Car tycoon Herb Chambers gives MGH $100M for cancer care
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New England car sales mogul Herb Chambers gave $100 million to Mass General Hospital for one of the new towers under construction on MGH's West End campus.
- The tower will house cancer units and is scheduled to open in 2027.
Why it matters: The gift comes as the Mass General Brigham chain revamps its approach to cancer care and prepares to lose the partnership of the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in 2028.
Zoom in: The tower will integrate MGH's cancer services, with consultations, labs and imaging, surgical spaces, urgent care, inpatient care and the ICU all under one roof.
What they're saying: "My motivation in extending this gift is that the Herb Chambers Tower will shine as a beacon of hope for everyone touched by this awful disease," Chambers said in a release from the hospital chain.
- Chambers said he and members of his family have received cancer care from MGH.
Catch up quick: Chambers, 83, is a Dorchester native who built one of New England's largest automobile dealership empires from a single location in 1985.
- He's now worth an estimated $2.6 billion, according to Forbes.
By the numbers: The Chambers tower will span nearly 1 million square feet and provide:
- 228 acute care inpatient beds
- 32 intensive care unit beds
- an 8,000-square-foot rooftop garden
State of play: Dana-Farber's planned withdrawal from its longtime partnership with the Mass General Brigham-owned Brigham and Women's Hospital has forced the chain to retool its cancer care strategy.
Between the lines: The oncology landscape in New England is undergoing a dramatic shift as Dana-Farber moves to partner with Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in the Longwood Medical Area.
Zoom out: Chambers' namesake tower will be part of the larger Phillip and Susan Ragon Building complex, the $1.9 billion MGH expansion project underway along Cambridge Street.