The Power of Rare
Victoria Jackson
"The Power of Rare is equal parts science and inspiration. In her urgent drive to help her daughter, Victoria Jackson not only transformed the competitive world of biomedical research, but also created a new medical model for generations to come."
—Arianna Huffington
Victoria Jackson revolutionized the beauty industry in the 1980s and 90s with her “no make-up” approach to make-up and ultimately made Victoria Jackson Cosmetics into a billion-dollar global brand. But her greatest tests of the power of rare didn’t come until her daughter was diagnosed with neuromyelitis optica, or NMO—a rare, life-threatening autoimmune disease—and Victoria, driven by a mother’s love, set out to find a cure for her daughter.
Within days of hearing Ali’s diagnosis in 2008, Victoria began the Guthy-Jackson Charitable Foundation to fund medical research into this often misdiagnosed orphan disease. Her “blueprint” calls for breaking down the so-called silos of traditional medical research and bringing together some of the greatest minds to collaborate and share their findings. She hadn’t expected to galvanize how medical research works, but within only a few years, she did just that. By focusing on the “rare” in each of us, the foundation has catalyzed breakthroughs in NMO in record time. These advances are also opening new doors to solving MS, lupus, and other autoimmune diseases—plus diseases that are not so rare—including cancer, infection, aging and more.
It has been Victoria’s guiding philosophy that if she can do it, anyone can. With The Power of Rare, she shares how the foundation created a revolutionary model to speed discoveries that help empower patients and save lives. Through her business savvy, wit and heart, she offers real-world advice and inspiration for others to tap into “rare” to empower their own breakthroughs.
VICTORIA JACKSON is the proud mother of three children—Evan, Ali and Jackson. She is the founder of Victoria Jackson Cosmetics and head of the Guthy-Jackson Charitable Foundation. She is a passionate advocate for women’s issues, a tireless philanthropist, and a 2017 inductee of the National Women’s Hall of Fame. The co-author of Saving Each Other with her daughter, Ali Guthy, she lives with her husband Bill Guthy in Los Angeles.
DR. MICHAEL YEAMAN is a pioneer of immune health, and serves as the Chair of Advisors to the Guthy-Jackson Charitable Foundation. Author of over 200 scholarly works and 20 patents, he is Professor of Medicine, UCLA David Geffen School of Medicine, and Chief of Molecular Medicine, Harbor-UCLA Medical Center. A native of Roswell, New Mexico—where his life of rare began—Michael is an acclaimed composer and musician interested in the unity of art, science and medicine.