December 16, 2005

David Brudnoy estate gives generous donation to namesake fund

The David Brudnoy Fund for AIDS Research at the MGH has received $400,000 from the estate of the well-known and respected Boston radio commentator and talk show host who created the fund. The unrestricted bequest was presented to the hospital Dec. 9, the first anniversary of Brudnoy's death from cancer.

The fund was created a decade ago following Brudnoy's hospitalization during his battle with AIDS. Established to raise private and corporate support for basic and clinical AIDS research at the MGH and for the hospital's HIV/AIDS initiatives in Durban, South Africa, the fund gives MGH researchers the flexibility required to respond to new discoveries and quickly apply them to patient care.

"At the MGH and other leading research institutions, efforts to explore exciting new avenues of research are confounded by reductions in traditional sources of funding," says Bruce Walker, MD, director of the Partners AIDS Research Institute at the MGH. "Some of our young investigators with innovative approaches find it particularly difficult to get the grants needed to pursue what may turn out to be revolutionary approaches to defeating HIV. The type of support that the Brudnoy Fund provides allows our investigators to explore projects that otherwise might go without adequate funding."

The fund makes possible several projects, such as the David Brudnoy Innovative Research Fund, which provides rapid support for innovative new research approaches to HIV/AIDS prevention, treatment and vaccines. The David Brudnoy HIV Scholar Award was created by the fund to provide financial resources for promising young AIDS researchers at the MGH. The fund also supports a new program that places MGH residents at the heart of the epidemic — in Africa — where human and infrastructure resources are stretched. These residents serve as mentors, training local physicians, medical students and nurses in optimal medical care, and playing a pivotal role in building the next generation of AIDS researchers.
For more information, contact the Development Office at (617) 726-2200.