Jenifer Raub
Patient Advocate for Parkinson’s disease; President, Summit for Stem Cell Foundation, Inc.
Jenifer Raub continues to serve as President of Summit for Stem Cell Foundation, Inc. (Summit), a 501(c)(3) charitable organization since its inception. She works tirelessly to benefit approximately 10 million people worldwide struggling with Parkinson’s disease (PD) and 1 billion living with a neurodegenerative disease. Jenifer speaks to countless people with PD around the world educating them on regenerative medicine. She was also selected to speak before the FDA as one of five representatives for PD in support of iPSC-based regenerative medicine as a treatment option.
When told she “might have” Parkinson’s 15 years ago, Jenifer spent two years trying to negate or confirm the “iffy” diagnosis. A DaTscan (Dopamine transporter scan) finally confirmed the diagnosis. Jenifer withdrew from her life trying to figure out how to go forward. Coincidentally, in her past, she had voraciously read about the identification of neurotransmitters and, in particular, Curt Freed’s work transplanting fetal tissue to replace dopamine in Parkinson’s disease. She began to search for a “stem cell solution” for Parkinson’s disease.
In 2014, barely able to walk without the aid of two canes, Jenifer found a fledgling Parkinson’s focused research project in the lab of Dr. Jeanne Loring, which needed funding. Three weeks later, Jenifer, her husband, a small group of Parkinson’s advocates, and some friends hosted an event and raised $1.3 million. This provided the needed cash infusion for the project working towards an autologous dopamine neuron replacement therapy for Parkinson’s disease.
From that day forward Summit evolved and became the organization it is today. Jenifer is a tireless advocate for Parkinson’s disease breaking down barriers and bridging informational gaps by educating professionals and the public alike about regenerative medicine. Having Parkinson’s disease herself, she understands what it is to have Parkinson’s disease. She is dedicated to alleviating patients’ frustrations when trying to navigate the maze of information, and to separate hope from hype, by providing reliable evidence-based information.
After fighting to improve the quality of her own life through exercise and other means, Jenifer began down a determined road and vowed to keep others from the same experience by changing the status quo for PD patients.
Since those earliest days of the organization, Summit has successfully funded, promoted, and launched the autologous dopamine neuron replacement therapy into the private sector to hasten its progress from bench to bedside. The developing therapy is now in the hands of Aspen Neuroscience, Inc., and Summit, one of its co-founders, monitors and provides information on the cell-based therapy’s progression. The cell-based therapy is estimated to begin phase I of clinical trials Q4 2023 or Q1 2024.
Having successfully supported and launched Dr. Loring’s cell-based therapy for Parkinson’s disease, Jenifer now oversees a new project for Summit for Stem Cell Foundation raising funds for The Capital Campaign for a center focused on focused on people with Parkinson’s disease. The center is a collaborative effort of an impressive Board of Governors comprised of leading experts nationally and from Canada. Programs target every aspect of Parkinson’s disease including those interested in clinical trial preparedness. The center will be a place where physicians can confidently refer their patients for the help they need.
Jenifer is dedicated to helping others with Parkinson’s disease, like herself, to live the best quality of life possible. She looks forward to a future with a cell-based solution to the symptoms of Parkinson’s disease and a Victory Over Parkinson’s.