Founder and CEO, Multiple Myeloma Research Foundation, Multiple Myeloma Research Consortium

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Earlier Education: B.S., Biological Sciences, University of Vermont, 1980

On Leadership: “Know what your dream is and go after it.”

Kathy Giusti’s achievements as an entrepreneur have dramatically changed the lives of many cancer patients, including her own. By expediting research on multiple myeloma, a rare and incurable blood cancer with one of the lowest survival rates of all cancers, she has prolonged the life expectancy of thousands of patients and aided in the development of drugs for this and other cancers.

A successful marketing executive who had worked at Merck, Gillette, and Searle, Giusti was diagnosed with myeloma in 1996. As she faced a grim prognosis of three years to live, she knew that her business background, in combination with the legal expertise of her identical twin sister, Karen, could be used to make a difference. Together they founded the Multiple Myeloma Research Foundation in 1998 with the goal of speeding the development of new treatments and, one day, finding a cure.

Giusti’s success with MMRF and its sister organization, the Multiple Myeloma Research Consortium, have revolutionized cancer research. Under her leadership, the two groups have made incredible progress — including helping to bring patients four new treatments — and continue to win high praise for their ability to accelerate research and drug development.

By applying business principles to the medical world, Giusti has broken down traditional barriers and given hope, inspiration, and life to countless cancer patients around the world.