Winter 2003

This letter is from the inaugural issue of our new newsletter, Avenues. You will also notice the new name of our organization, the Pine Street Foundation. These changes reflect our vision of Pine Street becoming a recognized center for research on the latest developments in integrative medical care.

In the past year, we've made considerable progress and want to thank everyone for the invaluable support we've received. We began with a $16,000 seed grant from the Lance Armstrong Foundation and, from there, continued to raise almost $100,000 in contributions. These funds have come from your generous financial support, a grant from the MACH Foundation of Fairfax, California, a benefit event hosted by performance artist Joya Cory, and from our various community health education programs.

Our most significant project, completed this year, was a rigorous scientific investigation into early diagnosis of lung and breast cancer. Working in collaboration with Professor Tadeusz Jezierski, ScD, of the Polish Academy of Sciences, we assembled a team of five professionally trained scent dogs to identify people with lung and breast cancer using samples of their exhaled breath. This work is based on the observation that cancer cells emit different metabolic waste than normal cells. The dogs' ability to accurately detect and distinguish between breath samples from patients with lung or breast cancers and those from healthy controls was impressive. We are now submitting our results for publication in a major medical journal. Click here for more on this research.

We also conducted a public Chinese Medical Health Screening this year, which provided a comprehensive introduction to Chinese medical diagnostic assessment to over 400 people in a one-day event. We believe community involvement and empowerment through health education are essential tools for optimal health. Look for more on the 2004 Screening in the next Avenues.

As part of our cultural literacy program this year, we continued our work on the Doc Hay Project. "Doc" Ing Hay was one of the first Chinese herbalists to come to the United States – in the late 1800s – and was innovative in the way he combined Chinese herbal medicine with native herbs and emerging Western medicines. His home and clinic – the Kam Wah Chung General Store in John Day, Oregon – is now a museum. On October 9th, the Pine Street Foundation was invited to Portland to make a short presentation about our work on Doc Hay, which includes translating his herbal formulas and the staging of a dramatic play about his life, to the China Northwest Council, an organization that is working with the Friends of Kam Wah Chung to help preserve the museum and Doc Hay's legacy. Rosario Aglialoro, the Council's director, and Mary Oberst, the First Lady of the State of Oregon (who was one of the main presenters at this meeting), were both very encouraging and supportive of our work. Look for more on the Doc Hay Project in the next Avenues.

Lastly, Pine Street sponsored a series of well-attended community health lectures throughout the year. These lectures covered a broad range of topics, from dietary approaches to cancer prevention and understanding the high rate of breast cancer in Marin to informational updates on our own research programs.

We hope that you will join us in supporting our team's efforts to continue our progressive research and education in integrative medical care.

Best wishes,

Michael Broffman, LAc
Michael McCulloch, LAc, MPH

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Pine Street Foundation · 124 Pine Street · San Anselmo · California · 94960-2674
P: (415) 455-5878 · F: (415) 485-1065 · Email Us

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