Anonymous giving

Anonymously funded professorship honors renowned scientist

Nancy Bucher’s slight frame and gentle demeanor belie her powerful mind. At 95 years of age, she continues her lifelong pursuit of answers to the important questions of cell regeneration. Bucher is recognized internationally for her pioneering research on liver regeneration and the uncontrolled growth of cancer cells.

A distinguished member of the BUSM Department of Pathology & Laboratory Medicine for 26 years, she has been recognized for her longstanding contributions to the research mission of the department with the establishment of an assistant professorship in her honor. “This is the first named professorship in the Department of Pathology & Laboratory Medicine,” said Daniel Remick, MD, professor and chair of that department. “It is wholly fitting that it carry Dr. Bucher’s name, because of her outstanding contributions to the field and to this department. We are currently recruiting a young investigator who will share her passion for science and investigative work.”

Established with anonymous contributions, the Nancy L. R. Bucher Assistant Professorship Fund in Pathology is a permanently endowed fund, the income of which provides salary and research resources to a junior faculty member for three to five years.

“Professorships are important to the mission of the School of Medicine because they support the research work of biomedical scientists,” says Dean Karen Antman. “They offer BUSM the opportunity to attract highly distinguished researchers.”

The fund also benefits from the generous challenge grant given by former BU Board of Trustees Chair Alan Leventhal and his wife, Sherry—who is vice chair of the BUSM Dean’s Advisory Board—to establish endowed positions throughout the University. The Leventhals are also the parents of two BUSM graduates.

The Department of Pathology & Laboratory Medicine has a long history of contributions to the field of pathology. The new professorship helps fuel a resurgence of the department, and helps the department fulfill its mission to bridge basic and clinical sciences in the study, teaching, and diagnosis of disease. In the past three years, 23 new faculty have been recruited, the amount of National Institutes of Health funding has quadrupled, and the department has moved to new, state-of-the-art research facilities.

“I love BU,” said Bucher. “And I am pleased to have this professorship named in my honor.”