Roughly five years ago, Purdue upset Ohio State in convincing fashion. Purdue superfan Tyler Trent, who was diagnosed with rare bone cancer osteosarcoma, was in the stands for this nationally-televised game.
Unfortunately, Trent passed away less than three months after Purdue’s win over Ohio State. Although he’s no longer with us, Purdue is doing its best to honor him.
During this Saturday’s game against Ohio State, Purdue announced the establishment of its Tyler Trent Pediatric Cancer Research Center.
Nearly 5 years after Tyler Trent’s passing from a rare bone cancer, #Purdue University is making sure the devoted Boilermaker football fan will live on through research to cure his disease. https://t.co/au3FTlNMCK pic.twitter.com/IEA4cAsYV2
— Purdue Institute for Cancer Research (@PUCancerInst) October 14, 2023
Andy Mesecar, the Walther Professor in Cancer Structural Biology, provided some details on this research center.
“The Purdue Institute for Cancer Research leverages the strengths of faculty and student researchers in specialized areas of engineering, veterinary medicine, nutrition science, chemistry, pharmacy and biological sciences, applying them in new ways to better understand childhood cancers and develop new diagnostics and treatments,” Mesecar said. “The new Tyler Trent center and the interdisciplinary research that take place here will set us apart from other pediatric cancer research centers. Our combination of scientific talent is uniquely Purdue.There is really nothing else like this.”
This truly is an incredible gesture by Purdue.
Hopefully, this allows Tyler Trent’s legacy to live on for years to come.