{"id":67578,"date":"2025-03-05T01:12:32","date_gmt":"2025-03-04T23:12:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.fondazioneguidovenosta.org\/?post_type=protagonista&p=67578"},"modified":"2026-01-28T10:37:45","modified_gmt":"2026-01-28T08:37:45","slug":"guido-venosta-and-airc-the-vault-of-airc-the-italian-foundation-for-cancer-research-firc","status":"publish","type":"protagonista","link":"https:\/\/www.fondazioneguidovenosta.org\/en\/protagonista\/guido-venosta-and-airc-the-vault-of-airc-the-italian-foundation-for-cancer-research-firc\/","title":{"rendered":"Guido Venosta and AIRC \u2013 The \u201cVault\u201d of AIRC: The Italian Foundation for Cancer Research (FIRC)"},"content":{"rendered":"

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]In 1982, Guido Venosta, President of AIRC, promoted alongside the Association the Italian Foundation for Cancer Research (FIRC) as an asset-holding entity aimed at two main objectives: first, the collection and proper management of contributions, donations, and bequests that began to flow in addition to membership fees; second, the creation of an endowment to secure a lasting asset for oncological research, thus providing a reliable foundation and a guarantee for the future.<\/p>\n

\u201cOnce this milestone is reached \u2013 he writes in his book \u2013 that is, when an amount sufficient for the institutional purpose has been accumulated, the Foundation (\u2026) began to transcend the narrow \u2018reservoir function\u2019 typical of all similar entities, and embraced a broader operational approach, not merely conservative but actively engaged in the surrounding reality (\u2026)\u201d (VENOSTA,\u00a0Dal profit al nonprofit<\/i>, pp. 17\u201318).<\/p>\n

Thanks to the solid asset base achieved, the entity was able to undertake multi-year commitments in support of oncological research. Beyond what might be considered a traditional commitment to funding scholarships, doctorates, and multi-year research projects, it supported systematic, far-reaching, and highly significant initiatives.<\/p>\n

Three key initiatives emerged:<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. The establishment of the FIRC Research Units (the first initiative of its kind in Italy), which are scientific clusters focused on specific advanced oncological themes, established and directly funded by the Foundation within the country\u2019s leading research centers;<\/li>\n
  2. The creation of the biennial \u201cGuido Venosta Award,\u201d reserved for young Italian researchers who have particularly distinguished themselves in developing new therapeutic approaches to neoplasms, a strong signal designed to draw public attention to the tangible outcomes of research, still awarded by the President of the Republic on National Cancer Research Day;<\/li>\n
  3. A ten-year donation to the University of Milan for the establishment of a chair in Medical Oncology, marking the first private contribution to an Italian university for the implementation of an integrated, top-level academic program.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    In 1998, the year of Guido Venosta\u2019s death, \u201cFIRC created IFOM, its own Molecular Oncology Institute, and continued to finance it over time with the aim of transferring new knowledge from the laboratory to the patient\u2019s bedside.\u201d<\/p>\n

    In 2021, the Italian Foundation for Cancer Research \u2013 AIRC was merged by incorporation into the AIRC Foundation, also changing its legal name to the current \u201cFondazione AIRC per la Ricerca sul Cancro.\u201d<\/p>\n

    Until its incorporation, FIRC:<\/p>\n