The generosity of MSK’s foundation partners strengthens all facets of our mission — from pioneering research and patient care to crucial programs in education and community outreach.
Our Foundation Relations team will help you identify the MSK initiatives that best match your organization’s goals. Here are some of the generous foundations whose programmatic interests we’ve matched with our priority initiatives.
The Thompson Family Foundation
Since 2012, The Thompson Family Foundation has supported MSK and Weizmann Institute of Science’s collaboration to develop a new class of cancer treatment: vascular-targeted photodynamic therapy (VTP). In VTP, a chemically modified chlorophyll is injected into the tumor, and then combined with light therapy from fiberoptic lasers. The combination shuts off blood flow to the tumor, with no significant side effects. VTP is now approved for the treatment of early stage prostate cancer in Mexico, South America, and Europe, and pending approval in Israel and the US. This year, MSK launched clinical trials to treat patients with bladder, kidney, esophageal, breast, and pancreatic cancers, as well. Early results are promising. VTP holds the potential to transform cancer medicine, and would not have been possible without The Thompson Family Foundation’s philanthropic leadership.
Cookies for Kids’ Cancer
When two-year-old Liam Witt was diagnosed with cancer in 2007, his parents Larry and Gretchen formed a foundation to help researchers develop safer, more effective pediatric cancer treatments. Since 2008, Cookies for Kids’ Cancer has funded 17 grants at MSK, leading to numerous clinical trials and new therapeutics. Most recently, it has supported physician-scientists at MSK investigating innovative ways to outsmart cancers that have relapsed or not responded to standard care. Cookies is bringing hope to families everywhere fighting pediatric cancer.
The New York Community Trust
Since 2011, the New York Community Trust has funded MSK’s Integrative Cancer Care Access Network (ICCAN), an innovative program addressing cancer health disparities experienced by New York City’s immigrant communities. Newcomers face considerable barriers to accessing care, including limited resources and English language proficiency. The New York Community Trust has helped immigrant patients get the care they need in a timely and culturally sensitive manner, increasing their chances of successfully completing treatment.
St. Baldrick’s Foundation
The St. Baldrick’s Foundation funds promising childhood cancer research across the continuum — from laboratory investigations and clinical advances to supportive care and survivorship. Its novel approach to grassroots fundraising — head-shaving events that generate contributions to the cause — is so popular it’s become a worldwide phenomenon. The organization has provided MSK with 10 grants over the years in a high-impact partnership that continues to drive key breakthroughs and train the next generation of pediatric oncologists.
Jack Rudin Family Foundation
We thank the Jack Rudin Family Foundation for its timely leadership gift to support MSK COVID-19 response efforts. Through the Foundation’s generous partnership, MSK will provide urgently needed relief and personal protective equipment (PPE) to dedicated MSK employees on the front lines of the pandemic. We are honored to remember the late Mr. Rudin, a highly valued former MSK Board Member, and his enduring philanthropic legacy.
Our team is eager to answer your questions and provide more information about MSK. Please contact foundations@mskcc.org for more information.
