WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind., Sept. 26 (UPI) -- The Purdue University Cancer Center -- one of seven National Cancer Institute-designated U.S. basic research facilities -- has received a $1.5 million gift.
The gift from former Indiana state Sen V. Richard Miller and his wife, Jane, honors the Miller's late son, Robert "Robbie" Wallace Miller, who died from a rare form of cancer, rhabdomyosarcoma, when he was 11 years old.
Rhabdomyosarcoma is a fast-growing, highly malignant tumor that attaches to muscle tissue and internal organs. It typically strikes young children. Robbie Miller died Oct. 10, 1976, six weeks after receiving a clean bill of health after a routine physical.
"We are one of the thousands of families affected by cancer," said Miller, who earned his bachelor's degree in science from Purdue in 1963 and is a former member of the Purdue Cancer Center Advisory Board. "We want to support the researchers at the Purdue Cancer Center, where they are developing new diagnostic tools and treatments."
The center, established in 1976, focuses on identifying new molecular targets and designing agents and drugs for effectively detecting and treating cancer.
