Governor Perry Tours Institute of Molecular Medicine

Governor speaks at conference at health science center

Texas Gov. Rick Perry, second from left, listens to graduate student Brandi Baird, foreground, as she explains some of the work she does in the lab of Paul Simmons, Ph.D., professor and director of the Center for Stem Cell Research at the Brown Foundation Institute of Molecular Medicine for the Prevention of Human Diseases (IMM), far right. David Haviland, Ph.D., assistant professor, far left, and C. Thomas Caskey, M.D., Ph.D., director and chief executive officer of the IMM, second from right, participated in the govenor's tour on Nov. 1 when Perry spoke at the Texas Life Science Conference at the IMM. Photo by John Everett

Speaking Nov. 1 at the Texas Life Science Conference at The Brown Foundation Institute of Molecular Medicine for the Prevention of Human Diseases (IMM), Texas Governor Rick Perry said he has both personal and professional reasons for supporting the $3 billion bond proposal for cancer research that passed during the Nov. 6 election.

Several members of his family have been affected by the disease that claims the lives of an estimated 35,000 Texans annually, Perry said. As for the professional reasons, Perry said he would like to see Texas play an even larger role in cancer research and to continue to recruit leading scientists.

The annual conference, sponsored by BioHouston and hosted this year at the IMM, brings together leading researchers, emerging companies and many of the life sciences industry’s venture capitalists from around the country to learn about promising developments in the field.

On June 13, Perry signed HB 14 into law, creating the Cancer Prevention and Research Institute of Texas and dedicating $300 million in general obligation bonds to annually fund scientific research aimed toward finding a cure for cancer. On Nov. 6, voters approved the measure.

By Rob Cahill, Institutional Advancement