Inspiring Generosity: Gift to Fuel Multifaceted Approach to Discovery

The family’s gift will enable investigators to collaboratively tackle questions about cancer and infectious diseases and quickly share their findings, permitting information to flow freely across disciplines and institutions in real time — speeding the cycle of discovery and application.

The gift will provide resources for four priorities:

• $300 million to bring on 36 new early-career, mid-career and senior investigators with expertise in a variety of scientific areas. The funding includes resources for lab space, equipment and technology to support the collaborative research that inspired the Bezos family’s gift.
• $225 million to support construction of a new 390,000 square-foot research building that will house the Stuart and Molly Sloan Precision Oncology Institute, which was announced last month.
• $149.5 million to expand Fred Hutch’s institution-wide clinical research capabilities to allow for more collaborations between bench scientists and bedside researchers and increase both the number of studies available to patients and the number and diversity of patients enrolled in clinical trials. The Bezos Family Immunotherapy Clinic provides a model for bringing breakthrough treatments to patients more quickly.
• $36 million for the Immunotherapy Integrated Research Center at Fred Hutch to expand immune-based strategies for treating cancer and deepen understanding of the biological mechanisms underlying immunotherapy.

In 2016, Fred Hutch created the Bezos Family Immunotherapy Clinic, the first clinic anywhere dedicated to providing experimental cellular immunotherapies directly to patients. In the years since then, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved six CAR T-cell therapies and all are directly derived, at least in part, from discoveries made at Fred Hutch and propelled by the family’s 2009 challenge and subsequent gifts. Nearly half of the 53 studies now underway or planned at the Bezos Family clinic are based on science that originated at Fred Hutch.

“These efforts have resulted in a whole new approach to treating cancer, and the potential of immunotherapy is just enormous,” said Dr. Fred Appelbaum, Fred Hutch executive vice president and holder of the Metcalfe Family/Frederick Appelbaum Endowed Chair in Cancer Research. “Jackie and Mike saw this from the start and have been wonderful partners as this work has progressed.”

Growing Fred Hutch’s faculty and creating new research spaces are central to Lynch’s strategy because “people make discoveries, and they need the right kind of space to do it,” he said. The “right kind of space,” he noted, encompasses enabling technologies and ready access to robust shared technologies, such as cryo-electron microscopy, a Biosafety Level 3 lab for studying infectious pathogens, cellular manufacturing and more. The Bezos gift will support and expand these resources, allow renovation of existing laboratory spaces and fund investments in emerging technologies.

The gift will also advance established research partnerships and create new ones to drive scientific breakthroughs.

“It is because of [its] commitment to collaboration and innovation that we previously supported the Hutch,” said Mike Bezos. “We’ve seen the impact as each discovery lays the groundwork for the next one and scientists from different fields and institutions apply new perspectives and build solutions.”

He continued, “Science, particularly cancer and virus research, is at such a pivotal point. We hope our investment in the Hutch leads to answers for the most pressing medical questions. We also hope this inspires others to join us now in pursuing scientific and medical breakthroughs.”

'Philanthropy sets the pace for progress'

This and other recent gifts provide a foundation for Fred Hutch’s expansive vision.

“Biotechnology and pharmaceutical industries play a critical role in developing treatments, but they depend on our nation’s cancer centers and other research organizations to fuel that work,” Lynch said. “This landmark gift strategically targets growing our research pipeline, increasing collaboration, expanding clinical trials and investing in research infrastructure — and that directly accelerates our ability to make breakthroughs.”

Lynch estimates that the institution will need $3 billion in total philanthropic support in the next ten years to achieve its objectives. “Ambitious goals demand bold investment,” he said, noting that donor support accelerates science by freeing investigators to explore new angles that emerge from their science.

“Our work is urgent,” Lynch added. “Philanthropy sets the pace for progress, and every gift of every size matters.”

With their generous gift, the Bezos family is giving researchers the chance to answer fundamental scientific questions and illuminate some of the most important, and least understood, questions in cancer and infectious disease. People everywhere stand to benefit.