HAMILTON Benefit Performance in San Francisco Raises Nearly $1 Million for Cancer Research

The Damon Runyon Cancer Research Foundation hosted a benefit performance of the Broadway musical HAMILTON on Tuesday, May 16, 2017, at the SHN Orpheum Theatre in San Francisco, raising almost $1 million for innovative cancer research.

The event attracted notable attendees including: Steve Chen, co-founder of YouTube; Chamath Palihapitiya of Social Capital LP, who is also a part-owner of the Golden State Warriors NBA team and an original member of the Facebook management team; and Mary and Steve Swig, The Swig Co.

"We are thankful to the HAMILTON cast and crew for putting on such a wonderful show benefitting our organization and the funding we provide for cutting-edge cancer research," said Lorraine W. Egan, President and CEO of Damon Runyon. "The Bay Area is a leading incubator for cancer research at Stanford, UCSF, UC Santa Cruz, and UC Berkeley. We've invested over $60 million in Bay Area cancer research programs at these institutions and are confident that the newly raised funds will help expedite our path to the next breakthroughs in cancer research. We also thank the members of our Bay Area Committee who helped promote the event and raise our profile in the Bay Area."

The Damon Runyon Cancer Research Foundation has enjoyed a long and successful relationship with Broadway. The Foundation was created in 1946 when Walter Winchell went on air with an appeal for contributions to fight cancer in memory of his friend Damon Runyon, a New York writer whose works inspired the hit musical Guys & Dolls. The Damon Runyon Broadway Tickets service was started in the 1950s and it's been vital to the success of the Foundation ever since.

To accelerate breakthroughs, the Damon Runyon Cancer Research Foundation provides today's best young scientists with funding to pursue innovative cancer research. The Foundation has invested over $327 million and funded nearly 3,600 young scientists, including 12 Nobel Prize winners. 100% of all donations to the Foundation are used to support scientific research. For more information, visit www.damonrunyon.org.