Gilead Awards $7.6 Million in Grants to Advance Health Equity in Breast Cancer

By: Gilead Sciences, Inc. via Business Wire

February 01, 2023 at 08:35 AM EST

– Toward Health Equity Oncology Grant™ Supports Initiatives to Break the Cycle of Health Inequity –

Gilead Sciences, Inc. (Nasdaq: GILD) awarded $7.6 million in grant funding to 24 U.S.-based, community organizations through the newly created Toward Health Equity (THE) Oncology Grant™. The funding will support evidence-based interventions that address barriers to care and social determinants of health including patient navigator training, cultural competency training, and services combating barriers such as transportation.

“Gilead is committed to advancing health equity and supporting these vital patient advocacy organizations working to close gaps in breast cancer care,” said Deborah H. Telman, Executive Vice President, Corporate Affairs and General Counsel, Gilead Sciences. “We believe our Toward Health Equity Oncology Grant awards contribute important new understanding to advance and care for anyone living with breast cancer. We look forward to seeing their dynamic, innovative programs come to life.”

Breast cancer affects more American women than any other type of cancer, besides skin cancer.¹ But due to social, environmental, and economic disparities, people of color are at increased risk of developing or dying from breast cancer.² In 2023, an estimated 300,000 women will be diagnosed with breast cancer in the U.S. and more than 43,000 women will die from breast cancer.³

The 2023 funding will support evidence-based interventions that focus on patient navigation and digital/mobile interventions to improve health equity. All 2023 grantees were chosen based on several criteria including their ability to create measurable and sustainable change toward health equity.

THE Oncology Grant builds on Gilead’s 2022 program, which provided $5.7 million in grants to 21 U.S. organizations for programs working to advance health equity for Black people impacted by triple-negative breast cancer. The new grantees serve historically neglected and underrepresented communities including Hispanic, Jewish, LGBTQIA, Indigenous American, and others, and will work to address access disparities in the treatment of breast cancer.

The 2023 THE Oncology Grant awardees include:

Asociación Latina De Asistencia Y Prevención Del Cáncer De Mama
Association of Community Cancer Centers
Coalition of Blacks Against Breast Cancer
Family Reach Foundation
Franklin Square Hospital Center, Inc.
George Washington University
Harris County Hospital District Foundation
Mary Bird Perkins Cancer Center
New Orleans Musicians Assistance Foundation
Nueva Vida Inc.
Patient Advocate Foundation Inc.
Shanti Project Inc.
Share Self-Help For Women With Breast Or Ovarian Cancer, Inc.
Sharsheret Inc.
Sisters Working It Out NFP
St. Vincent Hospital
Susan G Komen Breast Cancer Foundation
The Ellie Fund
UC Davis, Comprehensive Cancer Center, Center for Advancing Cancer Health Equity
Vietnamese American Cancer Foundation
Virtua Health Foundation, Inc.
Women’s Cancer Care and Research Program (WeCARE) at UC Davis
Women’s Cancer Resource Center
Young Survival Coalition, Inc.

About Gilead Sciences

Gilead Sciences, Inc. is a biopharmaceutical company that has pursued and achieved breakthroughs in medicine for more than three decades, with the goal of creating a healthier world for all people. The company is committed to advancing innovative medicines to prevent and treat life-threatening diseases, including HIV, viral hepatitis, inflammation and cancer. Gilead operates in more than 35 countries worldwide, with headquarters in Foster City, California.

Gilead has promoted equity, particularly healthcare equity, since the company brought its first therapies to the market. Through global partnerships, Gilead’s medicines today reach millions of people in low- and middle-income countries around the world. In the United States, Gilead has committed more than $100 million over 10 years through the COMPASS Initiative^® to community organizations that are working to combat HIV in the U.S. South. In 2020, Gilead launched the Racial Equity Community Impact Fund to support organizations tackling racial inequities affecting Black communities across the United States.

Gilead and the Gilead logo are trademarks of Gilead Sciences, Inc., or its related companies.

For more information about Gilead, please visit the company’s website at www.gilead.com, follow Gilead on Twitter (@GileadSciences) or call Gilead Public Affairs at 1-800-GILEAD-5 or 1-650-574-3000.

¹ Breast Cancer Statistics. The American Society of Clinical Oncology. Breast Cancer: Statistics | Cancer.Net. Last accessed January 31, 2023.

² Cancer Disparities. The National Cancer Institute. Cancer Disparities - NCI. Last accessed January 31, 2023.

³ Key Statistics for Breast Cancer. The American Cancer Society. https://www.cancer.org/cancer/breast-cancer/about/how-common-is-breast-cancer.html, last accessed January 31, 2023.