Napster co-founder Sean Parker gifts $250m to new immunotherapy institute
Napster co-founder Sean Parker is to allocate $250m from his philanthropic institution toward the creation of an immunotherapy institute dedicated to the fight against cancer.
The Parker Institute for Cancer Immunotherapy will bring together six US medical universities offering space for 300 researchers in 40 labs with each group benefitting from funding and access to research and technology in return for sharing any discoveries with the group.
Parker said: “We are at an inflection point in cancer research and now is the time to maximize immunotherapy’s unique potential to transform all cancers into manageable diseases, saving millions of lives.
“We believe that the creation of a new funding and research model can overcome many of the obstacles that currently prevent research breakthroughs. Working closely with our scientists and more than 30 industry partners, the Parker Institute is positioned to broadly disseminate discoveries and, most importantly, more rapidly deliver treatments to patients."
The new centre will specialise in innovative treatments which train the body’s own immune system to track and kill cancer cells.