Constance Lieber
Ted Stanley
Philanthropic support of research has been critical in advancing knowledge in many areas of medicine, but less so for major mental disorders. The dearth of financial support from private sources has been addressed by 2 visionaries who, over the past 3 decades, have made an incredible and lasting impact on research relating to schizophrenia, bipolar and related disorders. Constance Lieber and Ted Stanley died this past winter, but each of them has assured that their commitment to new knowledge that benefits persons with mental illness will continue.
The National Alliance for Research on Schizophrenia and Depression (NARSAD) was formed in 1981 and floundered, at first, without appreciable funds and little prospect for success. Constance and Steve Lieber joined the effort several years later. Connie, to all who knew her, assumed the NARSAD leadership role, recruited board members capable of raising funds, and with Steve personally provided the inspiration, guidance and much of the funds that established NARSAD. Now the Brain and Behavior Research Foundation, NARSAD has become an international leader in private funding of young investigators, enhancing the productivity of mid-career investigators and funding distinguished investigators to venture into new areas of research. For those of us who worked with Connie in the NARSAD mission, it was incredible to observe her dedication, determination, generosity, and effectiveness. NARSAD has now awarded 5000 grants to 4000 researchers worldwide.
In addition to the investment in investigators, Connie and Steve Lieber have provided the funds to build schizophrenia programs at Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons and recently built the Lieber Institute to house a major program associated with Johns Hopkins University and directed by Daniel Weinberger.
Steve Lieber will continue his work and leadership with BBRF, but Connie will be missed and remembered.
Also lost this winter was Ted Stanley. Together with his wife, Vada, who died 2 years ago, the Stanleys supported NARSAD/BBRF at the outset. Then, beginning in 1989, the Stanleys set up the Stanley Medical Research Institute (SMRI). This included an endowment of the Stanley Laboratory of Developmental Neurovirology at Johns Hopkins under Bob Yolken, which has pioneered research on infectious and immunological research on schizophrenia and bipolar disorder. Another part of SMRI is the Stanley Brain Collection directed by Maree Webster, which has distributed without charge over 250 000 samples of brain tissue, as well as DNA and RNA to over 300 research laboratories in 22 countries. SMRI has also funded over 400 treatment trials, mostly for novel agents unlikely to be funded by the pharmaceutical industry because they could not be patented. Most recently, in 2014, Mr Stanley endowed a major psychiatric genetics initiative at the Broad Institute directed by Steve Hyman.
Disorders such as schizophrenia are often stigmatized in public perception, have not been attractive for philanthropy, and research funding from private sources is small in mental illness compared to other fields of medicine and to the needs of the mentally ill. In this context, Connie Lieber and Ted Stanley provided over $2 000 000 000 in support of science dedicated to the understanding and treatment of severe mental illnesses. Their support has created a lasting legacy based on the creative acquisition of knowledge devoted to the most distinctively human illnesses.