Tending a Legacy, Creating Her Own

Alice Hungerford and her late husband David occupy a unique place in Fox Chase Cancer Center history. David, in fact, occupies a unique place in the history of cancer research as co-discoverer of the Philadelphia Chromosome—establishing the first association between a genetic abnormality and a type of cancer.

David’s work, first published in 1960, laid the foundation for the field of targeted cancer therapies, ultimately helping to transform chronic myelogenous leukemia from a universally fatal form of cancer into one for which 95% of patients are successfully treated. He is the only person ever to start as a Fox Chase lab technician and eventually rise to the position of senior member of the cancer center.

Since his death in 1993, Alice has devoted her energy to ensuring that he continues to be a force in cancer research through the David A. Hungerford Endowed Fund in Basic Genetic Research at Fox Chase Cancer Center. Now retired, she has remained a committed supporter of Fox Chase through the endowment, which has helped fund numerous researchers.

In 2019 Alice made two transformative gifts to Fox Chase. First was an estate gift to guarantee that the endowed fund would support new researchers for years to come. Second was a table that originally belonged to Stanley Reimann, the founder and first president of the Institute for Cancer Research. The table is now used in a Fox Chase conference room.

“The Philadelphia Chromosome was the first landmark discovery made at Fox Chase, and it’s important to me to keep David’s memory alive within the institution,” she said. “The most fitting tribute is supporting the next generation of scientists at Fox Chase who build on his work.”

After years of fundraising and committing to an estate gift, Alice has ensured that David’s story will continue in perpetuity.