Charles W. Stiefel Appointed to M.D. Anderson Cancer Center Board of Visitors

Houston, TX, December 11, 2012 --(PR.com)-- The MD Anderson Cancer Center Board of Visitors (BOV), an appointive board of volunteers dedicated to advancing the initiatives of M.D. Anderson, welcomes philanthropist Charles W. Stiefel of Raleigh, North Carolina as a new member. Stiefel, along with his wife Daneen, previously made a one million dollar gift to M.D. Anderson to endow a professor's Chair in the Head & Neck Center. The Stiefel endowment was made in honor of the 3 physicians who successfully treated Stiefel for 2 types of cancer in 2007.

"I am deeply honored to join this prestigious Board of Visitors and to help M.D. Anderson succeed in its mission of Making Cancer History®,” said Stiefel. "Cancer claimed the lives of my mother, father, younger brother and uncle - as well as several of my friends - and there is probably no one in America who has not lost a friend or loved one to this terrible disease. That is why my primary philanthropic focus is to fund cancer research and endeavor to help physicians improve patient outcomes."

Since the board’s inception in 1957, BOV members have played a significant role in MD Anderson’s mission to eradicate cancer by helping raise funds, awareness and support for the institution.

“We’re grateful to these business and community leaders from across the nation for not only their efforts to secure philanthropic contributions to the institution, but also for their personal gifts of time, resources and talents,” said Ronald DePinho, M.D., president of MD Anderson. “Their generosity is crucial in advancing the institution’s cancer research and patient care initiatives. Certainly the BOV’s support will have a significant role in achieving our goals to drastically reduce cancer mortality through the recently announced Moon Shots Program.”