancer remains the number one disease killer within this age group. Because testicular cancer is one of the most common cancers diagnosed in young men, increasing awareness and early detection was a top educational priority of the initiative.

LAUSD is the nation’s second-largest school district with an annual enrollment of approximately 651,000 kids in 1,188 schools. While the previously adopted curriculum used by the LAUSD health course contains content related to testicular cancer, the health textbook was ten years old– three years past a standard new adoption.

The initiative developed new project-based health lessons focused on testicular cancer awareness to complement the current LAUSD health curriculum. Following the completion of the testicular cancer curriculum, professional development, technical assistance, and follow-up support to the LAUSD health educators on project and content as they implement and incorporate these materials into their program, is planned. The newly developed curriculum was then piloted in the fall of 2015 in a minimum of three schools with the goal of expanding it to additional schools the following year and ultimately to every school in the LAUSD system.

PHASE ONE is proud to have provided the seed grant of $25,000 to fund this new testicular cancer awareness initiative that ultimately will help educate and provide greater awareness to every child in the LAUSD.