NewYork-Presbyterian and Columbia University, both located in New York City, received a $700 million bequest from Florence Irving and her late husband Herbert Irving — the largest gift in the academic medical institution's history.
Columbia University and NewYork-Presbyterian share a 20-acre medical campus that was renamed after the Irving family in 2016. The institutions on the campus are now named Columbia University Irving Medical Center and NewYork-Presbyterian/Columbia University Irving Medical Center.
The $700 million bequest — which includes $600 million in new funds in addition to previously announced pledges — will support cancer research and expand clinical programs for cancer treatment at the two organizations.
The gift will help Columbia University and NewYork-Presbyterian recruit scientists and clinicians. In addition, the existing comprehensive cancer center will be expanded and renamed after Herbert Irving.
"What is perhaps less well understood is that the dramatic advances now within our reach will be realized only by harnessing the learning of many different scientific disciplines and such work requires enormous institutional resources. The Irvings have given us the means to engage in that collective effort, and we are determined to reward their ambitious vision," said Lee Bollinger, president of Columbia University; Steven J. Corwin, MD, CEO of NewYork Presbyterian; and Lee Goldman, MD, CEO of Columbia University Medical Center, in a joint statement.