A charitable contribution of $8,410,000 from the Harold Alfond® Foundation will support The Jackson Laboratory's (JAX) efforts to enhance cancer diagnostics and treatment in Maine.
"The Jackson Laboratory is uniquely positioned to apply more than 86 years of expertise in cancer research to the improvement of cancer care in our state," says Gregory W. Powell, Chairman of the Foundation's Board of Trustees. "We are delighted to partner with the Laboratory to improve the health of the people in Maine."
"Most American cancer patients get their care at community hospitals, in rural or suburban settings, and this is especially true in Maine," says Edison Liu, M.D., president and CEO of The Jackson Laboratory and director of The Jackson Laboratory Cancer Center. "Thanks to the vision of the Harold Alfond Foundation, and, working in collaboration with MaineGeneral Medical Center and its Harold Alfond Center for Cancer Care, JAX will work to ensure that all Maine cancer patients and their physicians have access to precision cancer care using the latest advances in genetic technologies, allowing them to determine the best treatment for a particular cancer."
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Founded in 1950, the Harold Alfond® Foundation furthers the philanthropic legacy of Harold Alfond, the founder of Dexter Shoe Company and a longtime supporter of Maine communities in which he and his family worked and resided. Consistent with Harold Alfond's own giving pattern and philanthropic principles, the Foundation favors education, healthcare, youth development and other selected charitable causes.
Founded in 1929 as one of the world's first cancer genetics research institutions, today JAX has a National Cancer Institute-designated Cancer Center, with cancer research faculty at its Bar Harbor, Maine, headquarters campus and The Jackson Laboratory for Genomic Medicine in Farmington, Conn. JAX has recently expanded its efforts to include translational and clinical genomics research and advanced genomics diagnostics tools for oncologists and their patients.