Dive Brief:
- Johns Hopkins has announced plans for the launch of its Bloomberg-Kimmel Institute for Cancer Immunotherapy.
- Former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg and film maker Sidney Kimmel each donated $50 million to the new center, which will focus on advancing immunotherapy for cancer. The additional $25 million came from other donors.
- Biden's "moonshot" initiative, announced last year after his son, Beau, died from brain cancer, has focused on immunotherapy as key in the fight against cancer.
Dive Insight:
Part of the funding will go toward recruiting new scientists and infrastructure research investments. It will also further Hopkins' private sector partnerships in biotech and pharma and advance new technology to enable tracking an immune response inside a tumor. Research efforts will be focused on melanoma, colon, pancreatic, urologic, lung, breast and ovarian cancers, according to a Johns Hopkins press release.
Dr. Drew Pardoll, director of the new institute, said in a statement one of the goals was to advance immunotherapies "to the point where the immune system will ultimately be able to beat 100% of cancers."
The new institute will bring together more than 100 scientists and clinicians throughout Johns Hopkins to focus on cancer immunology. "We are at the forefront of an emerging and promising field of cancer research and treatment," Paul Rothman, dean and CEO of Johns Hopkins Medicine, said in a statement.
Bloomberg has long supported Johns Hopkins, donating more than $1.2 billion since graduating in 1964. He has also financed 20% of need-based financial aid grants to undergraduates, according to a university press release.