Vertex Awards 40 Scholarships Totaling $200,000 to People Living with Cystic Fibrosis and Their Immediate Family Members
May 19 2017 - 06:45AM
Business Wire
- New Program Helps CF Families Pursue Higher
Education -
Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (Nasdaq: VRTX) today
announced the first recipients of the company’s All in for CF
Scholarship program. Each of the 40 scholarship recipients will be
awarded $5,000 for the 2017-2018 academic year.
Vertex established the All in for CF Scholarship program to help
people with cystic fibrosis (CF) and their immediate family members
pursue two-year, four-year or graduate degrees. These scholarships
complement other Vertex initiatives that help people with CF live
active lives, improve awareness of CF, and support independent
basic science and clinical research.
“Vertex is focused on discovering and developing transformative
medicines for people with CF, but our commitment to the community
extends far beyond this,” said Jeffrey Leiden, M.D., Ph.D.,
Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer of Vertex. “Our new
scholarship program reflects the fact that CF impacts entire
families by helping people with CF, their caregivers, siblings and
children pursue their academic goals.”
Scholarship recipients were chosen by an independent committee
of CF community members based on a submitted essay and an
applicant’s demonstrated level of community involvement, financial
need, and academic achievement. Vertex thanks the members of the CF
community who volunteered to serve on the selection committee, for
their time and commitment.
“I believe I was given a second chance to inspire, love and help
others,” said Carly Wheeler, who is living with CF and received a
double lung transplant last year. “The All in for CF Scholarship
will help me work toward doing that. I plan to study genetics and,
one day, join the fight against CF and other diseases to give
people the opportunity of a full life.” This fall, Wheeler will
enroll as a sophomore at Southern Illinois University at
Edwardsville to study biology.
More information about the All in for CF Scholarship, including
biographies for some of this year’s recipients, can be found
here.
About Cystic FibrosisCystic fibrosis is a rare,
life-threatening genetic disease affecting approximately 75,000
people in North America, Europe and Australia.
CF is caused by a defective or missing CFTR protein resulting from
mutations in the CFTR gene. Children must inherit two
defective CFTR genes — one from each parent — to have CF.
There are approximately 2,000 known mutations in
the CFTR gene. Some of these mutations, which can be
determined by a genetic test, lead to CF by creating defective or
too few CFTR proteins at the cell surface. The defective or missing
CFTR protein results in poor flow of salt and water into or out of
the cell in a number of organs, including the lungs. This leads to
the buildup of abnormally thick, sticky mucus that can cause
chronic lung infections and progressive lung damage in many
patients that eventually leads to death. The median predicted age
of survival for a person born today with CF is 41 years, but the
median age of death is 27 years.
About VertexVertex is a global biotechnology company that
aims to discover, develop and commercialize innovative medicines so
people with serious diseases can lead better lives. In addition to
our clinical development programs focused on cystic fibrosis,
Vertex has more than a dozen ongoing research programs aimed at
other serious and life-threatening diseases.
Founded in 1989 in Cambridge, Mass., Vertex today has research
and development sites and commercial offices in the United States,
Europe, Canada and Australia. For seven years in a row, Science
magazine has named Vertex one of its Top Employers in the life
sciences. For additional information and the latest updates from
the company, please visit www.vrtx.com.
Vertex Is All In for CFThe CF community motivates Vertex
employees each and every day – to dig deeper, to do more, to
explore the “what ifs,” and to push the boundaries of what we know.
We aim to discover and develop medicines that will treat the
underlying cause of CF for the vast majority of people with the
disease, and our ultimate goal is to cure it. Beyond our
transformational medicines, we help people with CF lead active
lives and pursue higher education, and we fund independent research
and innovative patient centric programs. To learn more please visit
www.vrtxallincf.com.
(VRTX-GEN)
View source
version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20170519005078/en/
Vertex Pharmaceuticals IncorporatedChris Stamm,
617-341-6992mediainfo@vrtx.com
Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX)
Historical Stock Chart
From Feb 2024 to Mar 2024
Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX)
Historical Stock Chart
From Mar 2023 to Mar 2024