The Mount Sinai Health System has received a game-changing $60 million donation from James S. and Merryl H. Tisch to establish a stateof- the-art cancer hospital on the system’s Upper East Side campus.
Signaling a watershed moment for cancer care in the New York region, the Mount Sinai Tisch Cancer Center will broaden access to breakthrough therapies, diagnostics and clinical trials. It will also further the Health System’s mission to provide advanced, personalized treatment and holistic care for patients in all communities. The generous gift follows a $40 million gift from the family in 2008, which then established The Tisch Cancer Institute at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai. The Institute — a National Cancer Institute-designated Cancer Center — has made advancements in cancer research across basic science, clinical care and population health.
“Our gift to Mount Sinai more than 13 years ago to create The Tisch Cancer Institute was a result of our family’s passion and commitment to saving lives and advancing the health of all patients battling this chronic disease,” said James S. Tisch, co-chairman of the boards of trustees of the Mount Sinai Health System. “We have one of the largest and most respected myeloma programs in the country, and have seen enormous growth in our cancer programs and footprint. We believe that this new gift will transform cancer care and expand access to life-saving breakthroughs, enhancing Mount Sinai’s leadership in cancer treatment and research.”
Expanded Clinical Spaces Meet Outstanding Patient Care
The Mount Sinai Tisch Cancer Center will include the Tisch Cancer Hospital, The Tisch Cancer Institute at Icahn Mount Sinai, several Cancer Centers of Excellence and a growing ambulatory cancer network. The new Tisch Cancer Hospital will be located at 1440 Madison Ave. and is expected to be completed by 2025. It will consist of four floors with approximately 20 single-bed rooms on each floor. There will also be a series of innovative clinical spaces designed to ease transitions between stages of treatment.
“We are so grateful to the Tisch family for their continued and outstanding support of Mount Sinai, and we are deeply honored that the new hospital will bear the Tisch name,” said Dr. Kenneth L. Davis, chief executive officer of Mount Sinai Health System. “Their ongoing generosity helps us elevate the level of cancer care all patients receive at Mount Sinai.”
Patients seeking care at the Tisch Cancer Center will have access to more than 250 oncologists, top-tier surgeons and researchers working side-by-side throughout the New York metropolitan area, as well a range of comprehensive medical services provided by one of the highest-ranked hospitals in New York City and nationally.
“The creation of the Mount Sinai Tisch Cancer Center and the Tisch Cancer Hospital represents a steadfast commitment to provide life-saving and high-quality cancer care for our patients and community,” said Dr. Luis Isola, director of cancer clinical programs and medical director of the Mount Sinai Cancer Network. “Our patients will have streamlined access to care from outstanding oncologists and specialists in a broad array of specialties. Once completed, it will be a model for 21st century cancer care.”
Building on Pioneering Cancer Care and Services
With the launch of this new, comprehensive Tisch Cancer Center, Mount Sinai aims to replicate the accomplishments of the highly skilled team within The Tisch Cancer Institute. Comprising more than 80 prominent scientists and physicians, this multidisciplinary group works to develop innovative and translational research programs in cancer immunology, molecular mechanisms and prevention and control.
In its decade-long effort to expand our understanding of cancer and conceive innovative treatments, the Institute has developed new cancer vaccines, provided treatment for scores of World Trade Center first responders, advanced the understanding of how immature stem cells age and identified a mechanism of tumor metastasis. The work accomplished at the Tisch Cancer Institute builds upon Mount Sinai’s history of revolutionary medical discoveries and outstanding patient care. The work to be completed at the Tisch Cancer Center will continue Mount Sinai’s legacy of bringing medical innovations from the bench to the bedside.
“Creating the new Mount Sinai Tisch Cancer Center to encompass the new hospital, The Tisch Cancer Institute, and cancer care across our growing network and system will be a catalyst for providing and innovating the best cancer care,” said Ramon Parsons, MD, PhD, director of The Tisch Cancer Institute, chair of the department of oncological sciences and Ward-Coleman chair in cancer research at Icahn Mount Sinai.
A campaign announcing The Mount Sinai Tisch Cancer Center was launched during the Stand Up to Cancer telethon on August 21, 2021. The telecast featured a pre-recorded message from preeminent Mount Sinai cancer care providers Dr. Elisa Port and Dr. Ajai Chari.
As director of the Dubin Breast Center and chief of breast surgery at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, Port conducts hundreds of surgeries each year. Under her leadership, the Center has grown significantly and now accommodates more than 30,000 patient visits per year. Chari is associate director of clinical research of the Mount Sinai Cancer Clinical Trials Office at Mount Sinai and director of clinical research in the Multiple Myeloma Program. The program has played a key role in the approval of the five most recent drugs to be approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for the treatment of multiple myeloma.
“This donation has strengthened our ability to deliver the utmost in cancer research and clinical excellence. We are charting a new course, finding new paths to early detection and will eventually eradicate this disease so no family has to experience the loss of a loved one to cancer,” said Dr. Dennis S. Charney, Anne and Joel Ehrenkranz dean of Icahn Mount Sinai and president for academic affairs at the Mount Sinai Health System. “This gift from the Tisch family will have an impact for generations to come.”