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Oregon Delegation Members Applaud Success of OHSU Knight Cancer Challenge to Raise $1 Billion for Cancer Care and Research

June 25, 2015

Washington, DC– Today, the Oregon Congressional delegation, including Senators Jeff Merkley and Ron Wyden and Representatives Earl Blumenauer, Suzanne Bonamici, Peter DeFazio, Kurt Schrader and Greg Walden, welcomed Oregon Health & Science University’s (OHSU) announcement on meeting its Knight Cancer Challenge, raising $1 billion for cancer care and research at OHSU. The delegation released the following statement:

“This is a great day for Oregon and for advancing the fight against cancer. OHSU has become a world premier cancer research facility that will continue to grow and transform the field of personalized medicine and cancer care. These generous donations will further its excellence in not only cancer research but patient care and make a tremendous difference in the lives of many. We’re proud of OHSU for attracting extraordinary attention and resources to support its work in the years ahead.”

OHSU is a nationally prominent research university and Oregon’s only public academic health center. In September 2013, Nike co-founder Phil Knight and his wife, Penny, pledged to donate $500 million if OHSU raised another $500 million to fight cancer. OHSU met the match for the Knight Cancer Challenge months ahead of the deadline, which was set for World Cancer Day on February 4, 2016.