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H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center & Research Institute
The H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center & Research Institute was founded in 1986 by former Florida House Speaker H. Lee Moffitt, opening on the University of South...
H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center & Research Institute
The H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center & Research Institute was founded in 1986 by former Florida House Speaker H. Lee Moffitt, opening on the University of South Florida's Tampa campus as a state-supported non-profit. Moffitt holds the National Cancer Institute's Comprehensive Cancer Center designation, a credential shared by only 57 institutions nationwide, and serves as a member of the National Comprehensive Cancer Network. Its governance sits with a board chaired by Robert Rothman, while Patrick Hwu, a prominent immunotherapy researcher, has served as president and CEO since 2020. Moffitt's asset base is not a traditional diversified endowment but a hybrid of state appropriations, philanthropic gifts, and commercialization revenue. The institute's foundation, H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center & Research Institute Foundation Inc., channels donor capital into research programs, clinical trials, and capital projects including the 775-acre Speros FL campus in Pasco County. M2Gen, the informatics subsidiary launched with Merck & Co., created the Oncology Research Information Exchange Network (ORIEN), a data-sharing consortium that pairs longitudinal patient records with genomic sequencing across multiple cancer centers. The institute holds real assets across six Tampa-area properties, including a dedicated business center and outpatient facilities at International Plaza and Wesley Chapel. Team scale is not publicly consolidated, but Moffitt employs over 8,000 staff including 800-plus research faculty, making it one of Tampa Bay's largest employers. The institute participates in industry alliances including the Alliance of Dedicated Cancer Centers. Board member Allison Casper Adams maintains a YPO affiliation, connecting the non-profit to a peer network of executives. In March 2024, Moffitt announced a partnership with a consortium of 10 other cancer centers to accelerate CAR T-cell therapy manufacturing through a shared supply-chain network (per public record). Unlike a conventional family office or university endowment, Moffitt's investment function is embedded entirely within a disease-focused mission — its capital deployment, whether through real estate, research partnerships, or clinical infrastructure, exists solely to compress the timeline from lab discovery to patient treatment. This single-mandate structure eliminates the asset-liability tension that shapes most institutional portfolios, making Moffitt's capital allocation a pure derivative of oncology strategy rather than a return-seeking exercise.
General information
Firm type
Endowment / Foundation
Year founded
1986
AUM
Undisclosed
Location
Region
North America
Country
United States
City
Tampa
Corporate office
12902 USF Magnolia Drive, Tampa, FL, United States
Additional offices
10920 N. McKinley Drive, Tampa, FL (McKinley Campus) · Pasco County, FL (Speros FL campus)
Principals
Patrick Hwu
President and CEO
Robert Rothman
Chairman of the Board of Directors
Sector focus
Frequently asked questions
Who oversees Moffitt Cancer Center's investment and research strategy?
Patrick Hwu, MD, serves as both president and CEO of Moffitt Cancer Center, overseeing clinical operations, research direction, and institutional strategy. Robert Rothman chairs the board of directors. Capital allocation and investment decisions are managed through the center's administrative finance structure and its affiliated foundation, which directs philanthropic gifts toward specific research and infrastructure priorities.
How is Moffitt's M2Gen venture structured, and what was Merck's role?
M2Gen, later rebranded as Aster Insights, is a for-profit informatics subsidiary originally launched as a partnership between Moffitt and Merck & Co. It built ORIEN, a data-sharing consortium that connects 18-plus cancer centers to combine longitudinal clinical records with tumor genomic data. The arrangement gives Moffitt a commercialization arm that can monetize research without departing from its non-profit core.
Does Moffitt receive state funding, or is it fully endowment-supported?
Moffitt operates as a non-profit established by the Florida legislature in 1986 and receives recurring state appropriations alongside its philanthropic and commercialization revenues. The state of Florida provided significant startup funding and continues to support capital projects, including the ongoing development of the Speros FL campus in Pasco County.
What is the Speros FL campus, and how does it relate to Moffitt's investment posture?
Speros FL is a 775-acre planned life-sciences campus in Pasco County, Florida, anchored by Moffitt. The project represents the institute's largest physical expansion, designed to house research facilities, clinical operations, and commercial biotech partners. The land acquisition and development represent a long-duration real-asset commitment within Moffitt's broader mission mandate.
How is Moffitt's governance separated from the University of South Florida?
Moffitt was founded on USF's campus and maintains an academic affiliation, but it is a legally independent 501(c)(3) non-profit with its own board of directors and executive leadership. State statute created Moffitt as a separate entity with autonomous control over its budget, hiring, and strategic planning, distinguishing it from a typical university hospital.
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