The two co-founders of the WuXi AppTech/WuXi Biologics CROs, Drs. Ge Li and Ning Zhao, have made a $20 million charitable gift to Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSK) in New York City for cancer research. The Ge Li & Ning Zhao Family Foundation gave the money to MSK to support lung cancer research and develop new therapies. The money will be used to create three Ning Zhao & Ge Li endowed chairs at MSK and a research fund to underwrite basic, translational and clinical research. 

Specifically, The Ning Zhao & Ge Li Family Initiative for Lung Cancer Research and New Therapies will seek to create a deeper understanding of lung cancer biology, which can be used to develop new targeted therapies to overcome drug resistance and to prevent metastasis in lung cancer.

Lung cancer is responsible for 25% of all cancer deaths, the leading cause of cancer deaths among men and women in the US. Although lung cancer rates are dropping, more research and better treatments are needed.

In addition, the initiative will support critical new research projects led by research fellows and fund essential related work in the Department of Pathology.

Founded in 2000 as Wuxi PharmaTech, offering basic lab services to pharmaceutical companies, WuXi AppTech and WuXi Biologics have grown to have a worldwide reach, with facilities in many countries and a combined market capitalization of $90 billion.

The Ge Li & Ning Zhao Family Foundation is dedicated to advancing education, scientific research, and healthcare innovations to improve the well-being of humanity. The Family Foundation was created in 2020 through the generosity of Dr. Ge Li and Dr. Ning Zhao.

Ge Li, PhD, is Chairman of WuXi AppTec and WuXi Biologics. Ning Zhao, PhD, is a member of the board, Senior Vice President and Global Head of Human Resources at WuXi AppTec, and President of the Ge Li & Ning Zhao Family Foundation.

“We are deeply grateful for this gift, which will enable MSK to continue its leadership in the treatment of lung cancer and allow us to devote even more resources to researching the disease at every stage,” said Craig B. Thompson, MD, President and CEO of MSK.

 “Our team of lung cancer researchers and clinicians is so excited by the opportunity provided by this gift to accelerate the discovery and implementation of new lung cancer therapies,” said Charles M. Rudin, MD, PhD, Chief of MSK’s Thoracic Oncology Service and Co-Director of the Fiona and Stanley Druckenmiller Center for Lung Cancer Research, which will house the new initiative. “The exceptional generosity of the Ge Li & Ning Zhao Family Foundation will make a significant impact on what our thoracic team is able to accomplish in the years to come.”

“The specialists at MSK are among the most experienced in the treatment of lung cancer in the world,” said David R. Jones, MD, Chief of the Thoracic Service in the Department of Surgery at MSK and Co-Director of the Druckenmiller Center for Lung Cancer Research. “We offer our patients the most compassionate care and advanced treatment, whether it be surgery, chemotherapy, targeted therapies, immunotherapy or radiation. This generous gift comes at a crucial time in the fight against lung cancer and will enable us to bring new treatment approaches to our patients faster.”

“We are excited to contribute to the significant research being done at Memorial Sloan Kettering in the field of lung cancer,” Dr. Li and Dr. Zhao shared. “Advancing cancer research is a cause we care deeply about, and it will be extremely gratifying to witness the doctors and researchers put this gift to good use. We look forward to seeing their advances and discoveries in the future.”

MSK has pioneered advances in lung cancer and continues working to develop new and more durably effective treatment approaches. Its recent breakthroughs include  novel targeted therapies, immunotherapies, robotic bronchoscopy and newer forms of precise radiation such as proton therapy.

As the world’s oldest and largest private cancer center, Memorial Sloan Kettering has devoted more than 135 years to high-level patient care, influential educational programs, and innovative research. MSK is home to more than 20,000 physicians, scientists, nurses, and staff.

See our other articles on WuXi AppTech and WuXi Biologics.

Disclosure: none.