A South Australian developer has donated $1 million to the South Australian Health and Medical Research Institute (SAHMRI)!
Donated by Commercial & General founder Jamie McClurg, the funds create “The McClurg Brain Cancer Fellowship” which will be used to attract a leading brain cancer clinician/researcher to SAHMRI on a multi-year appointment and will enable SAHMRI to take a quantum leap in the fight against brain cancer.
The McClurg Brain Cancer Fellowship is designed to enhance South Australia’s health and medical research sector by attracting talent from interstate or overseas. SAHMRI is approaching potential candidates with an appointment expected to be made early in 2022.
In thanking McClurg for his philanthropy, SAHMRI Executive Director Professor Steve Wesselingh said the donation was “transformational.”
“We have been working to create a new position that further accelerates our brain cancer capability, particularly in paediatrics,” he says.
“Jamie’s generosity will make all the difference and the timing is ideal as we work towards delivering the most advanced cancer treatment available at the Australian Bragg Centre for Proton Therapy and Research.”
McClurg is the Executive Chairman of Commercial and General, the South Australian development company that’s partnering with SAHMRI to build Australia’s first proton therapy treatment and research unit. Working so closely with SAHMRI, McClurg has seen the value of investment in medical research.
“I can’t cure cancer but I believe it’s up to people like me, who have built my life in South Australia, to ensure we are doing as much as we can to help those who are devoting their professional lives to creating a healthier future for our children,” McClurg says.
“Health is one of the key pillars of our State’s future economic growth, and it is generally acknowledged that a strong health economy can only exist if it is underpinned by a powerful medical research capability.”
Commercial & General is the State’s largest developer, responsible for $2.2 billion in projects that have been delivered or are under development.
These include the recently completed Calvary Adelaide Hospital, the largest private hospital ever built in South Australia, and construction of the landmark half-billion dollar Australian Bragg Centre for Proton Therapy and Research, the first of its kind in Australia and a game-changer for cancer patients, particularly children.
The company has been the driving force, in collaboration with SAHMRI, in bringing proton therapy to Australia by designing, funding and developing the business case and providing nearly $400 million in project finance.
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