Donate

We receive a number of donations in lieu of flowers. This is a wonderful way to both honor a loved one and to help fight this terrible disease. These donations are made at very difficult times, and we therefore want to simplify the process. If you have lost a loved one and would like donations sent to Hopkins to help battle this disease in lieu of flowers, please:

1. Make donations payable to: "Johns Hopkins University"
2. Indicate on the memo line of the check the name of the individual in whose memory the donation is being made.
   
3. Mail the donation to:
   Liver Cancer—Dr. Robert Anders
   c/o Robert Kahl
   Department of Pathology
   Johns Hopkins Medicine
   600 N. Wolfe Street, Carnegie 422
   Baltimore, MD 21287-6417

Please include the name and address of where you would like acknowledgments to be sent (or call our office at 410-955-9132).

When we receive memorial donations, we send a thank you to the donor and we also send a list of the names and address of the donors to the relative of the deceased.

We realize that the death of a loved one is extremely difficult. We hope these simplified instructions will help those of you who wish to honor your loved one with bequests to Johns Hopkins for liver cancer research.

Research requires money, and although most of the support for medical research comes from the federal government via the National Institutes of Health (NIH), it is private philanthropy that can provide the margin of excellence to a research enterprise. Private funds are flexible and can be deployed quickly to take advantage of new ideas and new people. Private funds also can form a constant base for faculty support upon which grant support can be superimposed. Private funds are particularly needed to support research on liver cancer. This is because liver cancer research is woefully underfunded by the NIH.

Endowments are wonderful ways to honor a loved one. Once established, the principal of the endowment is invested by the University. A portion of the income generated each year is reinvested to insure the long-term growth of the Fund. The remainder of the income generated is given to the scientists to support their research.

Research endowments start at $100,000. A plaque is placed in the research labs honoring the donor. Visit https://rising.jhu.edu/giftplanning for more information.

"Everything that is really great and inspiring is created by the individual who can labor in freedom" ~ Albert Einstein

The last five years have brought remarkable advances to our understanding of the genetics of liver cancer. Indeed, at the genetic level, cancer of the liver is currently among the better characterized neoplasms. This growing understanding of the genetics of liver cancer will form the basis of new screening and diagnostic tests for the early detection of liver cancer; they are used to identify patients at risk for familial forms of liver cancer; and they can be used to characterize even the most subtle pathologic changes. In addition, and most importantly, an understanding of the genetic changes associated with the development of liver cancer will form the foundation for developing novel, rational, gene-based therapies for liver cancer.

The establishment of an endowed chair for liver cancer research would allow us to pursue high-risk research work. We believe this work will advance our understanding of liver cancer, not by small steps, but instead by leaps and bounds. All too often, scientists focus their efforts on "evolutionary" work because it is safer, and more of a sure bet. Endowed chairs allow scientists such to pursue revolutionary work. In addition named chairs are a wonderful way of permanently honoring the donor.

The cost for a named endowed chair is approximately $2.5 million.

"The principal mark of genius is not perfection, but originality, the opening of new frontiers." ~ Arthur Koestler

Physicians and scientists must make critical decisions when they come to the end of their standard training. They must decide whether or not to pursue an academic career in research. Those who choose a career in research must then choose a sub-specialty area on which to focus their research efforts. These critical career choices are often made for rather trivial reasons. Countless physicians and scientists with enormous potential have chosen not pursue an academic research career because of a lack of a secure fellowship program.

At the same time, young minds are the most creative minds. Human creativity peaks at a rather young age; as our fund of knowledge increases our creativity paradoxically decreases. Indeed, some of the major new ideas in cancer research in the last several years have come from young scientists in their training. For example, Victor Velculescu here at Johns Hopkins created the idea for the revolutionary technology of serial analysis of gene expression (SAGE). Victor did this while he was a post-doctoral student in the Johns Hopkins cancer research laboratories.

We propose to create an endowed fellowship training program in liver cancer research at Hopkins. This program will provide secure funding to young scientists and physicians wishing to pursue a career in liver cancer research. The research fellowship program will not be a standard fellowship program. Instead it will take advantage of and most importantly encourage the creativity of the trainees. The fellow will be given protected time to focus on identifying and creating novel new technologies which can be applied to liver cancer research.

This approach will bring more minds to the battle against liver cancer. Furthermore, the focus on creative spark will mean that our understanding will advance not in safe yet small steps, but rather in daring leaps.

A number of people have asked how they can make a bequest and about other forms of planned giving. Planned giving can be a wonderful way to support liver cancer research. Depending on the arrangements you choose you can also:

1. Reduce your income taxes,
2. Get more favorable capital gains tax treatment,
3. Increase your spendable income,
4. Retain payments for life, and
5. Achieve no-cost, worry-free asset management.

To learn more about planned giving opportunities visit https://rising.jhu.edu/giftplanning or contact the development office at 443-287-7949 or [email protected].