Healthcare entrepreneurs Scott Rifkin, MD, and Frances Rifkin, RN, have pledged a $5.7 million donation to Johns Hopkins University and the Johns Hopkins Health System for research in neurology spine oncology.
The donation is going to be paid in full by June 2024, with the first $2.4 million already sent, according to an Aug. 23 news release.
A portion of the gift, $2.3 million, is for equipment for a lab located at Johns Hopkins Bayview, where Nicholas Theodore, MD, director of the Johns Hopkins Neurosurgical Spine Center.
The equipment will be used for clinical patient care and research. The remaining $3.4 million will go directly to the university.
"I am deeply appreciative for the generous gift provided by Dr. Scott Rifkin and Frances Rifkin to support our efforts at Johns Hopkins Neurosurgery in making significant advances in spinal oncology," Dr. Theodore said in the release. "Along with my colleague Dr. Daniel Lubelski, we will be launching a robust research effort that will include imaging, robotics, radiation, digital phenotyping, development of biomarkers and ultimately, novel chemotherapies. This gift will transform our ability to make inroads on many fronts and I look forward to our partnership."