Andrea Eidelman: Curing Stomach Cancer: What Was Debbie’s Dream?

Gevorg Tamamyan: Hello, everyone. Welcome back to OncoDaily. And today our guest is a great person, a wonderful woman leader, Andrea Pola Edelman, the chief executive officer of Debbie Stream Foundation Curing Stomach Cancer.

Edelman brings a lifelong commitment to advocating for those in need and has been actively involved in the South Florida community, serving on boards and committees of various local medical charities. A lawyer with a degree from St. Thomas University, Edelman spent most of her legal career relentlessly advocating for the rights of the underprivileged population, specifically the rights of kids and kids in need of legal representation due to abandonment, abuse or neglect by biological parents.

Andrea’s non-professional life has also been committed to advocating for those in need.

She has been served on the board of the American Lung Association and Bella’s Kinship Group. She was a dedicated DDF volunteer prior to becoming its executive director. She was born in Buenos Aires in Argentina.

She grew up in Miami, Florida, and is a graduate of the University of Miami. She is married to Dr. Frank Edelman, and they reside in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, with their cat Toby. Her bio is certainly much larger, but it’s going to take longer time for us to do it, so I’ll leave it to her and to our discussion.

Andrea, welcome. Thank you very much for being with us.

Andrea Eidelman: Thank you. Thank you for inviting us. This is a great opportunity for us to shed a light on Debbie’s Dream Foundation and all the exciting work that we’re doing for both our patient and caregiver community internationally.

Gevorg Tamamyan: Andrea, thank you very much again for being with us, and please could you tell a bit more about Debbie’s Dream Foundation, and I mean, how did you get involved and then became the CEO of this important foundation and this important work?

Andrea Eidelman: So Debbie’s Dream Foundation was founded by a woman named Debbie Zellman, and in 2008, she was diagnosed with stage four incurable stomach cancer. She was 40 years old, a mother of three children, had no risk factors, and was told basically that she had weeks to live. When Debbie was diagnosed, she realized that there were so few options, you know, available in terms of treatments and resources for the stomach cancer community that she made it her life mission to change the landscape for the gastric cancer patient and their families.

So Debbie started responding pretty favorably to her initial treatments, and in 2009 started Debbie’s Dream Foundation. The mission of the organization is to raise awareness about gastric cancer, fund research, and provide support to patients and caregivers and their families internationally. Debbie remained as the founder and president until 2017, and in 2017, unfortunately, Debbie passed away in December.

Shortly before Debbie passed away, she was, you know, struggling a lot with her treatments towards the end of her journey, and the board of directors decided that it was time to hire somebody to take over the operations of the organization. And I had been a dedicated volunteer with Debbie’s Dream Foundation, serving on various committees, and was aware of Debbie and her struggles, and was very much enamored with the work that was being done at the foundation. I’m also an attorney by profession, as was Debbie, so we had a lot of common friends.

I had known many members of her board of directors, and for me it was a natural step as I was working at Legal Aid of Broward, and I was, you know, which is another local non-profit, and I had dedicated my career, my legal career, to helping those in need.

So it just seemed like a natural transition for me to apply for the opportunity to help those in need, which are those that are struggling with gastric cancer, and kind of use my expertise, both legally and both in the non-profit space, to make an impact with Debbie’s Dream and continue Debbie’s legacy, which has been a very important thing for the foundation to do since her passing.

Gevorg Tamamyan: Thank you very much, really, for this important work that you are doing. Let’s go more into the organization, and like the mission of Debbie’s Dream Foundation, and what currently you are doing, and what have you accomplished during this time?

Andrea Eidelman: So this year has been really a pivotal year, I think, for Debbie’s Dream in terms of our expansion. We are proud to say that we have expanded and now have a DDF affiliate in Japan. We are very excited about this affiliate.

The name of the affiliate is Kubunokai, and they’ve been based out of Japan and working in the Asian region for quite some time. The reason why this is important to the organization is because gastric cancer is one of the cancers that is disproportionately seen and affected by certain populations, one of which is in Asia. They actually have very, very high rates of gastric cancer, but contrary to the patients and caregivers that we tend to work with here, most of our patients are stage four.

So we are excited to be able to learn from those different opportunities that we will have, and be able to also provide services through Debbie’s Dream Foundation to those communities as well that are affected.

Gevorg Tamamyan: I mean, congratulations with your expansion, but how big is the organization now? I know you have chapters all over the United States, but also you have other chapters internationally, right?

Andrea Eidelman: Yeah, we have mission ambassadors. We actually changed a little bit our branding this year as well, and we’re calling them mission ambassadors. We do have mission ambassadors that are located throughout the United States and different regions that will go out and kind of do some outreach and groundwork for the organization where needed and appropriate, getting our resources out, which is very important to us so people can connect with the organization.

We have a lot of interesting programs. We do offer our patient community. So those are critical vehicles that we use, our mission ambassadors to kind of infiltrate communities and let people know about the work that we’re doing.

Gevorg Tamamyan: So basically, I mean, these volunteers, I mean, from where, from which discipline they are coming, are they doctors, nurses, medical professionals, or patients, patient advocates? I mean, how do you choose your ambassadors? And if someone is like right now watching us and they want to join Debbie’s Dream Foundation, I mean, what background should they have?

What’s the requirements? And what should they do?

Andrea Eidelman: I mean, right, well, thank you for that. So being a non-profit, so being a non-profit, we always need help in any way that we can accomplish that. Our resources are limited.

We want to use the money that is donated to the foundation in the best possible way possible, which is one of our main vehicles to do that and to serve our patient community is to fund research. But in terms of our volunteers, we have volunteers from all walks of life. We have patient volunteers that help with our advocacy efforts, and they are on committees for the planning of our big February event that we can discuss later on in the interview.

But we have a lot of, we have board members that are patients and are retired. We have a lot of medical advisory board members that are doctors in the space, and they help with our programming, serving as speakers on different webinars, symposia that we host throughout the country. We have volunteers that simply will go out in their communities and give out our packets and host a booth at a health fair.

So everyone is welcome, I guess, as long as you want to help the organization. We can always find a place for you. We’re growing, so we need help, as much help as possible.

So that’s kind of how how our mission works, through everybody that wants to help and can offer whatever expertise that may be.

Gevorg Tamamyan: Very nice. I’m sure a lot of people will see now you’re like this challenge, and many people would like to join the important work you are doing. I mean, talking about the priorities, what are your 2024 priorities, what you want to accomplish this year?

Andrea Eidelman: Yeah, so we just got back from ESMO GI, and we were excited to attend that conference. That was a conference that was held in Munich, Germany, and we’re actually going to be hosting our ASCO and ESMO updates webinar, for those that are interested, next Monday, July 22nd at 3 p.m., so I believe that’s Eastern time. And we are also working on a large celebratory event that’s going to be hosted on November 9th here in South Florida.

I believe many of the watchers or you would be aware of the Seminole Hardware Casino. It’s a beautiful guitar building that last year we lit up, also in November, on November 30th, in honor of curing stomach cancer. November is our month, periwinkle is our color, so last year we partnered with Mind Up Feeling out of Canada and a lot of different sister stomach cancer organizations, and lit up over 180 worldwide monuments to raise awareness about gastric cancer.

So this year we’re going to have our celebratory dinner, where we’re going to highlight a lot of luminaries in the gastric cancer space. Our volunteers and board members and researchers that are doing great work in the space will be honored at this dinner, and we’re very much looking forward to lighting up the guitar and hosting our Illuminations celebratory dinner on November 9th.

Also that day, we’re going to have an educational patient and caregiver conference, where patients and caregivers will be able to interact with doctors, some of the top doctors in the field, ask questions, learn about the latest in research, clinical trials, immunotherapies, biomarkers, nutrition, and all the topics that are really top of mind and interesting to the gastric cancer community.

Gevorg Tamamyan: I mean it sounds very nice.

Andrea Eidelman: Thank you, we’re excited.

Gevorg Tamamyan: Yeah, I’m sure you’re going to have a wonderful event. And what about the, I mean, any other plans? I know you are doing some, I mean, an important advocacy event in 2025, and I mean, can you explore a bit more about it?

Andrea Eidelman: Yeah, so as I mentioned earlier, you know, one of the things that Debbie, our founder, really, really wanted the foundation to do was to fund research, and we have continued to do that since 2014. We’ve been funding research through the AACR, through our own fundraising efforts, but we’ve also been very much taking the lead on the federal level, because we realize that the money that we can raise will not make the biggest impact for stomach cancer research, but the federal money that is available will.

So we’ve been growing an event each and every year that happens in February, where we advocate to be included as one of the cancers that’s eligible to receive funding through the PRCRP program, which is the Peer-Reviewed Cancer Research Program.

And that program will allow funding for, specifically for stomach cancer, and we’ve been advocating each and every year to make sure that we’re included to be able to receive those funds. As many of our, of the researchers out there will know, that that’s money that they can apply for to utilize for those grants, as well as the funding through the AACR.

So, we were, last year we had 150 participants in our February event, and this year, this coming year, we will have, you know, we’ve, we will want more advocates coming to the Hill and helping us raise awareness for gastric cancer, and to make sure that we get that funding.

It’s very, very important to find a cure, which is our ultimate mission.

Gevorg Tamamyan: Very nice. Thanks again, and I want to go for some more questions about yourself. You are an accomplished woman leader.

I mean, you have done a lot, and still you are doing a lot, and I’m sure you are going to accomplish great things in the future, but what’s the key to your success?

Andrea Eidelman: Well, I think that, you know, pivoting very quickly. I know when I, you know, started working at the foundation, there were a lot of changes. Obviously, the transition, you know, losing our founder.

I think it’s, the pivoting has allowed the organization to become a lot more patient-focused, which is really, really important. So, I’m glad that I was able to see that process through, to make sure that the organization thrived and survived as it has, while still keeping in mind, you know, the focus points of the organization. So, I think that pivoting, being a versatile, are traits that are important to me personally, and have helped me in my role here at Debbie’s Dream Foundation.

Gevorg Tamamyan: From your bio, it’s very clear, I mean, your passion towards helping people in need, right? I mean, you were an advocate for the kids, both professionally and in the non-professional field, and then you came to the gastric cancer. And what was the, I mean, what’s the reason to choose that, like, I think, quite difficult field?

Andrea Eidelman: It is actually a really, really difficult field, and I don’t think we mentioned, but prior to being an attorney, I do have a bachelor’s in psychology and sociology. And during my earlier career, where I explored working in that field, I did work with HIV patients, providing a lot of services and mental health services. And I’ve always been, and then the children that were in crisis, being abused, abandoned, or neglected.

And here, primarily, stage four patients that are diagnosed, and from one minute to the next, they’re in crisis, their lives are completely turned upside down, which is what we see here every day. They’re facing a horrible diagnosis with, you know, it affects each and every aspect of their lives, financial, caregiving, work, what they look like, right? So many factors.

So I think I’ve always done well in these types of situations. I love helping people when they possibly believe that there is no help otherwise. So I think that that really brings out the best in my leadership.

And I think that the stage four, you know, a lot of the community that we serve really, really has a lot of needs that need to be met. So we do that through the work that we do each and every day.

Gevorg Tamamyan: How will you balance the work and the life?

Andrea Eidelman: Well, you know, I think that we actually transitioned to working remotely during the pandemic. We saw that it was beneficial for a lot of the things that we do, and we were able to transition pretty quickly to the remote environment. So I think that what I try to do each and every day that’s important for me is taking care of myself, because if I don’t do that, I cannot be good for anyone else, right?

And like we said, this job does take a lot, we lose people, and that’s really, really hard for myself, our mentors that work directly with our patient community, our staff. It’s very, very difficult to navigate that and still stay positive for our patients. So I believe in taking care of myself as well, so that I can be the best leader.

So each and every day I try to exercise is very important to me. Yoga is something that I try to do each and every day, and also ice skating. I do skate and have been skating for many years, and that’s also something that I try to do every day in the morning or in the evening, and particularly on the weekends to kind of, you know, connect myself to relax and to feel better.

Gevorg Tamamyan: And you like to travel, right?

Andrea Eidelman: Yes, yes. I love to travel for both business and pleasure. The Foundation did some work through our international expansion.

We did a few conferences in Korea, and we also, you know, worked with the IGCC in Japan, the International Gastric Cancer Congress. We were part of a patient advocacy session. As I said, we just came back from ESMO GI, and we tried to attend a lot of the different conferences that are relevant in our space throughout the year.

So yeah, my calendar is very, very busy with all these events, and I try to get in a little bit of personal travel as well.

Gevorg Tamamyan: What’s the top destination for you?

Andrea Eidelman: Well, for me personally, I would love to go to Prague, Vienna, and Budapest. That’s been on my list for a long time, but I’ve not made it out there just because it’s, you know, it’s just difficult with my travel schedule and my husband’s and all of our obligations. But hopefully, maybe in 2025, I will be able to do that on a personal level, not for business.

Gevorg Tamamyan: So who is your role model for you?

Andrea Eidelman: So, you know, I will say that Debbie, in many ways, was a role model for me, especially, you know, keeping in mind, you know, how sick she was towards the end and what she went through and, you know, actually what she went through for nine and a half years, undergoing harsh treatments, you know, giving selflessly of herself to others to really start an organization to make an impact for those that, you know, need help, that need to be acknowledged, that need to not only that, but, you know, there’s still a lot to be done in terms of research in the gastric cancer space.

So I think that Debbie is definitely a role model for me, her tenacity and her, you know, drive to do and to make an impact on things that were important to her personally, no matter what her circumstances.

Gevorg Tamamyan: I know also you would like to watch movies. What are your top three recommendations?

Andrea Eidelman: Well, I just happened to watch a movie on the plane. I saw Oppenheimer for the first time. I know it’s been out for a while.

I’m a little behind, but traveling to Germany, I was able to watch that movie. So I would highly recommend that. In terms of, you know, I don’t really go to the movies too much, but I try to watch things on Netflix and so forth.

And another show that I’m watching on Netflix, it’s not a movie, but I highly recommend is called Secession. So I don’t know if you’re aware of it, but definitely a favorite of mine.

Gevorg Tamamyan: Okay, wonderful. And the last question, who we should interview next?

Andrea Eidelman: Well, I personally think that one of the things that I would like to highlight about the Foundation and some of our recent work is the fellowship that we started at MSK. So we started this year, in addition to our advocacy that we discussed, some of our grants, you know, and some of the money that the board has put aside is for young researchers and young investigators to encourage them to get into gastric cancer. And they prioritize this year to give money to MSK for a new fellowship for three years.

So I know that Dr. Janjagian, Yelena Janjigian, on our medical advisory board, is spearheading that program. And I think that she would be a great person to interview. She is so dynamic and doing so much work internationally.

This is very important to Debbie’s dream and the work that she’s doing with the fellowship and the fellow, I think, would be interesting to have Dr. Janjagian speak about all the work that she’s doing.

Gevorg Tamamyan: Thank you so much. I will certainly do it. She’s a very dear friend and it would be a great pleasure to interview her.

Andrea Eidelman: Thank you so much.

Gevorg Tamamyan: Is there anything else you would like to share before we close?

Andrea Eidelman: Yeah, one of the things that I think is important about one of the things that the Foundation is currently working on, and I think the doctors and a lot of the people that are listening to this will appreciate, is we’re trying to do a lot of education with our patient community on biomarkers. It’s a complicated topic. It’s difficult to understand.

So, you know, we’ve been trying to educate patients about the importance of having their biomarkers checked for many years. But this year, we’ve taken things a little bit further in that regard. And we’ve launched an animated video to explain to patients what a biomarker is in a very simple way.

Who should get tested? Why is it important? And we also utilized Dr. Sam Kleppner from Massachusetts General. And he’s doing, we’re launching a video with him that’s going to be in conjunction with the animated for a physician to speak briefly in a very simple way and educate the patient community about the biomarkers and their importance. So that’s going to be launching in the next week or two. So we want to make sure that people know about that resource.

And if doctors would like to use this resource or also get it out to their communities, I think it would be helpful as well.

Gevorg Tamamyan: Please don’t forget to share it with us. And we’ll be happy to highlight it also on the OncoDaily and to share it throughout our channels.

Andrea Eidelman: Thank you. Thank you. Yeah, we’re trying to make things as simple as possible for our patient community to understand.

And we put a lot of thought and time into making sure that patients understand these complicated topics and that they can use them to have dialogues with their physicians and get on the best treatment options available for them.

Gevorg Tamamyan: Thank you very much, Andrea. Thanks a lot for the very insightful interview. And I really enjoyed it.

Thank you very much.

Andrea Eidelman: Thank you so much for having us.