$15 million gift from David Koch Jr. Foundation to Stanford Medicine launches landmark kidney health initiative
In a new chapter of philanthropy, the David Koch Jr. Foundation has made a transformative $15 million gift to Stanford Medicine to accelerate breakthroughs in pediatric nephrology.
This extraordinary commitment launches the Kidney Health Innovation Program, an ambitious initiative that will mobilize world-class expertise to revolutionize prevention, detection, and treatment of kidney disease in children and young adults.
More than 35 million Americans live with kidney disease, often facing dialysis or transplantation.
Stanford Medicine leaders see this gift as a catalyst for bold change. “There has never been a more promising time to redefine the future for children with kidney disease,” said Dr. Mary Leonard, chair of the Department of Pediatrics and physician-in-chief at Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital Stanford.
“Thanks to this generous gift, we’ll be able to mobilize groundbreaking research across the Stanford ecosystem.”
Guided by Dr. Sophia Giang, pediatric nephrologist, and Dr. Richard Lafayette, director of the Stanford Glomerular Disease Center, the program will unite clinicians and scientists across disciplines to pursue innovations in genetics, immunology, and patient-centered care.
A centerpiece of the initiative is the creation of the David Koch Jr. Foundation Kidney Health Innovation Awards, providing multi-year catalyst grants to fuel visionary faculty research.
The program also establishes an annual symposium to spark global collaboration while deepening Stanford’s ties with NIH-funded consortia such as NEPTUNE, CureGN, and PedsNet.
“Kidney disease poses serious challenges for children and their families,” says David Koch Jr. “We’re excited about the potential to drive novel research that can lead to new treatments and ultimately improve quality of life for young patients.”
Stanford School of Medicine Dean Lloyd Minor emphasized the far-reaching impact: “Philanthropic support of novel research and our world-class faculty is changing the trajectory of kidney disease, particularly for pediatric patients. Gifts like this are central to our impact.”
A past contribution from the David Koch Jr. Foundation helped advance this protocol, providing crucial funding for research aimed at enabling transplants for both children and adults with autoimmune conditions or previous transplant failures. This groundbreaking work is paving the way for a future where many more patients can receive organ transplants without the need for lifelong immunosuppressive drugs and their harmful side effects—turning what was once unimaginable into a new standard in medical care.