What Iris Cantor Taught Me About Building Women’s Health: A Tribute for Women’s Health Month

During Women's History Month, we celebrate pioneers who change the trajectory of women’s lives. Many are clinicians, researchers, or advocates.

But some of the most transformative advances in women’s health have been made possible by another group entirely: visionary philanthropists who see what should exist—and help make it real.

One of those people was Iris Cantor, who recently passed away.

I had the privilege of working closely with Iris when we created the Iris Cantor–UCLA Women’s Health Center at University of California, Los Angeles.

At the time, comprehensive women’s health centers were still a relatively new idea. Together with a remarkable group of faculty colleagues deeply committed to advancing women’s care, we began planning what such a center could look like.

Our goal was simple but transformative: design care around women’s lives.

We envisioned a place where women could receive coordinated care in one location—what we often called “one-stop shopping.” Preventive care and specialty services were integrated in a seamless way for the patient. Research informed our practice.  An educational center was also part of that vision, because empowering women with knowledge is just as important as delivering excellent clinical care.

The model proved successful, and the center was later designated a Center of Excellence in Women’s Health, part of a national program established by Susan Blumenthal, founding director of the DHHS Office on Women's Health and a pioneer in advancing women’s health nationally.

But vision alone does not build institutions.

Philanthropy does.

Iris understood this deeply. Her generosity gave the university the ability—and the confidence—to create something truly special. But what made Iris remarkable wasn’t simply her financial support. She was deeply engaged in shaping these spaces.

Iris believed that environment matters in health care. She wanted women to feel welcomed, respected, and cared for the moment they walked through the door. She had an extraordinary eye for detail and was involved down to the design elements.

I remember her noticing that the transition where the marble floor met the carpet could pose a fall hazard. She caught things many of us would have missed—not because she was being critical, but because she believed women deserved spaces designed thoughtfully for their safety, comfort, and dignity.

She was demanding. But she was also accessible, collaborative, and deeply committed to getting it right.

And she didn’t do this only in Los Angeles. Through her philanthropy, Iris helped create and support women’s health centers across the country, helping establish the idea that women’s health deserves dedicated spaces, specialized care, and serious institutional investment.

Yet I don’t believe she has received the recognition she truly deserves.

When we talk about progress in women’s health, we often focus on clinicians, scientists, and policymakers. But another group quietly makes that progress possible: benefactors who recognize a vision and help bring it to life.

Across the country philanthropy continues to propel women’s health forward.  The Nuttall Women’s Health is funding research and investments to accelerate discoveries in women’s health. Pivotal Ventures, founded by Melinda French Gates, has catalyzed national attention and investment in women’s health and economic equity. The Steven & Alexandra Cohen Foundation is investing in innovative models of care that recognize midlife as a critical stage of health.

Health systems have also been transformed through philanthropy. The Katz Institute for Women's Health at Northwell Health, founded by Iris and Saul Katz has helped redefine how large systems organize care around women. And at NYU Langone Health, the Mignone Women's Health Collaborative, made possible by philanthropists Allison and Roberto Mignone, is advancing research, clinical care, and innovation across the lifespan.

Progress in women’s health often depends on partnerships between clinicians, researchers, institutions—and the philanthropists willing to invest in new possibilities.

They create the conditions for innovation.

They challenge institutions to think bigger.

And they help make possible the care women deserve.

I’m grateful I had the opportunity to work with Iris, learn from her, and help bring one of those visions to life. As a very junior faculty member at the time, I didn’t yet realize how profoundly her support would shape my career—so this is my way of saying “thank you”.

Iris Cantor’s name appears on the centers she helped create.

But her true legacy is the care women will receive inside them for generations to come.

If we want the next generation of breakthroughs in women’s health, we will need more leaders—clinicians, innovators, and visionary philanthropists—willing to help build what comes next.

May her memory be for a blessing.