The Indiana University Melvin and Bren Simon Comprehensive Cancer Center will accelerate brain cancer and neuro-oncology research through the new Jeff Schwarz Center for Neuro-Oncology Research, established with a $10 million gift.
The newly established Schwarz Center will advance research to understand brain cancer, brain metastases and other neuro-oncology conditions while fostering collaborations among basic scientists, translational researchers and clinicians to accelerate new therapies for patients.
“For the past three decades, the IU Simon Comprehensive Cancer Center has been at the forefront of transformative research and life-saving advances for cancer patients across the country,” Indiana University President Pamela Whitten said. “The Schwarz family’s generosity will help IU recruit the brightest minds in neuro-oncology and advance innovations that bring new therapies, new possibilities and new hope to patients and families.”
The gift from the family of the late Jeff Schwarz honors the IU alumnus who met his wife, Jill, when they were both students in Bloomington. Jeff was diagnosed with glioblastoma, an aggressive brain cancer, in late 2022 and died from the disease in November 2023.
“Jeff and I always shared a love for IU, and it is so meaningful to create something permanent at our alma mater in his name,” Jill Schwarz said. “Our family believes research is the key to better treatments for patients with brain cancer, and we are so proud IU will do that work in Jeff’s memory. We challenge the team at the Schwarz Center to take IU’s ‘never daunted’ spirit to heart as they work to help people like Jeff.”
The IU School of Medicine is contributing an additional $5 million to the center, bringing the total investment in neuro-oncology research to $15 million. The center occupies new research space in the Medical Education and Research Building at the IU School of Medicine.
“The Schwarz family’s extraordinary generosity gives us an opportunity to build something truly transformative in neuro-oncology,” said Scott D. Boden, MD, dean of the Indiana University School of Medicine and executive vice president for university clinical affairs. “Our $5 million investment reflects how strongly we believe in the potential of this center and the work that will happen here. By bringing together outstanding scientists, translational researchers and clinicians, we can accelerate discoveries that lead to better treatments and better outcomes for patients — and honor Jeff’s legacy by creating hope for families facing these devastating diseases for years to come.”
The establishment of the Jeff Schwarz Center for Neuro-Oncology Research enables the IU Simon Comprehensive Cancer Center to recruit neuro-oncology researchers dedicated to translational research that advances discoveries beyond the lab to improve patient outcomes. The Schwarz gift includes endowed funding to recruit one researcher who will hold the title of Jeff Schwarz Senior Professor in Neuro-Oncology Research and one who will hold the title of Jack Schwarz Professor in Neuro-Oncology Research.
This gift is part of IU’s Never Daunted campaign, a university-wide effort to expand opportunities for students, fuel life-changing innovation and strengthen communities across Indiana and the world. It also builds on the Schwarz family’s longstanding commitment to advancing brain cancer research at IU.
Jeff Schwarz and his family established the Schwarz Family and Friends Cancer Research Fund in 2022. That funding allowed the cancer center to recruit Jia Shen, an assistant professor of medical and molecular genetics. Shen’s research lab at IU Bloomington focuses on understanding and preventing the recurrence of glioblastoma, as well as pediatric brain tumors.
Nearly 25,000 people in the United States are expected to be diagnosed with brain or other nervous system cancers this year, according to the National Cancer Institute. Because many of these cancers are aggressive and difficult to treat, the five-year survival rate is less than 33%.
