On Thursday, OMRF hosted the first meeting of the Nonagenarian Society at its Oklahoma City campus.
The Nonagenarian Society was created by longtime OMRF board member H.E. “Gene” Rainbolt. His goal was to encourage Oklahomans between the ages of 90 and 99 to learn from physicians and scientists about current medical research, particularly in cancer, at OMRF and the Stephenson Cancer Center at the University of Oklahoma.
The Society will meet twice a year, alternating sites between OMRF and Stephenson.
At the meeting, Holly Van Remmen, Ph.D., chair of OMRF’s Aging and Metabolism Research Program, gave a presentation on the basic research underway at OMRF on diseases of aging, including age-related muscle loss, Alzheimer’s disease, dementia, arthritis and cancer.
Attendees also watched a video featuring a collaboration between OMRF and Stephenson on a promising cancer drug for glioblastoma, a deadly form of brain cancer. The drug, OKN-007, was developed at OMRF and is in clinical trials at Stephenson.
“OMRF and Stephenson are two internationally recognized institutions who do groundbreaking work and have made a tremendous impact on Oklahoma,” said Rainbolt, who turned 90 in April. “My ambition with this society is for people in this age group to get together, participate, learn and support the research being done to help us all live longer and healthier lives.”
The society has 41 members so far. Those who attended the OMRF luncheon included Rainbolt, George Nigh, Dick Clements, Jeanne Hoffman Smith, Robert Ellis, Kay Goebel, Louis Trost, June Parry, Millar “Bud” White, Nina Gaugler, William Parry, Dick Sias and Joe McClendon at the Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation.
For more information on becoming a member of the Nonagenarian Society, contact Penny Voss or Sonny Wilkinson at OMRF at 405-271-7400.
