UCLA professor’s last gift will support research in cancer and stem cell biology

Shortly before financier and UCLA professor Roy Doumani passed away in March, he and his wife, Carol, contributed $5.25 million to advance research in cancer and stem cell biology at the Eli and Edythe Broad Center of Regenerative Medicine and Stem Cell Research at UCLA.

Their gift established the Doumani Research Innovation Fund, which will support the work of faculty affiliated with the Broad Stem Cell Research Center and the UCLA Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center who are conducting multidisciplinary research aimed at translating scientific discoveries into new treatments for people with cancer.

“We are incredibly grateful for the trust and the resources Roy and Carol have invested in UCLA, and we are committed to fulfilling our shared vision to develop new therapies for disease,” said Dr. Owen Witte, director of the Broad Stem Cell Research Center, who will oversee the fund. “Their generosity will accelerate invaluable research with the potential to improve health care and human lives.”

Roy Doumani’s long relationship with the campus began as an undergraduate; he earned a bachelor’s degree from UCLA in 1957. After his appointment as a professor at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA in 2002, Doumani taught a popular course on the business of science, and he founded and directed a center devoted to that topic. He also was instrumental in forming the California NanoSystems Institute at UCLA.

The Doumanis also endowed one chair each in the department of urological oncology and the department of medical and molecular pharmacology, and Roy Doumani contributed countless hours on boards and committees for CNSI, The UCLA Foundation, Geffen School of Medicine, the UCLA School of the Arts and Architecture and the UCLA Samueli School of Engineering.

A savvy businessman, Doumani established a successful career in international finance and real estate, while helping launch health care and technology startup companies, mentoring young entrepreneurs and advising a variety of companies in the U.S., Asia, Europe and the Middle East.

The Doumanis have given more than $10 million to UCLA overall. Their latest gift is part of the Centennial Campaign for UCLA, which is scheduled to conclude in December 2019 during UCLA’s 100th anniversary year.