Retired Physician Left Gift to MMRF to Support Research

Dr. Robert Lewy

Dr. Robert Ira Lewy was diagnosed with multiple myeloma in 2005. A lifelong Buddhist, he refused to take on a victim’s mindset and maintained his positive spirit. Recalling becoming involved with the MMRF, he said, “I was struck with their vision and motivation, and I believed in their ability to bring funding and awareness to this disease.”

Both Robert and his longtime partner Noma Blechman made gifts to the MMRF through their estate planning. Robert’s was an unrestricted bequest to be used in the area of greatest need. “We both have such high regard for the MMRF and its mission to extend patients’ lives and eventually find a cure,” he said. “They have attracted the most brilliant minds to understand the biology of the disease, which has resulted in more treatments for patients.”

The Brooklyn native worked as a hematologist at MD Anderson in Houston, where he enjoyed a 30-year career as a prominent physician and medical researcher. His research pioneered the use of antiplatelet drugs for heart disease, and he developed treatment in the early years of the AIDS epidemic in Houston.

After retiring, he started traveling—with the goal of visiting 1,000 Places to See Before You Die. He saw nearly 800!

Because multiple myeloma varies from person to person and changes over time, Robert wanted to see research conducted to molecularly target the disease. “Precision medicine is the future and will be helped by the development of big data,” Robert once said. “The MMRF understood this and led the way.”