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President's Message
Welcome. We hope our web site will make it easy for you to find the information you need, and provide helpful answers to many of your questions about glaucoma.
Mission and History
The Glaucoma Research Foundation’s mission is to prevent vision loss from glaucoma by investing in innovative research, education, and support with the ultimate goal of finding a cure.
Since Dr. Robert Shaffer, a glaucoma specialist, started the Glaucoma
Research Foundation (GRF) in 1978, our donors have contributed more than $45 million toward patient education and research to find a cure for glaucoma. In recent years tremendous progress has been made toward understanding the causes and mechanisms of glaucoma. A recently completed, ground-breaking study sponsored by GRF has helped ophthalmologists understand normal tension glaucoma and the role of intraocular pressure in nerve damage.
Research to Find a Cure
2008 is the seventh year of a collaborative research program called Catalyst For a Cure (now in its third three-year phase). This innovative, multidisciplinary research program brings together scientists from different research institutions and specialties to address the root cause of glaucoma. The team continues to work effectively together, and we are excited about the prospect of their work contributing new ideas to the effort to find a cure for glaucoma.
In addition to Catalyst For a Cure, the Glaucoma Research Foundation funds research through our Shaffer Fund for Innovative Research, individual grants awarded to scientists pursuing novel and promising ideas in the field of glaucoma research which otherwise might be overlooked or go unexplored.
Educational Resources
We are proud of our comprehensive booklet, Understanding and Living with Glaucoma, and I encourage you to order a copy for yourself, or a relative or friend. In addition, there are more free informative articles and brochures available from the Foundation. Check out the rest of our web site to learn about our educational and research activities.
A Strategic Plan for the future
In January 2007, the Board of Directors approved a Strategic Plan setting priorities for the Glaucoma Research Foundation through 2010. The planning process began with an assessment of the need of those we serve. We surveyed and talked with glaucoma patients and their families and friends, including those at highest risk for glaucoma. We convened physicians and scientists on the front lines of the disease and donors eager to make a difference. The Board also reviewed GRF’s strengths and achievements, including results from the first five years of the Catalyst For a Cure research consortium. Catalyst For a Cure has not only opened new insights into causes of the disease, but also has shown that collaboration in science can speed the pace of discovery.
Help Us Find a Cure
If you have found our web site and information helpful, I hope you will consider a donation to help us continue our efforts. You can contribute online or send a check to support further education and research to find a cure.
Lastly, if you have questions or suggestions please call or send me an e-mail. I look forward to learning how we can be more effective in our efforts to help.
Thomas M. Brunner
President & CEO