$50M donation to buoy cancer research, Indiana

A $50 million donation to the Indiana University Cancer Center from shopping-mall magnate Mel Simon and his wife, Bren Simon, will fund new research by luring prominent scientists to Indianapolis.

The gift, announced Monday, is the largest ever given to the cancer center and one of the largest ever to a cancer research program in the nation.

"It's a spectacular day for IU Cancer Center," said its director, Dr. Stephen D. Williams.

Part of the donation, to be given over an unspecified number of years, will help the center recruit five to 10 new cancer researchers over the next three years and do much-needed work in cancer prevention, Williams said.