Legacy of a Life

“A life may exist for just a short time. And yet can touch and affect many other lives.  William Guy Forbeck lived this kind of life. One short life has led to many positive results.”

Billy’s life may have only been for 11 years but it has been making an impact on cancer research for 35 years. It is not always easy to quantify the impact of the Forbeck Foundation but one clear sign of its’ impact and relevance can be seen by the demand from the scientific community for Forbeck Forums. The explosion of information in cancer research has amplified the need for these meetings. It is an exciting time for new therapies, less toxic treatments, new discovering of genetic markers every day. But the common theme at every meeting is the more we learn the more we realize we don’t know.

During Forbeck Forums, brilliant researchers from around the world come together to learn, debate and collaborate. It is amazing to hear them say I have that piece that you need for your research. Or we did that experiment and it didn’t work. Progress isn’t just made in the lab. Over the years an intricate web of new relationships has been created and reach all across the globe making progress for all those afflicted by cancer.

Throughout the course of the Foundation’s 35-year history, there have been:

• 55 Forums
• 14 Scholar Retreats
• 4 Intl. Neuroblastoma meetings with 6 publications from INSS/INRG
• Funding for the creation of the Interactive International Research Group database (iINRGdb).
• Global participation by over 700 scientists and clinicians from 22 countries in these meetings
• 2 Collaborative Research Projects
• Sponsor Advances in Neuroblastoma Research (ANR) seminal bi-annual Neuroblastoma meeting
• Countless papers, collaborations, and clinical trials

We hope that anyone who has been a part of this incredible journey for any of the past 35 years will join us in celebrating the Legacy of Billy Guy this October in beautiful Lake Geneva.