Purdue Awarded ‘Transformative’ Gift

Timothy Ratliff (left)

The Indianapolis-based Walther Cancer Foundation haw awarded a $10 million matching-funds gift to the Purdue University Center for Cancer Research. The university says the gift will help advance research in drug discovery, treatments and potential cures.

Purdue says funds from the gift will be used for a variety of needs, including faculty recruitment and retainment, equipment, and research. The money will not, however, be used for renovation or expansion of current facilities.

Thomas Grein, chief executive officer of the Walther Cancer Foundation, says a matching grant will allow the organization to leverage its contributions with the support of others to further build the center’s capabilities. 

"We couldn’t be more grateful to the Walther Foundation," Purdue President Mitch Daniels said in a news release. "Nor could we be more proud of the work being done at our cancer center, which has generated 10 potential drugs in clinical trials, with 31 in the pipeline, and technology that has created 15 startup companies over the last seven years."

Some of the areas of research that will benefit from the gift will include drug discovery and development, various types of cancer such as breast, pancreatic, prostate, and others, as well as the role obesity plays in disease.