Check to benefit ALS Therapy Alliance to be presented at Fenway Park Tonight
WOONSOCKET, R.I., Aug. 21 /PRNewswire/ -- CVS/pharmacy announced today
that it has raised $4.4 million in just 21 days through its annual in-store
fundraising campaign for ALS research. This is the eighth year of the annual
fundraising effort which, to date, has raised $19.3 million for ALS research,
$1 at a time. This year's fundraiser took place in CVS/pharmacy locations
nationwide from June 7 to 27.
"Each year, we are amazed and grateful for the incredible support
CVS/pharmacy customers demonstrate for ALS research," said Jonathan Roberts,
Executive Vice President of CVS Caremark, who also served as an honorary chair
of this year's fundraising campaign. "The $19.3 million our dedicated
customers have raised, $1 at a time, helps further research into this
devastating disease. We hope that today's check presentation shows how those
individual contributions really make a big impact."
Serving with Roberts as co-chair of the campaign was Dana Miller, a
45-year-old resident of Wayland, Mass., and mother of four. She was diagnosed
with an aggressive form of ALS just eight months ago.
ALS, or amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, is a disorder in which there is
progressive degeneration of motor nerves in the brain and spinal cord leading
to paralysis and death, typically within three to five years. There is no
known cause or cure for ALS, which affects 25,000 Americans, with 5,000 new
cases diagnosed each year.
The funds raised from the CVS/pharmacy campaign will be donated to the ALS
Therapy Alliance (ATA), which was founded in 2000 to provide a vehicle for a
diverse group of scientists and clinicians to coordinate research related to
ALS. Scientists involved in the ATA are affiliated with leading universities
and medical centers, including Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical
School, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Harvard University, Brigham and
Women's Hospital, Beth Israel Deaconess Hospital, Boston University and the
University of Massachusetts. CVS Caremark is the largest corporate donor to
the ALS Therapy Alliance.
"CVS/pharmacy fundraising continues to have a significant impact on ALS
research," said Robert Brown, Jr., D. Phil, M.D., Director of the Cecil B. Day
Laboratory for Neuromuscular Research at the University of Massachusetts
Medical School. "The CVS/pharmacy ALS program has recruited outstanding
scientists at multiple centers with new insights into the causes and
treatments of this disease. Over the last year alone, the funding has
facilitated the discovery of at least four new ALS-related genes and the
expansion of an ALS drug discovery project."
The official check presentation will take place prior to the Boston Red
Sox versus Yankees game at Fenway Park this evening with Tom Ryan, Chairman,
President and Chief Executive Officer of CVS Caremark, participating in the
check presentation along with Roberts, Troy Brennan, M.D., M.P.H., Executive
Vice President and Chief Medical Officer of CVS Caremark, Dana Miller's
husband Bill and their four children, Brown and H. Robert Horvitz, Ph.D.,
Howard Hughes Investigator, Dept. of Biology at the Massachusetts Institute of
Technology.
About CVS/pharmacy
CVS/pharmacy, the retail division of CVS Caremark Corporation (NYSE: CVS),
is America's largest retail pharmacy with more than 6,900 CVS/pharmacy and
Longs Drugs stores. CVS/pharmacy is committed to improving the lives of those
we serve by making innovative and high-quality health and pharmacy services
safe, affordable and easy to access, both in its stores and online at CVS.com.
General information about CVS/pharmacy and CVS Caremark is available at
www.cvscaremark.com.
SOURCE CVS/pharmacy
CONTACT:
Carolyn Castel,
CVS/pharmacy,
+1-401-770-5717,
ccastel@cvs.com,
or Gail Leach Carvelli,
(add)ventures,
+1-401-453-4748,
+1-401-572-4115, cell,
gcarvelli@addventures.com
Web Site: http://info.cvscaremark.com
