Cleavage Creek Supports Oncology Research at Bastyr One Glass at a Time

The cleavage on the wine label is the first thing you notice – both the words and the pictures. But first impressions can often be deceiving and the labels of Cleavage Creek Cellars are no exception.

The beautiful women depicted on each bottle are all breast cancer survivors. Winery Founder Budge Brown donates a generous percentage of his gross sales to breast cancer research. A recent grant to Bastyr is being used to help establish and fund a study at the University's new Integrative Oncology Research Center. In collaboration with Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Seattle, researchers at Bastyr will do a matched controlled outcomes study to compare "disease-free survival" and quality of life in cancer patients with others who do not receive complementary, alternative or integrative therapies.

Cleavage Creek

"We anticipate that men, women and children with cancer who are treated at the Bastyr oncology center will live longer and happier lives," according to medical director Dr. Leanna J. Standish. "Our research partnership with Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center will help us to objectively evaluate our clinical program. It will also tell us how our research participants do over the long term and allow us to continuously improve our care and therapies."

Bastyr Integrative Oncology Research Center (BIORC) opened in February on the University campus in Kenmore. This center offers state-of-the-art naturopathic and traditional Chinese medicine treatments. It provides comprehensive support and treatment for each stage of a research participant's experience, from diagnosis and treatment decisions to the restoration of healthy immune function following a course of conventional treatment.

Research participants consult with naturopathic physicians who are board certified in naturopathic oncology, along with licensed acupuncturists. Treatments include mind/body medicine, nutritional counseling, acupuncture, Chinese herbal medicine and botanical medicine. Bastyr physicians are in regular communication with each participant's medical doctors and radiation oncologists to ensure a truly integrated continuum of care.

"Our goal is to improve not just the quality of life of the participants with cancer, but also to reduce the risk of cancer recurrence," Dr. Standish says.

Turning Anger into Action

After losing his beloved wife of 48 years to breast cancer, self-made businessman and long-time farmer Budge Brown was devastated. His devastation soon turned to anger. And his anger led to action.

"Budge Brown is mad as hell at breast cancer, and he's determined to do whatever he can to help find a cure for it," according to the Cleavage Creek website. "He doesn't want what happened in his life to happen to anyone else."

"My wife died for no damn good reason," Brown says. "It's time to do something about this."

Brown is using fine wines to wage his attack on breast cancer. After purchasing the existing Cleavage Creek wine label in 2007, he released the first generation of wines intended to honor breast cancer survivors and raise needed funds for research. He began with eight varietals in the first year: a Napa Cabernet, a Napa Petite Syrah, a Cabernet Syrah, a Merlot, a Merlot-Shiraz and a Chardonnay, all grown in his own Napa Valley vineyards, as well as a Secret Red and a Secret White. The response was overwhelming. Cleavage Creek was immediately deluged with requests for interviews from national and international media, resulting in extensive coverage in television, magazines, newspapers and online. ABC's Good Morning America traveled to Brown's Napa Valley vineyards to film a feature piece that aired nationally.

The second generation of wines was released in October of 2008 and included six varietals. The wines are priced from $18 to $50 a bottle and are available for purchase via phone and Internet sales.