BOSTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Feb 4, 2026--
(World Cancer Day) — Dana-Farber Cancer Institute today announced the largest single gift in its history through a new joint commitment from Josh and Anita Bekenstein and the Jonathan and Jeannie Lavine family. The transformational gift for the future cancer hospital builds on the two families’ decades-long dedication to Dana-Farber’s mission of delivering expert, compassionate patient care while accelerating discoveries that improve outcomes for people with cancer around the world.
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Left to right: Josh Bekenstein, Anita Bekenstein, Benjamin L. Ebert, MD, PhD, Jeannie Lavine, and Jonathan Lavine. Photo Credit: Sasha Pedro
The region's only inpatient hospital dedicated to cancer will be named in recognition of the remarkable joint gift from the Lavines and Bekensteins. Friends and business partners for more than 30 years, Josh Bekenstein was a Founding Partner and former Co-Chair of Bain Capital, where he first met and worked with Jonathan Lavine, who is the Founder of Bain Capital Credit and Bain Capital Special Situations and also served as Co-Managing Partner and Chair of Bain Capital.
Designed entirely around the needs of oncology patients and their families, the 300-bed hospital will expand access to highly specialized, fully integrated cancer care, supporting a seamless experience across diagnosis, treatment and recovery.
“We are deeply grateful for this exceptional, shared commitment, from two families who have been profoundly devoted to Dana-Farber,” said Dr. Benjamin L. Ebert, president and CEO of Dana-Farber Cancer Institute. “By helping make the future cancer hospital possible, the Bekensteins and Lavines are investing in a fully integrated model of cancer care — one designed around patients and families, powered by scientific innovation, and delivered by teams whose sole focus is cancer.”
The Bekenstein family’s connection to Dana-Farber began in 1993 through the Pan-Mass Challenge, when Anita and Josh rode it for the first time. Josh has now ridden it 33 times and Anita and Josh and their five children have ridden a total of 100 times. Josh is also the current chair of the Dana-Farber Board of Trustees where he has served on the Board since 1997.
“Dana-Farber has been part of our lives for decades, and we have seen firsthand what’s possible when world-class research and patient care come together,” Josh and Anita Bekenstein said in a joint statement. “We are proud to support the future cancer hospital and the remarkable teams at Dana-Farber who care for patients every day while pushing the frontiers of science. This gift reflects our longstanding commitment to Dana-Farber’s mission and our belief that the planned cancer hospital will bring new hope to patients and families for generations.”
The Lavine Family’s decades-long involvement with Dana-Farber began in 1996 with an unrestricted gift of $100, marking the start of a long philanthropic partnership. Jonathan Lavine has served as a Dana-Farber trustee since 2011. He and his wife, Jeannie Lavine, a philanthropic leader and former strategy consultant, served together on the campaign cabinet for The Dana-Farber Campaign.
“Cancer affects everyone — patients and the people who love and care for them,” said Jeannie and Jonathan Lavine who are partnering on the joint gift with the Bekensteins. “This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to reimagine what inpatient cancer care can be. Our support represents our belief in the people of Dana-Farber — the researchers, administrators, and the doctors and nurses on the front lines — and in a model of care that puts patients first. We hope this commitment inspires others to support what’s possible.”
"For generations, Massachusetts has been the global leader in health care innovation and medical research, and Dana-Farber has played an essential role in that legacy," said Governor Maura Healey and First Lady Joanna Lydgate. "Thanks to the tremendous generosity of the Lavine and Bekenstein families, Dana-Farber's future cancer hospital is one step closer to changing lives and delivering expert, compassionate care for patients and their families. We are proud of Dana-Farber and grateful for the Lavine and Bekenstein families' support."
“The City of Boston is profoundly grateful to Josh and Anita Bekenstein and Jeannie and Jonathan Lavine for their extraordinary generosity to realize the vision of the new Dana-Farber cancer hospital,” said Mayor Michelle Wu. “Boston thrives because we continue to reinvest in ourselves as a community that drives scientific research and global advances in human health. This joint gift is a landmark investment in the future of our city and a symbol of hope for millions of cancer patients around the world.”
Situated on the current site of the Joslin Diabetes Center along Brookline Avenue, the planned cancer hospital will be one of only 14 in the United States. The inpatient facility will be supported by a clinical collaboration among Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and Harvard Medical Faculty Physicians. The interlocking campus will connect Dana-Farber and Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center facilities, fostering multidisciplinary care across medical specialties for the patient journey. Construction is expected to begin in mid 2026.
About Dana-Farber Cancer Institute
Dana-Farber Cancer Institute is one of the world’s leading centers of cancer research and treatment. Dana-Farber’s mission is to reduce the burden of cancer through scientific inquiry, clinical care, education, community engagement, and advocacy. Dana-Farber is a federally designated Comprehensive Cancer Center, the founding member of the Dana-Farber Harvard Cancer Center, and a teaching affiliate of Harvard Medical School.
Dana-Farber is the only hospital nationwide with a top 3 U.S. News & World Report Best Cancer Hospital ranking in both adult and pediatric care.
As a global leader in oncology, Dana-Farber is dedicated to an equal emphasis on cancer research and care, translating the results of discovery into new treatments for patients locally and around the world, offering more than 1,200 clinical trials.
About Josh and Anita Bekenstein
Josh and Anita Bekenstein deeply value civic engagement and have had the privilege of supporting many philanthropic initiatives over the years. They believe that many of our most urgent challenges can be solved by supporting strong leaders with innovative and catalytic ideas. They are optimistic that philanthropy can drive transformative and sustainable systems changes which benefit the well-being of all humanity.
About The Lavine Family and The Crimson Lion/Lavine Family Foundation
The Lavine Family and their family foundation, The Crimson Lion / Lavine Family Foundation, and related family charitable entities, work toward leveling the playing field for individuals and families.
The Foundation addresses pressing social challenges in the areas of education, healthcare, workforce development, anti-discrimination, and democratizing information. The Foundation supports the multi-disciplinary efforts of organizations that serve to strengthen civil society through research, innovation, public policy, direct service, and advocacy.
Left to right: Josh Bekenstein, Anita Bekenstein, Benjamin L. Ebert, MD, PhD, Jeannie Lavine, and Jonathan Lavine. Photo Credit: Sasha Pedro
WASHINGTON (AP) — Democrats are threatening to block funding for the Homeland Security Department when it expires in two weeks unless there are “dramatic changes” and “real accountability” for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and other law enforcement agencies who are carrying out President Donald Trump's campaign of federal immigration enforcement in Minnesota and across the country.
Congress is discussing potential new rules for ICE and U.S. Customs and Border Protection after officers shot and killed two Minneapolis protesters in January. Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer and House Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries reiterated their party's demands on Wednesday, with Schumer telling reporters that Congress must “rein in ICE in very serious ways, and end the violence.”
Democrats are “drawing a line in the sand" as Republicans need their votes to continue the funding, Jeffries said.
The negotiations come amid some bipartisan sentiment that Congress should step in to de-escalate tensions over the enforcement operations that have rocked Minnesota and other states. But finding real agreement in such a short time will be difficult, if not “an impossibility," as Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., said Tuesday.
President Donald Trump last week agreed to a Democratic request that funding for the DHS be separated from a larger spending bill and extended at current levels for two weeks while the two parties discuss possible requirements for the federal agents. House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., said this weekend that he was at the White House when Trump spoke with Schumer and that they were “on the path to get agreement.”
But it’s unclear if the president or enough congressional Republicans will agree to any of the Democrats’ larger demands that the officers unmask and identify themselves, obtain judicial warrants in certain cases and work with local authorities, among other asks. Republicans have already pushed back.
And House GOP lawmakers are demanding that some of their own priorities be added to the Homeland Security spending bill, including legislation that would require proof of citizenship before Americans register to vote. South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham and other Republican senators are pushing for restrictions on sanctuary cities that they say don't do enough to crack down on illegal immigration. There’s no clear definition of sanctuary jurisdictions, but the term is generally applied to state and local governments that limit cooperation with federal immigration authorities.
It’s also uncertain if Democrats who are furious over the Trump administration’s increasingly aggressive immigration enforcement operations would be willing to compromise.
“Republicans need to get serious,” Schumer, a New York Democrat, said, adding that they will propose “tough, strong legislation” in the next day.
A look at Democrats’ demands and what Republicans are saying about them:
Republicans say they are open to officer-worn body cameras, a change that was already in the underlying homeland security spending bill. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem backed that up on Monday when she ordered body-worn cameras to be issued to every DHS officer on the ground in Minneapolis, including those from ICE. She said the policy would expand nationwide as funding becomes available.
The bill already directed $20 million to outfit immigration enforcement agents with body-worn cameras.
Gil Kerlikowske, who served as commissioner of U.S. Customs and Border Protection from 2014 to 2017, said that most agents are “very supportive” of cameras because they could help exonerate officers. But he added that complex questions remain, including when footage should be released and when cameras must be activated.
“When do you turn it on? And if you got into a problem and didn’t have it on, are you going to be disciplined? It’s really pretty complex,” he said.
Schumer said Tuesday that the body cameras “need to stay on.”
As videos and photos of aggressive immigration tactics and high-profile shootings circulate nationwide, agents covering their faces with masks has become a flashpoint. Democrats argue that removing the masks would increase accountability. Republicans warn it could expose agents to harassment and threats.
“State law enforcement, local folks don’t do it," said Rep. Bennie Thompson, the top Democrat on the Committee for Homeland Security. "I mean, what’s so special about an ICE law enforcement agency that they have to wear a mask?”
But Republicans appear unlikely to agree.
“Unlike your local law enforcement in your hometown, ICE agents are being doxed and targeted. We have evidence of that,” Johnson said on Tuesday. He added that if you “unmask them and you put all their identifying information on their uniform, they will obviously be targeted.”
Immigration officers are already required to identify themselves “as soon as it is practical and safe to do so,” according to federal regulations. ICE officials insist those rules are being followed.
Critics, however, question how closely officers adhere to the regulations.
“We just see routinely that that’s not happening,” said Nithya Nathan Pineau, a policy attorney with the Immigrant Legal Resource Center.
Democrats have also demanded stricter use of judicial warrants and an end to roving patrols of agents who are targeting people in the streets and in their homes. Schumer said Tuesday that they want “arrest warrants and an end to racial profiling.”
Most immigration arrests are carried out under administrative warrants, internal documents issued by immigration authorities that authorize the arrest of a specific person but do not permit officers to forcibly enter private homes or other non-public spaces without consent. Traditionally, only warrants signed by judges carry that authority.
But an internal ICE memo obtained by The Associated Press last month authorizes ICE officers to use force to enter a residence based solely on a more narrow administrative warrant to arrest someone with a final order of removal, a move that advocates say collides with Fourth Amendment protections.
Democrats have not made clear how broadly they want judicial warrants used. Jeffries of New York said that Democrats want to see “an end to the targeting of sensitive locations like houses of worship, schools and hospitals.”
Johnson said Tuesday that Democrats are trying to “add an entirely new layer” by seeking warrants signed by a judge rather than the administrative warrants that are signed by the department. “We can’t do that,” he said.
The speaker has said that an end to roving patrols is a potential area of agreement, but he did not give details.
Democrats have also called for a uniform code of conduct for all ICE and federal agents similar to that for state and local law enforcement officers.
Federal officials blocked state investigators from accessing evidence after protester Renee Good was shot and killed by an ICE agent on Jan. 7. Gov. Tim Walz, a Democrat, demanded that the state be allowed to take part, saying that it would be “very difficult for Minnesotans” to accept that an investigation excluding the state could be fair.
Any deal Democrats strike on the Department of Homeland Security is unlikely to satisfy everyone in the party. Rep. Ayanna Pressley of Massachusetts said she would never support an agreement that didn't require unmasking.
“I ran for Congress in 2018 on abolish ICE,” Pressley said. “My position has not changed.”
Thune, of South Dakota, has repeatedly said it's an “impossibility” to negotiate and pass something so complicated in two weeks. He said any talks should be between Democrats and Trump.
“I don’t think it’s very realistic," Thune said Tuesday about finding quick agreement. “But there’s always miracles, right?”
Associated Press writer Rebecca Santana contributed to this report.
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., center, confers with Sen. Brian Schatz, D-Hawaii, talk following a Senate Democratic Caucus meeting, at the Capitol in Washington, Tuesday, Feb. 3, 2026. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)
Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., speaks during a news conference after a policy luncheon on Capitol Hill, Tuesday, Feb. 3, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Mariam Zuhaib)
President Donald Trump smiles after signing a spending bill that ends a partial shutdown of the federal government in the Oval Office of the White House, Tuesday, Feb. 3, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)
