Our History
Until 1992, there wasn’t even a research institute dedicated to women’s health and reproductive biology. Today, we are the largest, creating new health care models on every level—from a tiny gene to whole national populations.
UPMC Magee-Womens Hospital
On January 19, 1911, Mrs. Alfred Birdsall delivered the first baby at a makeshift hospital in the home of Christopher Lyman Magee. Today, UPMC Magee-Womens Hospital is a regional and national leader in women’s and infants' health care. Nearly 9,000 babies are born at Magee each year. And the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) is one of the largest in the country.
Our relationship with the hospital gives us some important research assets—including the Magee Obstetric Maternal and Infant (MOMI) Database and Biobank—and lets us move our discoveries more quickly into the clinic.
Irma's Mission
Irma Goertzen, CEO of UPMC Magee-Womens Hospital, recruits Dr. Jim Roberts to lead four basic scientists dedicated to women’s health issues. They aren’t playing catchup with other research institutes—they are forging something entirely new.
A New Home
Magee-Womens Research Institute moves from a small wing in the hospital to a newly remodeled building across the street. The open labs encourage what is now 25 basic scientists to cross boundaries, challenge conventional thinking, and pursue creative solutions.
Nothing Like It Anywhere
Little did we know it at the time, but this year marks the beginning of what would become a unique and very powerful women’s health research tool: the Magee Obstetric Maternal and Infant (MOMI) Database and Biobank.
The Next Generation
We receive NIH funding to establish a BIRCWH (Building Interdisciplinary Research Careers in Women’s Health) program, a selective, mentored program connecting junior investigators with senior faculty who share similar research interests.
Number One
This is a big year. A $31 million, 70,000 square-foot expansion enables us to recruit 100 additional scientists, researchers, and clinicians—including collaborating investigators from the University of Pittsburgh.
Dr. Yoel Sadovsky is appointed scientific director, and we achieve #1 in NIH funding for reproductive health research.
Joining Forces
The new Women’s Cancer Research Center, a unique collaboration between Magee-Womens Research Institute and the UPMC Hillman Cancer Center, opens their doors with a mission: to put themselves out of a job.
Another First
We advance global collaboration by hosting the first Magee-Womens Research Summit. The $1 million Magee Prize, one of the largest medical prizes in the world, is awarded for groundbreaking, life-changing women’s health research.
What the Future Holds
A cure for ovarian cancer?
The end to HIV and AIDS?
Zero maternal and infant mortality?
Anything is possible when the country’s largest women’s research institute partners with a world-class women’s hospital.
For more than a century, UPMC Magee-Womens Hospital has been caring for women through all stages of their lives.
Read MoreOur partnerships come in all shapes and sizes, helping us leverage our collective expertise to push health care forward.
Read MoreA culture second to none for extraordinary discovery is composed of many of today’s greatest minds in women’s health.
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“I think our job as educators is to get people to think beyond the boundaries about what reproductive medicine could look like tomorrow.”